EOS Technologies and EOS Space Systems have developed a unique and cost effective telescope, enclosure and transport system for imaging interferometry applications, using experience gained over a decade of telescope, enclosure and site equipment design and construction. Telescope and enclosure design details, a unique transport system for relocation for telescopes between stations in an interferometric array, and deployment to difficult sites are shown.
Dome C is probably the best accessible site on earth for infrared interferometry, but siting an interferometer on the Antarctic plateau poses significant technical problems. EOS Technologies has studied how existing interferometric telescopes can be adapted to the Antarctic environment, having completed a design study for the Pathfinder for an International Large Optical Telescope (PILOT), and has proposed a unique technique for manufacturing delay lines on site, from prefinished coil stock. Modifications to EOST's standard 2m class telescopes are discussed, including lubrication options and differential expansion of materials assembled at room temperature and cooled to -70°C, as well as continuous, high precision delay line construction, using patented rotary sizing technology.
The USNO 61" (1.55 m) astrometric reflector was state-of-the-art when it entered service in 1964. However, with a relatively small aperture, it now has limited research capability because it can not observe faint objects. The current facility, including dome and pier, offers significant resources upon which to build a larger telescope. Preliminary estimates indicate that a 3.5 m telescope could be retrofitted into the dome at a cost of ~$10-15 million; about half the cost of building on a new site. USNO has contracted with an engineering firm to perform a feasibility study of such a telescope upgrade, the results of which are summarized.
EOS Technologies has been commissioned to design and build a unique 2.4m astronomical telescope for the Magdalena
Ridge Observatory. This telescope utilizes a high quality primary mirror and cell from a now decommissioned military
application. This paper describes the project and gives an overview of the telescope design.
The Magdalena Ridge Observatory (MRO) 2.4 meter telescope will be primarily utilized to observe, track, and
characterize solar system astronomical targets, Earth satellites, space vehicles, and terrestrial military targets. The
telescope's rapid tracking (slew rates are 10o/sec) will allow it to move to any target and acquire data within one minute
of receipt of notice. In this way, the telescope will be used to capitalize on targets of opportunity that occur in asteroid
studies (e.g., Near Earth Objects) and in astrophysics, such as gamma ray bursts and other transient phenomena. Planned
instrumentation includes a CCD imager, and a low-resolution, wide-band Visible/IR spectrograph (Ryan et al. 2002).
Both of these instruments will facilitate characterization studies of asteroids and space objects.
The SkyMapper wide field telescope is currently in production by EOS and is scheduled for first light in Q1 2007. This telescope will produce high quality images over a 3.4 degree diameter flat field for wavebands from 310 nm to 1000 nm. This paper discusses the optical and opto-mechanical design and tolerancing of the SkyMapper Telescope.
This paper describes a random vibration, finite element analysis (FEA), performed on the Gemini Laser Launch Telescope (LLT) using ANSYS. A highly detailed model, originally created for static analysis, served as a baseline model but required extensive simplification to be used for random vibration analysis. A reduced spectrum PSD was also required. This paper describes the simplification process and summarizes the results of the analysis.
This paper describes the preliminary optomechanical design and analysis of the Gemini Adaptive Optics Bench being built by EOS Technologies, Inc. The overall optical arrangement is described, the optical tolerances are discussed, and an overview of the optomechanical packaging is provided. Emphasis is placed on integrated modeling of the optomechanical system to predict the effect of mechanical deformation on optical performance
EOS Technologies has completed four 1.8m telescopes that are to be used in the NASA/JPL Interferometer. The 1.8m telescopes (Outriggers) will form the workhorse of the interferometric system. This paper presents some of the performance data obtained during the Telescope Factory Acceptance Tests showing some of the best telescope performance ever achieved with a telescope of this class.
The Gemini Laser Launch Telescope will reside behind the secondary support structure of the Gemini 8m telescope, where it will expand an incoming sodium laser beam to 450 mm diameter and launch it into the sky, co-axial to the main telescope. The tight space and stringent performance specifications have required some innovative approaches in optical and mechanical design.
Segmented mirror telescopes take advantage of modular design to achieve large apertures at low cost. This paper describes the segment mount developed for the Southern African Large Telescope. The mount provides passive precision support for the optics, kinematic registration to the primary mirror truss, precision tip-tilt and piston adjustments, and interchangeability between segments and mounts. A trial production run of mounts is now in fabrication prior to full production of 91 units needed to populate the SALT primary.
We describe a multi-element refractive corrector for the prime focus of the proposed Lowell four-meter telescope. The design provides sub-half arcsecond images over a two-degree field of view, with a flat image surface and images that are confocal across a broad wavelength band covering the U to I spectral range. Initial studies cover the feasibility of fabrication and explore the possibility of a simple atmospheric dispersion corrector.
In the year 2000, EOS Technologies, Inc. of Tucson, Arizona will complete six two-meter class telescopes for astronomy. Applications for these telescopes range from monitoring of active-galactic nuclei to the search for extra-solar planets. Four of the telescopes will form part of the Keck International Project. These telescopes meet the highest tracking and axis interaction specifications ever attempted in a two-meter class telescope. Each of these telescopes is capable of fully remote-control and semi-autonomous operation.
The Gemini project is an international collaboration to design, fabricate, and assemble two 8 M telescopes, one on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, the other on Cerro Pachon in Chile. The telescopes will be national facilities designed to meet the Gemini Science Requirements (GSR), a document developed by the Gemini Science Committee (GSC) and the national project scientists. The Gemini telescope group, based on Tucson, has developed a telescope structure to meet the GSR. This paper describes the science requirements that have technically driven the design, and the features that have been incorporated to meet these requirements. This is followed by a brief description of the telescope design. Finally, analyses that have been performed and development programs that have been undertaken are described briefly. Only the designs that have been performed by the Gemini Telescope Structure, Building and Enclosure Group are presented here; control, optical systems, acquisition and guiding, active and adaptive optics, Cassegrain rotator and instrumentation issues are designed and managed by others and will not be discussed here, except for a brief description of the telescope configurations to aid subsequent discussions.
The Gemini project is an international collaboration between the USA, United Kingdom, Canada, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil, to design, fabricate and assemble two 8 M telescopes, one on Mauna Kea in Hawaii, the other on Cerro Pachon in Chile. The telescopes will be national facilities designed to meet the Gemini Science Requirements, a document developed by the Gemini Science Committee. This paper describes the design considerations that influence the scientific performance of the enclosure and support facility, and the features that have been incorporated to meet the demanding science requirements, particularly the 0.026 arc sec allowance for `enclosure seeing'. A description of the Gemini enclosure, support facilities and site plans for Mauna Kea is given here together with a brief description of the analysis and testing that has been performed to establish the performance of the facility.
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