SHARP -- A spectrograph proposal to fully exploit ELT capabilities and look beyond JWST
Abstract
The Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs), with their large apertures and cutting-edge Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) systems, promise to deliver data that is both sharper and deeper than even the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) across large fields. SHARP is a concept study for a near-IR (0.95-2.45 μm) spectrograph specifically designed to fully exploit the collecting area and angular resolution capabilities of the upcoming ESO's ELT. The instrument concept is driven by the goal of tackling the most important questions in astrophysics and cosmology, from exploring primordial galaxies to studying the formation of young stellar object and planetary systems in the nearby dust-enshrouded regions, bridging the gap between the local and the distant Universe. This requires versatility to accommodate diverse observational needs. SHARP is composed of two main units: NEXUS, a Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) optimized for detecting the faintest sources, and VESPER, a multi-object Integral Field Unit (multi-IFU) designed for brighter ones. This article provides an overview of the scientific design drivers, the solutions developed to meet them, and the resulting optical design that achieves the required performance.
Versions
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BibTeX
@misc{saracco2026sharp,
title = {{SHARP -- A spectrograph proposal to fully exploit ELT capabilities and look beyond JWST}},
author = {P. Saracco and P. Conconi and C. Arcidiacono and H. Mahmoodzadeh and I. Di Antonio and E. Portaluri and P. Franzetti and A. Gargiulo and I. Arosio and L. Barbalini and G. Lops and E. Molinari and J. M. Alcala and S. Bisogni and R. Bonito and E. Bortolas and M. Cantiello and A. Caratti o Garatti and E. Cascone and V. Cianniello and E. M. Corsini and F. Damiani and F. D'Ammando and F. D'Alessio and E. Dalla Bonta and M. DallOra and V. De Caprio and G. De Lucia and B. Di Francesco and G. Di Rico and V. D'Orazi and C. Eredia and A. R. Gallazzi and M. G. Guarcello and L. Izzo and F. La Barbera and M. M. Lippi and M. Longhetti and A. Longobardo and C. Mancini and M. Mirabile and E. Piconcelli and A. Pizzella and L. Podio and L. Prisinzano and C. Tortora and G. Vietri and F. Vitali and H. -F. Wang and S. Zibetti},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2606.30721},
eprint = {2606.30721},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.30721},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - SHARP -- A spectrograph proposal to fully exploit ELT capabilities and look beyond JWST
AU - P. Saracco
AU - P. Conconi
AU - C. Arcidiacono
AU - H. Mahmoodzadeh
AU - I. Di Antonio
AU - E. Portaluri
AU - P. Franzetti
AU - A. Gargiulo
AU - I. Arosio
AU - L. Barbalini
AU - G. Lops
AU - E. Molinari
AU - J. M. Alcala
AU - S. Bisogni
AU - R. Bonito
AU - E. Bortolas
AU - M. Cantiello
AU - A. Caratti o Garatti
AU - E. Cascone
AU - V. Cianniello
AU - E. M. Corsini
AU - F. Damiani
AU - F. D'Ammando
AU - F. D'Alessio
AU - E. Dalla Bonta
AU - M. DallOra
AU - V. De Caprio
AU - G. De Lucia
AU - B. Di Francesco
AU - G. Di Rico
AU - V. D'Orazi
AU - C. Eredia
AU - A. R. Gallazzi
AU - M. G. Guarcello
AU - L. Izzo
AU - F. La Barbera
AU - M. M. Lippi
AU - M. Longhetti
AU - A. Longobardo
AU - C. Mancini
AU - M. Mirabile
AU - E. Piconcelli
AU - A. Pizzella
AU - L. Podio
AU - L. Prisinzano
AU - C. Tortora
AU - G. Vietri
AU - F. Vitali
AU - H. -F. Wang
AU - S. Zibetti
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/04
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2606.30721
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.30721
AB - The Extremely Large Telescopes (ELTs), with their large apertures and cutting-edge Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) systems, promise to deliver data that is both sharper and deeper than even the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) across large fields. SHARP is a concept study for a near-IR (0.95-2.45 μm) spectrograph specifically designed to fully exploit the collecting area and angular resolution capabilities of the upcoming ESO's ELT. The instrument concept is driven by the goal of tackling the most important questions in astrophysics and cosmology, from exploring primordial galaxies to studying the formation of young stellar object and planetary systems in the nearby dust-enshrouded regions, bridging the gap between the local and the distant Universe. This requires versatility to accommodate diverse observational needs. SHARP is composed of two main units: NEXUS, a Multi-Object Spectrograph (MOS) optimized for detecting the faintest sources, and VESPER, a multi-object Integral Field Unit (multi-IFU) designed for brighter ones. This article provides an overview of the scientific design drivers, the solutions developed to meet them, and the resulting optical design that achieves the required performance.
ER -