Pan-STARRRS Status and Geo Observations Results

Abstract : Pan-STARRS, Panoramic Survey Telescope And Rapid Response System, is an astronomical telescope developed through a cooperative agreement between University of Hawaii/Institute for Astronomy and the Air Force Research Laboratory which utilizes MIT/LL-developed orthogonal transfer arrays. While its primary mission is investigating astronomical transient phenomena, 5% of the telescope time is allocated for AFRL Geo Research. The combination of its high sensitivity (21st Magnitude), wide field of view (7 square degrees), and high metric accuracy (1arcsec), provides AFRL a unique capability to assess the Faint Geo Population. In its survey mode, many of the faint objects are detected as they streak across the focal plane. For a significant portion of these objects, the streak will not be entirely detected due to gaps, masking, and low signal levels. This talk will discuss the various methodologies for computing detection magnitudes in these scenarios and present observation results.