The VIPERS project is mapping the distribution of galaxies in the distant Universe. It uses the VIMOS spectrograph on the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope (ESO VLT) in Chile. By fall 2014, the programme will have measured nearly 100,000 galaxy spectra, each with a precise redshift measurement.
This figure shows the four detectors of the VIMOS instrument. Galaxies are chosen for spectroscopy from the potential targets (circles). The spectrograph will disperse the light from the galaxies to form a spectrum to be recorded on the detector. The vertical rectangles indicate where the spectra will appear, so targets must be chosen in a way such that they do not overlap. The spectra of up to 400 galaxies can be measured in a single exposure.
Typical spectra of distant galaxies in the VIPERS sample.
Further reading
- VIPERS website http://vipers.inaf.it/
- The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS): an unprecedented view of galaxies and large-scale structure halfway back in the life of the Universe Guzzo, L., & VIPERS Team, 2013, The ESO Messenger, 151, 39. In press. Download available
- The VIMOS Public Extragalactic Redshift Survey (VIPERS): An unprecedented view of galaxies and large-scale structure at 0.5 < z < 1.2 Guzzo, L., & VIPERS Team, 2013, A&A, submitted. Preprint download available