The Large Millimeter Telescope

F. Peter Schloerb

doi:10.1117/12.791296

10 July 2008 The Large Millimeter Telescope

F. Peter Schloerb

Proceedings Volume 7012, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes II; 70120S (2008) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.791296
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2008, Marseille, France

Abstract

This paper, presented on behalf of the Large Millimeter Telescope (LMT) project team, describes the status and near-term plans for the telescope and its initial instrumentation. The LMT is a bi-national collaboration between Mexico and the USA, led by the Instituto Nacional de Astrofísica, Optica y Electronica (INAOE) and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, to construct, commission and operate a 50m-diameter millimeter-wave radio telescope. Construction activities are nearly complete at the 4600m LMT site on the summit of Sierra Negra, an extinct volcano in the Mexican state of Puebla. Full movement of the telescope, under computer control in both azimuth and elevation, has been achieved. First-light at centimeter wavelengths on astronomical sources was obtained in November 2006. Installation of precision surface segments for millimeter-wave operation is underway, with the inner 32m-diameter of the surface now complete and ready to be used to obtain first light at millimeter wavelengths in 2008. Installation of the remainder of the reflector will continue during the next year and be completed in 2009 for final commissioning of the antenna. The full LMT antenna, outfitted with its initial complement of scientific instruments, will be a world-leading scientific research facility for millimeter-wave astronomy.

Citation Download Citation

F. Peter Schloerb "The Large Millimeter Telescope", Proc. SPIE 7012, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes II, 70120S (10 July 2008); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.791296

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