A joint Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science and Astronomy graduate seminar to explore the science and technology of the next generation of giant astronomical telescopes.

Agenda

• Welcome
• Introductions
• Class purpose and motivation
• Organization
• Content
• Resources

Welcome

• James R. Graham (jrg@astro.berkeley.edu)
• Andrew Packard (pack@me.berkeley.edu)
• Sign-up sheet (names & email addresses)

Class motivation and purpose

• Understand science drivers for huge telescopes (> 10 m diameter)
• Understand factors determining telescope performance
• Fundamental physics
• Environmental factors
• Terrestrial atmosphere
• Engineering feasibility and cost
• Understand the engineering principles and relevent technology
• For a decade UC (with Caltech) has operated the twin 10-m Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea
• Where do we go next?

Organization

• Graduate seminar
• Lectures
• Student led sessions
• Sign up now with Packard or Graham for the choice topics!
• Guest speakers
• Full participation from all attendees
• Term projects
• Class web page

Content

Resources

• Books
• Schroeder, D. Astronomical Optics, Academic Press
• Web
• California Extremely Large Telescope
• GSMT led byAURA's New Initiatives Office ,
• OWL
• EURO 50

• KI &KII are the world's largest OIR ground based telescopes
•  KI has been in operation for a decade.

• Science Highlights
• Cosmology
• Deuterium abundance
• Accelerating universe
• Gunn-Peterson effect
• Galaxy evolution
• Ly-break galaxies
• Most distant galaxies and quasars
• DEEP
• High angular resolution
• Galactic center black hole
• Infrared interferometry of evolved stars
• Planets and solar systems
• Precision radial velocity
• The enormous potential of the next generation of large optical/IR telescopes was recognized by the National Research Council's Astronomy and Astrophysics Survey Committee,
• Recommended the construction of a 30-meter telescope as its highest priority large project among ground-based initiatives for the next decade.
• The 30-meter as currently envisioned will use a Keck-style segmented primary mirror.
• The University of California is studying concepts for the next generation of large telescopes, and has proposed that the Keck-style segmented design be applied to a 30 meter diameter telescope.
• The CELT (California Extremely Large Telescope) is a design concept for the next generation of very large optical/infrared telescopes.
• Other large telescopes projects include:
• US national study of GSMT led byAURA's New Initiatives Office ,
• European OWL
• EURO 50

• Astronomy progress strongly tracks the deployment of new telescopes with increasing aperture
• Galileo
• Herschel
• Lick & Yerkes
• Mt Wilson & Palomar
• Keck, VLT, Gemini, Subaru

• Power of an astronomical telescope is a strong function of the diameter of the primary mirror
• ~ D² - D⁴ depending on application
•  Keck has perfected the scalable segmented-mirror technology

 

• CELT increases
• Angular resolution by x3
• Speed by 10-100, depending on application
• CELT key science goal
• Direct imaging of planets and searches for terrestrial planets
• Chemical evolution and star formation histories in nearby galaxies
• Probing galactic nuclei
• The history of galaxies from z=1-5
• Tomography of the Ly-alpha forest
• Exploration of the  Dark Ages

• Initial UC-TMT (ten meter telescope) technical study led by Nelson et al. at LBL
• Funding by Keck Foundation led to formation of CARA
• Keck Blue Book published in 1984
• Initially UC/Caltech, later joined by NASA (1/6th partner) for KII
• Instrument development
• LLNL
• AO, F/25 secondary, mirror coatings
• Lick
• HIRES, ESI, DEIMOS
• Palomar
• LRIS, NIRC, NIRC2
• UCLA IR Lab
• NIRSPEC, SHARC, OSIRIS
• UCSD
• LWS, HIRES image rotator
• SSL
• LWIRC

•    High level CELT technical review of Phase I study
• Details in CELT Green Book: http://celt.ucolick.org/
• Atkinson/Baltimore meeting to discuss 70M$ design study phase
• Caltech and UC submit Phase A proposals late 2002

• Use expertise in mechanical structures and control systems to design the mirror segment supports and the telescope superstructure
• RAL
• EE
• MechE
• LBNL
• Optics
• SSL
• Develop novel detectors for astronomical instruments and adaptive optics
• Academic departments (Astronomy & Physics Depts)
• SSL
• LBNL
• Data management & archiving
• SSL & LBNL