CMAP: a mobile 7th telescope at the CHARA Array

Nicholas J. Scott; Edgar R. Ligon III; Rainer Koehler; Narsireddy Anugu; Christopher Farrington; Gail Schaefer; Douglas Gies; Theo ten Brummelaar; Nils Turner; Craig Woods; Victor Castillo; Steve Golden

doi:10.1117/12.3018516

28 August 2024 CMAP: a mobile 7th telescope at the CHARA Array

Nicholas J. Scott, Edgar R. Ligon III, Rainer Koehler, Narsireddy Anugu, Christopher Farrington, Gail Schaefer, Douglas Gies, Theo ten Brummelaar, Nils Turner, Craig Woods, Victor Castillo, Steve Golden

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 13095, Optical and Infrared Interferometry and Imaging IX; 130951U (2024) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3018516
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2024, Yokohama, Japan

Conference Poster

Abstract

The CHARA Array has added a 7th telescope to extend the existing 6 telescope array. The CHARA Michelson Array Pathfinder (CMAP) includes a 1m Planewave RC Telescope mounted in a custom designed mobile trailer and pier system. The telescope and trailer can be placed at multiple locations around the Mount Wilson Observatory site; each site consisting of a flat concrete pad with a novel pier design. Optical fibers will connect each site to the CHARA optical delay and combiner lab. This enables new short baselines of ∼17m for imaging the surfaces of large stars and new long baselines on the order of ∼600m for resolving small stars. There are two sites developed at the array for this telescope. In the future, there are plans to expand the array to greater than 1 km maximum baselines. These baselines will be used in conjunction with the existing 15 baselines that range from 34 to 331m. Moving such a telescope around the observatory presents some unique challenges. The telescope can make use of the same optical delay lines and beam combiners as the other CHARA Array telescopes.

(2024) Published by SPIE. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Citation Download Citation

Nicholas J. Scott, Edgar R. Ligon III, Rainer Koehler, Narsireddy Anugu, Christopher Farrington, Gail Schaefer, Douglas Gies, Theo ten Brummelaar, Nils Turner, Craig Woods, Victor Castillo, and Steve Golden "CMAP: a mobile 7th telescope at the CHARA Array", Proc. SPIE 13095, Optical and Infrared Interferometry and Imaging IX, 130951U (28 August 2024); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3018516

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