SOAR telescope
Encyclopedia
The Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope (SOAR) is a modern 4.1-meter-aperture optical and near-infrared telescope located on Cerro Pachón
, Chile
at 2,738 meters elevation. It was commissioned in 2003, and is operated by a consortium including the countries of Brazil
and Chile
, Michigan State University
, the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
(CTIO) (part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory
, NOAO), and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
.
The telescope attains median image quality 0.7 arcsec at 0.5 μm wavelength. Multiple instruments are available on standby, mounted at Nasmyth
and bent-Cassegrain
foci. Switching is accomplished within a few minutes by rotating the 45° tertiary mirror. This mirror is adjusted at high speed to prevent image blur from vibrations induced by wind-shake of the telescope structure.
Current (2/2011) instruments are
Additional instruments are scheduled to be commissioned in 2011
US astronomers access the telescope remotely over the Abilene Network
. Chilean and Brazilian astronomers use their high-speed networks. An on-site operator controls where the telescope points while the remote astronomer controls the instrument and data retrieval.
The $28 million dollar telescope produces images that rival the clarity of the Hubble Space Telescope. The SOAR telescope dome is a $2 million dollar, 66 feet (20.1 m), weatherproof structure weighing over 70 tons.
Cerro Pachón
Cerro Pachón is a mountain located close to Chilean city of Vicuña and 10 km southeast of the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, at an altitude of 2,715 m over the sea level in the foothills of the Andes. The location is exceedingly dry, making it suitable for infrared observations....
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
at 2,738 meters elevation. It was commissioned in 2003, and is operated by a consortium including the countries of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
and Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
, the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory
The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory is a complex of astronomical telescopes and instruments located at 30.169 S, 70.804 W, approximately 80 km to the East of La Serena, Chile at an altitude of 2200 metres. The complex is part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory along with Kitt...
(CTIO) (part of the National Optical Astronomy Observatory
National Optical Astronomy Observatory
The National Optical Astronomy Observatory is the United States national observatory for ground based nighttime ultraviolet-optical-infrared astronomy. The National Science Foundation funds NOAO to provide forefront astronomical research facilities for US astronomers...
, NOAO), and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
.
The telescope attains median image quality 0.7 arcsec at 0.5 μm wavelength. Multiple instruments are available on standby, mounted at Nasmyth
Nasmyth telescope
The Nasmyth telescope, also called Nasmyth-Cassegrain, is a reflecting telescope developed by James Nasmyth. It is a modified form of a Cassegrain telescope, mounted on an alt-azimuth mount.-Scheme:...
and bent-Cassegrain
Cassegrain reflector
The Cassegrain reflector is a combination of a primary concave mirror and a secondary convex mirror, often used in optical telescopes and radio antennas....
foci. Switching is accomplished within a few minutes by rotating the 45° tertiary mirror. This mirror is adjusted at high speed to prevent image blur from vibrations induced by wind-shake of the telescope structure.
Current (2/2011) instruments are
- UV–optical 16-million pixel imager (SOI, CTIO)
- near-infrared (1–2.4 μm wavelength) 1-million pixel HgCdTe imager and spectrograph (OSIRIS, Ohio State University/CTIO)
- UV–optical 16-million pixel imager and spectrograph (Goodman Spectrograph, UNC)
- near-infrared (1–2.4 μm wavelength) 16-million pixel HgCdTe imager (SPARTAN, MSU)
Additional instruments are scheduled to be commissioned in 2011
- adaptive optics module (SAM, CTIO)
- UV–optical 16-million pixel integral-field spectrograph (SIFS, Brazil)
US astronomers access the telescope remotely over the Abilene Network
Abilene Network
Abilene Network was a high-performance backbone network created by the Internet2 community in the late 1990s. In 2007 the Abilene Network was retired and upgraded network was known as the "Internet2 Network".-History:...
. Chilean and Brazilian astronomers use their high-speed networks. An on-site operator controls where the telescope points while the remote astronomer controls the instrument and data retrieval.
The $28 million dollar telescope produces images that rival the clarity of the Hubble Space Telescope. The SOAR telescope dome is a $2 million dollar, 66 feet (20.1 m), weatherproof structure weighing over 70 tons.
External links
- SOAR home site
- Brazil SOAR pages
- MSU SOAR pages
- UNC SOAR pages
- Case History - Structural Adequacy of the Dome