PIONIER open to the community 

  • In P93 and P94, ESO users have the possibility to submit proposals for PIONIER provided they have the agreement of the instrument PI (JB Le Bouquin, IPAG). Observations can only be carried out in Visitor Mode (VM) or in delegated Visitor Mode (dVM) in the case of runs shorter than 1 night. Large or Monitoring programmes with PIONIER will not be accepted. The PIs applying for time should understand that ESO offers its support as a best effort basis. ESO's instrumentation staff ensure PIONIER's refilling and alignment. However, ESO shall not be held responsible for the technical downtime due to PIONIER operation. The PIONIER PI team shall not be held responsible for the technical downtime either and offers its support on a best effort basis. However technical dowtime with PIONIER is relatively rare and that ESO support astronomers are now trained to handle most of issues.
  • In P96, PIONIER will be offered in service and visitor mode with the same level of support as any ESO instrument. ESO users are welcomed to submit their proposals with the normal system.

Performances and technical information

  • Limiting magnitudes: 3-channels H=7.5 ; 1-channels H=8 ; 7-channels H=6.5
  • Calibration accuracy: standard = {eV2=10%, eCP=2.5deg} ; high precision (>2h per targets, H<6) = {eV2=2.5%, eCP=0.5deg}
  • Exposure time calculator: 1 point = SCI-CAL = 0.5h

Data archive and Data Reduction Software 

  • PIONIER's data are stored in the ESO archive and subject to the usual proprietary period of 12 months.
  • The data reduction software (pndrs) produces calibrated oifits files. The DRS is freely available, with a proper documentation.
  • Support and/or training can be provided by coming to IPAG. Please contact JB Le Bouquin.
  • You need the last version of yoco(yorick routines and plugins) and pndrs(pionier pipeline). To install them: cd ~/yoco/distrib ; ./install.sh ; cd ~/pndrs/distrib ; ./install.sh ;

Documentation 

  • The Operational Manual includes the functional description of the instrument, and all aspect of operations. It is mainly focused for the VLTI Support Team: PNR-MAN-OperationManual.pdf
  • The User Manual and PNDRS Manual explains how to prepare the observations, the calibration plan, how to build OBs. It also contains a cookbook for the data reduction with the "pndrs" package: is available in the operational manual PNR-MAN-PNDRS.pdf
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