====== APO-SONG first light ======
 
This page describes some of the initial spectra and testing of the full SONG node over the first month or so of observations.

**October 1, 2025** around 9:00pm local MDT was the first night where starlight went from the telescope through the focal plane unit into the 80-meter 50 micron fiber, into the spectrograph and onto the detector. Jon Holtzman and Chas Miller were at APO in the operations building. Jason Jackiewicz, Travis Metcalfe, and Jessica Klusmeyer were on Zoom. **The first target was Deneb**. 

{{ :test:firstlight:song_firstlight_deneb_orders.png?direct&400 |deneb}}

The above image is a screenshot of the data viewer during the Zoom call, showing a few orders of the Deneb spectrum.