  The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is a new optical time-domain survey that
uses the Palomar 48-inch Schmidt telescope. A custom-built wide-field camera
provides a 47 deg$^2$ field of view and 8 second readout time, yielding more
than an order of magnitude improvement in survey speed relative to its
predecessor survey, the Palomar Transient Factory (PTF). We describe the design
and implementation of the camera and observing system. The ZTF data system at
the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center provides near-real-time reduction
to identify moving and varying objects. We outline the analysis pipelines, data
products, and associated archive. Finally, we present on-sky performance
analysis and first scientific results from commissioning and the early survey.
ZTF's public alert stream will serve as a useful precursor for that of the
Large Synoptic Survey Telescope.
