This is my least favorite part: packing everthing up, getting organized, finding all of our lost allen wrenches, and taking a zip-tie inventory.
![If you haven't stopped worrying by now, you haven't been paying attention.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/laird_breakfast.jpg)
The ASM came off the telescope yesterday, and rode down the hill first thing this morning.
![Sleep tight . . . and don't let the earthquakes shake.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/asm_backs_up.jpg)
The last major operation was to unbolt and crane the NAS off the telescope.
![Details.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/juan_procedure.jpg)
![PhD in Astrophysics. Tenured. Ass kicked by 4 wire lifting harness.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/laird_harness.jpg)
![heave ho](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/nas_hung.jpg)
Once the NAS came off, we got a look at the W-Unit for the first time in a few weeks. Here’s our wollaston beamsplitter, which helped deliver some amazing SDI science at visible wavelengths.
![Sometimes Kapton is the best option.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/wollaston.jpg)
Kate, who is using the VisAO SDI mode to study disks around young stars, had never actually seen the fully assembled instrument before. Here’s a picture of me and Kate after a quick tour of the components she’s been operating the last few nights.
![A simultaneous, but non-differential, image. SNDI?](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/jared_kate.jpg)
![Top Gun in reverse](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/nas_back_down.jpg)
We also cleaned up some of our, shall we say, less rigorous engineering solutions.
![Well decorated.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/katie_garbage.jpg)
Laird’s folks happened to wander by today (why are you surprised? it’s not like we’re on a mountain top in a remote area of South America or anything). As is his wont, Laird put them to work settling the ASM into the clean room. I hear they helped flip it back to zenith. Perhaps even more appreciated was a chocalate fix for certain members of the team who didn’t plan very well.
![Sometimes things happen, and the chocalate supply doesn't last as long as you plan.](/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/chocalate.jpg)
Quote of the day:
“We should come up with something that looks less like garbage. I mean, it’s well decorated garbage. But.” – Povilas Polunas.