MIRADAS - THE NEXT-GENERATION NEAR-INFRARED SPECTROGRAPH FOR THE GTC

We describe the Mid-resolution InfRAreD Astronomical Spectrograph (MIRADAS) being developed by the MIRADAS Consortium institutions (including the University of Florida, Universidad de Barcelona, Universidad. Complutense de Madrid, Instituto Astrofisica de Canarias, Institut de Fisica d' Altes Energies, Institut d' Estudis Espacials de Catalunya and Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico) for the Gran Telescopio Canarias. MIRADAS is the most powerful astronomical instrument of its kind ever envisioned. The combination of the collecting area of GTC and the multi-object mid-resolution near-infrared spectra provided by MIRADAS make its capabilities unparalleled for addressing some of the leading scientific challenges of the coming decades, with an observing efficiency more than an order of magnitude greater than current capabilities for 10-meter-class telescopes. We briefly review the science drivers for the instrument, the basic design features, and the current status of the instrument development.