Autumn 2024

First observational Scientific results published from first-light observations

17 Jun 2024

Start of standdown for investigation of spectrograph misalignment

31 Oct 2023

Inauguration of WEAVE and start of regular LIFU science observations

Apr 2023

LIFU commissioning completed

12 Dec 2022

First light observations presented

Nov 2022

Science observations start

Aug 2022

First light on WEAVE. Commissioning starts

25 May 2022

WEAVE mounted on the prime focus

Jul 2021

WEAVE gets primed for on-sky commissioning

Mar 2021

Red detector arrives at the WHT

Dec 2020

Blue detector arrives at the WHT

Dec 2020

Positioner arrives at the WHT

Sep 2020

First light on the Prime Focus Corrector

Aug 2020

Spectrograph arrives at the WHT

Jun 2020

Prime Focus Corrector arrives at the WHT

Feb 2020

LIFU completed

Feb 2020

MOS fibres installation on Plate A

Mar 2019

Rotator arrives at the WHT

29th29-30th 30 Jan 2019

WEAVE SPA meeting 8, Groningen

20th20-21st 21 Sep 2018

WEAVE Galactic Archaeology team meeting, Naples

17th17-20th 20 Sep 2018

WEAVE All-Hands Meeting 2018: Naples

2nd2-3rd 3 Jul 2018

WEAVE SPA meeting 7, Cagliari

Jun 2018

Operational Rehearsal 3

22 Jun 2018

First light using the new WHT TCS

30th30-31st 31 Jan 2018

WEAVE SPA meeting 6, IAC, Tenerife

11th 11 Jan 2018

WEAVE WRS FDR, Bilbao

30th 30 Nov 2017

WEAVE WCS FDR, Barcelona

27th27-1st 1 Dec 2017

Week of WEAVE 2017: Galactic Archaeology team meeting, Barcelona

13th13-27th 27 Nov 2017

 WEAVE Engineering Stand-down 4

1st-3rd 3 Nov 2017

 WEAVE All-Hands Meeting 2017: Groningen

26th26-28th 28 Sep 2017

 WEAVE AIT meeting, Schiphol

13th13-14th 14 Sep 2017

 WEAVE PRI system AIT workshop at RAL

12th12-13th 13 Jul 2017

 WEAVE-QSQ team meeting, Marseille

29th29-30th 30 Jun 2017

 WEAVE SPA team meeting 5, Cambridge

13th13-14th 14 Jun 2017

 WEAVE SCIP team meeting, Alicante

12th12-19th 19 Jun 2017

 WEAVE Engineering Stand-down 3

 5th  5 May 2017

 Fibre Positioner dFDR

 8th  8 Mar 2017

Observatory Control System Final Design Review

19th19-21st 21 Nov 2016

WEAVE All-Hands Meeting 2016, Cambridge

13th 13 Dec 2016

IAC publishes tender to deliver the instrument rotator

28th Nov 28Nov 2016

Week of WEAVE meeting at the Lorentz Center, Leiden

10th Nov 10Nov 2016

SPA meeting 4

9th Nov 9Nov 2016

FDR for the WEAVE Archive System (WAS) at Groningen

4th 4 Oct 2016

WEAVE Operational Rehearsal 1 held at Groningen

Aug 2016

IAC tender to deliver an assembled PFC is published

19th19-20th 20 Jul 2016

The WHT flip ring was removed from the WHT and successfully reinstalled. This was carried out as a demonstration in preparation for the arrival of WEAVE.  This was the first time in the history of the telescope that this ring had been separated from its support structure.  Read more about this here.

Mar 2016

Final funding announcement for IAC (FEDER, 1.8M€)

Mar 2016

Fibre Retractors Complete

Mar 2016

PRI lens 4 ready for coating

Mar 2016

FTS delivered to IAC

Feb 2016

Positioner contract placed with Schunk

Jan 2016

PRI Trolleys delivered to WHT

20th20-21st 21 Jan 2016

Jan Galactic Archaeology Science Team Meeting

Nov 2015

PFC Blank 2 delivered to Kiwistar

20th20-21st 21 Oct 2015

Fibre System FDR

19th19-20th 20 Oct 2015

Science and Survey Strategy Review

23rd-24th 24 Sep 2015

PRI Focus Translation System FDR

Sep 2015

PFC Blank 5 delivered to Kiwistar

28th 28 Aug 2015

PRI Trolleys FDR

8th 8 Jun 2015

MultiLateral Agreement is now fully signed by all agencies

3rd 3 Jun 2015

Franche Comté provides funds for WEAVE fibres

27th27-29th 29 May 2015

WEAVE Science Planning meeting at Leiden

15th 15 May 2015

Engineering grade CCD231-C6 delivered by e2V

23rd 23 Apr 2015

PDR for Archive System

23rd 23 Apr 2015

FDR Core and Advanced Processing System

18th 18 Mar 2015

FDR for Spectrograph System

Mar 2015

Conference: "Multi-Object Spectroscopy in the Next Decade: Big Questions, Large Surveys and Wide Fields"

22nd Jan 2015

FDR for Fibre Positioner System

Nov 2015

PFC Blank 2 delivered to Kiwistar

19th 19 Dec 2014

PFC Blank 1 delivered to Kiwistar

2nd Dec 2014

PFC Blank 3 delivered to Kiwistar

3rd 3 Nov 2014

PFC Blank 4 delivered to Kiwistar

22nd Jul 2014

France's Conseil Scientifique Régional d'Île-de-France approves funds for WEAVE

28th 28 Jun 2014

WEAVE well-represented at SPIE in Montreal

26th 26 Jun 2014

Spain's Plan Nacional approves funds for WEAVE

13th 13 Jun 2014

Kiwistar selected to polish PFC lenses

10th 10 Jun 2014

PDR of the CPS/APS

30th 30 Apr 2014

Blank for PFC lens 1 ordered

29th 29 Apr 2014

Spain's FEDER committee approves funds for WEAVE

11th 11 Apr 2014

Published tender for PFC lens polishing and coating

30th 30 Mar 2014

Science CCDs ordered from e2v

25th 25 Mar 2014

Full UK funding released by STFC

25th 25 Mar 2014

WEAVE Board meeting in Rome. Attended by INAF Directors following the agreement to include Italy in the project.

20th 20 Feb 2014

First MOS fibre prototype received

12th 12 Feb 2014

Final design stage mid-term assessment

31st 31 Jan 2014

Positioner PLC received

30th 30 Jan 2014

Spectrograph optical final design review

24th 24 Jan 2014

Prime focus corrector blank (B6) has been completed

19th 19 Dec 2013

Successful Gaia launch

15th 15 Nov 2013

Five of the six prime-focus corrector blanks are ordered

7th 7 Nov 2013

STFC's Science Board recommends full funding for WEAVE

6th 6 Sep 2013

STFC PPRP visiting panel at RAL Space

9th 9 Jul 2013

Final prime-focus optical design FDR

3rd-4th 4 Jul 2013

STFC PPRP meeting

30th 30 Apr 2013

STFC PPRP funding proposal submitted

22nd22-23rd 23 May 2013

WEAVE Engineering meeting to close preliminary design stage (Stage Two) and initiate final design stage (Stage three)

19th19-20th 20 Mar 2013

Preliminary design completion

21st 21 Feb 2013

NWO (Dutch Science Foundation) awards 960 k€ for WEAVE hardware to Prof.dr. S.C. Trager (WEAVE NL PI, Project Scientist, and Deputy PI) through its NWO-M programme.  See this page for a short description of the project (in Dutch)

18th 18 Feb 2013

Preliminary Design Review (PDR) documentation delivered to reviewers.  PDR will be held in Madrid 19-20 Mar 2013

Oct 2012

Workshop: "La Palma and Calar Alto Observatories, Science in the Next Decade"

11th 11 Oct 2012

NWO (Dutch Science Foundation) Board of Exact Sciences approves 2M€ for staff costs connected to WEAVE design and construction in the period 2012-2015

26th26-27th 27 Jun 2012

WEAVE project stage II Mid-Term Assessment meeting in Liverpool. Project progressing as desired

17th17-18th 18 Apr 2012

WEAVE Engineering meeting in Amsterdam. Conceptual designs discussed and moved towards preliminary designs

13 Feb 2012

ING science strategy 2013-2022 released

2nd Jan 2012

Start of WEAVE project stage II, in which preliminary designs are developed

2012

Funds received from Île-de-France for prototyping MOS fibres

19th 19 Dec 2011

End of WEAVE project stage I. Final science cases delivered

3rd 3 Oct 2011

Start of WEAVE project stage I, in which the user requirements will be captured. Final science cases and a concept-of-operations document will be delivered by 16 Dec

22nd22-23rd 23 Sep 2011

WEAVE kick-off meeting in Amsterdam. Engineering session on Thursday 22nd Sep. Science session on Friday 23rd Sep

13th 13 Jul 2011

STFC's PPAN (Particle Physics, Astronomy and Nuclear Physics) science committee states that WEAVE is one of the highest priorities for UK investment in new groundgrou-based astronomical instrumentation, and recommends that STFC provides support through the design phase

14th 14 Apr 2011

Presentation about WEAVE made to STFC's PPAN (Particle Physics, Astronomy and Nuclear Physics) science committee by Gavin Dalton (RAL)

31st 31 Jan 2011

'Statement of interest' submitted to STFC. The partners are STFC, the University of Oxford, LJMU, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, ASTRON, Observatoire de Paris, Lund University and ING

11th 11 Jan 2011

Piercarlo Bonifacio and team join the WEAVE consortium following the closure of the GYES project

30th 30 Nov 2010

Conceptual designs of the new prime-focus corrector for the WHT, and of the spectrograph components, were presented at the WEAVE engineering meeting, Heathrow

14th 14 Oct 2010

Proposed WHT MOS instrument named as WEAVE (WHT Enhanced Area Velocity Explorer)

1st 1 Oct 2010

Letter of intent submitted to ESO for the construction of a MOS on the WHT

26th 26 Apr 2010

"WHT MOS Science Group meeting", London

Mar 2010

Workshop: "Science with the William Herschel Telescope 2010-2020"

Sep 2008

Report by the European Telescope Strategic Review Committee of ASTRONET on "Europe's 2-4m Telescopes Over the Decade to 2020"