Abstract
SALT’s first generation instrumentation will be ideally suited to stellar astrophysical studies, both in our own Galaxy and in nearby galaxies. This paper will describe the design, capabilities and status of the instruments, emphasizing those modes and niches that will impact stellar astronomy. The first‐light ‘visible beam’ (320–900nm) instruments, the imaging camera, SALTICAM, and the imaging spectrograph, PFIS, are due to begin commissioning observations later in 2004/early 2005. The latter will be the work‐horse instrument on SALT in the near future, and contains many modes appropriate for stellar observational astronomy, namely low to medium resolution spectroscopy and spectropolarimetry, Fabry‐Perot imaging spectroscopy, narrow band imaging, and imaging polarimetry. Both instruments will support high time resolution observations, one of the niche areas of stellar astrophysics. The last of the first generation instruments will be a fibre‐fed double‐beam high resolution white‐pupil R4 echelle spectrog...
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