The Large Binocular Camera image simulator: predicting the performances of LBC

Abstract

The LBC (Large Binocular Camera) Image Simulator is a package for generating artificial images in the typical FITS format. It operates on real or artificial images, simulating the expected performances of real instruments including several observing conditions (filters, air-mass, flat-field, exposure time) and creating images with the LBC instrumental artifacts (optical deformations, noise, CCD architectures). This simulator can be used also to produce artificial images for other existing and future telescopes, since it is very flexible on its structure. The main aim of LBCSIM is to support the development of pipeline and data analysis procedure able to cope with wide field imaging and fast reduction of huge amount of photometric data. The software consists of three stand alone programs written in C language, using IRAF and running under Linux OS. The LBC Image Simulator is built with particular attention to the Virtual Observatory and Data Grid applications. In this paper, we first describe the software, the performances and several tests carried out before the public release and some examples for the users. In particular, we compared the Hubble Deep Field South (HDFS) as seen by FORS1 with a simulated image and found that the agreement is good. Then, we use this software to predict the expected performances of the LBC instrument by means of realistic simulations of deep field observations with the LBT telescope.