The la sillaquest Kuiper Belt survey

Abstract

We describe the instrumentation and detection software and characterize the detection efficiency of an automated, all-sky, southern-hemisphere search for Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) brighter than Rmag 21.4. The search relies on Yale University's 160Megapixel QUEST camera, previously used for the successful surveys at Palomar that detected most of the distant dwarf planets, and now installed on the ESO 1.0m Schmidt telescope at La Silla, Chile. Extensive upgrades were made to the telescope control system to support automation, and significant improvements were made to the camera. To date, 63 new KBOs have been discovered, including a new member of the Haumea collision family (2009 YE7) and a new distant object with an inclination exceeding 70° (2010 WG9). In a survey covering ∼7500deg 2, we have thus far detected 77KBOs and Centaurs, more than any other full-hemisphere search to date. Using a pattern of dithered pointings, we demonstrate a search efficiency exceeding 80%. We are currently on track to complete the southern-sky survey and detect any bright KBOs that have eluded detection from the north. © 2012. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.