Keck I Laser Guide Star AO System Integration

With the much anticipated delivery of the Lockheed Martin Coherent Technology Quasi-CW laser, the W. M. Keck Observatory was able to complete the installation and integration of the Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics System on the Keck I telescope. The Keck I LGSAO system was developed to provide redundancy for the Keck II system as well as balancing the instrumentation load between the two telescopes and interferometers. With the improved sodium coupling efficiency of the laser and a center launching system, the Keck I laser performance is expected to exceed those on the Keck II system.We present the challenges of integrating the Keck I Laser Guide Star Adaptive Optics System on an operational telescope. We will present issues and performance data related to the primary subsystem components such as the laser itself, the Selex Galileo Avionica launch telescope, the Mitsubishi fiber transport, and the Adaptive Optics System. The paper will also focus on the integration and testing performed at the W. M. Keck headquarters as well as the summit of Mauna Kea. We will present initial first light performance of the Keck I LGSAO System and compare those to the existing Keck II LGSAO System.