Mr. Martin Cordova Profile

Martin Cordova

at Gemini Observatory

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Author

Publications (5)

Proceedings Article | 16 August 2016 Paper

Gemini Observatory base facility operations: systems engineering process and lessons learned

Andrew Serio, Martin Cordova, Gustavo Arriagada, Andy Adamson, Madeline Close, Dolores Coulson, Atsuko Nitta, Arturo Nunez

Proceedings Volume 9911, 99110U (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2231831

KEYWORDS: Ferroelectric materials, Gemini Observatory, Systems engineering, Observatories, Telescopes, Safety, Control systems, Clouds, Document management, Cameras

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Proceedings Article | 15 August 2016 Paper

Requirements management for Gemini Observatory: a small organization with big development projects

Madeline Close, Andrew Serio, Martin Cordova, Kayla Hardie

Proceedings Volume 9911, 99111G (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2230853

KEYWORDS: Gemini Observatory, Systems engineering, Observatories, Ferroelectric materials, Telescopes, Control systems, Process engineering, Astronomy, Systems modeling, Astronomical telescopes

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Proceedings Article | 10 August 2016 Paper

Management aspects of Gemini's base facility operations project

Gustavo Arriagada, Atsuko Nitta, A. Adamson, Arturo Nunez, Andrew Serio, Martin Cordova

Proceedings Volume 9911, 99111R (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2232124

KEYWORDS: Ferroelectric materials, Observatories, Earthquakes, Gemini Observatory, Telescopes, Control systems, Photonic integrated circuits, Safety, Document management, Sensors

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Gemini’s Base Facilities Operations (BFO) Project provided the capabilities to perform routine nighttime operations without anyone on the summit. The expected benefits were to achieve money savings and to become an enabler of the future development of remote operations.

The project was executed using a tailored version of Prince2 project management methodology.

It was schedule driven and managing it demanded flexibility and creativity to produce what was needed, taking into consideration all the constraints present at the time: Time available to implement BFO at Gemini North (GN), two years.

The project had to be done in a matrix resources environment.

There were only three resources assigned exclusively to BFO.

The implementation of new capabilities had to be done without disrupting operations.

And we needed to succeed, introducing the new operational model that implied Telescope and instrumentation Operators (Science Operations Specialists - SOS) relying on technology to assess summit conditions.

To meet schedule we created a large number of concurrent smaller projects called Work Packages (WP).

To be reassured that we would successfully implement BFO, we initially spent a good portion of time and effort, collecting and learning about user’s needs. This was done through close interaction with SOSs, Observers, Engineers and Technicians.

Once we had a clear understanding of the requirements, we took the approach of implementing the "bare minimum" necessary technology that would meet them and that would be maintainable in the long term.

Another key element was the introduction of the "gradual descent" concept. In this, we increasingly provided tools to the SOSs and Observers to prevent them from going outside the control room during nighttime operations, giving them the opportunity of familiarizing themselves with the new tools over a time span of several months. Also, by using these tools at an early stage, Engineers and Technicians had more time for debugging, problem fixing and systems usage and servicing training as well.

Proceedings Article | 9 August 2016 Paper

Meeting the challenges of bringing a new base facility operation model to Gemini Observatory

Atsuko Nitta, Gustavo Arriagada, A. Adamson, Martin Cordova, Arturo Nunez, Andrew Serio, Scot Kleinman

Proceedings Volume 9911, 99111Q (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2232084

KEYWORDS: Gemini Observatory, Telescopes, Systems modeling, Ferroelectric materials, Observatories, Phase modulation, Systems engineering, Lead, Environmental monitoring, Control systems

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Proceedings Article | 15 July 2016 Paper

Gemini base facility operations environmental monitoring: key systems and tools for the remote operator

Martin Cordova, Andrew Serio, Francisco Meza, Gustavo Arriagada, Hector Swett, Jesse Ball, Paul Collins, Neal Masuda, Javier Fuentes

Proceedings Volume 9910, 99101X (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2231708

KEYWORDS: Gemini Observatory, Telescopes, Photonic integrated circuits, Safety, Electronics, Observatories, Space telescopes, Large telescopes, Optical instrument design

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