Desenho conceptual da MOONS. Copyright: ESO/MOONS Consortium.

MOONS is the Multi-Object Optical and Near-infrared Spectrograph, a future third-generation instrument for the Very Large Telescope (VLT), to have first light by 2019. It matches an enormous multiplexing capability, reaching up to 1000 positions being spectroscopically observed at the same time over a single telescope pointing, to the grasp of the 8.2m VLT, making it a unique instrument for deep galaxy surveys. The key science goals are the study of galaxy formation and evolution over the entire history of the Universe, from our Milky Way, through the redshift desert and up to the epoch of re-ionization at z>8-9. The IA has a co-PI of MOONS, and also contributes with a substantial instrumentation effort, being in charge of the field corrector.

Contact at IA: José Afonso