GALLERY
Here we show some of the optics we have fabricated over the years. Click on the links to learn more about them.
DESI
DESI (Dark Energy Survey Instrument) is a large lens system situated near the prime focus of the 4-m Mayall telescope on Kitt Peak. We fabricated 2 of the 6 elements of the system, the ADC (atmospheric dispersion corrector) lenses. These are 2, 800 mm diameter, NBK-7 lenses that are slightly wedged so that by rotating them against each other atmospheric dispersion can be corrected at various object altitudes. Learn more at: www.desi.lbl.gov.
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Pan-STARRS
Primary and Secondary Mirrors
The Pan-STARRS (Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System) telescopes are twin 1.8 m telescopes sited on Haleakala, Hawaii. Their primary mission is the detection of NEO's (near earth objects) utilizing their 1.4 Gpx cameras and wide field of view. We fabricated the 1.8 m primaries and the 1 m secondaries for both telescopes. Learn more at:
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Pan-STARRS
Wide Field Corrector Lenses
Each of the Pan-STARRS telescopes incorporates a 3-element wide-field corrector that provides a well corrected FOV of 7 square degrees. The lenses are made from fused silica and range in size from 560 mm to 620 mm in diameter. Two of the lenses have one surface that is aspheric. Each of the lenses was final tested in transmission using a computer-generated hologram (CGH) to create a null test.
NEID
Spectrograph Primary Mirror
NEID is a state-of-the-art spectrograph installed on the 3.5 m WIYN telescope on Kitt Peak. It is designed to conduct high-precision radial velocity observations of exoplanets orbiting nearby stars. ROC fabricated the 560 x 444 mm rectangular off-axis parabolic primary mirror for the spectrograph. Meeting the system performance required a very low scatter surface (defect free) and high smoothness of the optical surface figure. For more information go to: https://neid.psu.edu/
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KMT
The KMT or the Korean Microlensing Telescopes are three, 1.6 m telescopes sited at CTIO in Chile, SSO in Australia and SAAO in South Africa. Their primary purpose is performing exoplanet search using the microlensing method. For all three telescopes ROC fabricated the 1.6 m primary mirrors as well as the largest lens in the 4 element wide field corrector system.
For more on KMT: http://kmtnet.kasi.re.kr/kmtnet-eng/
2MASS
From 1997-2001 the 2MASS project utilized twin 1.3 m telescopes, one in the northern hemisphere at Mt. Hopkins in Arizona, and the other in the southern hemisphere at CTIO in Chile, to map the entire sky in the near-IR. ROC fabricated the primary and secondary mirrors for both telescopes. More information and images from this highly successful program can be found at: https://old.ipac.caltech.edu/2mass/
Automated Planet Finder 2.4 m Telescope
The Automated Planet Finder Telescope is a 2.4 m telescope sited on Mt. Hamilton in California, home of the Lick Observatory. The telescope is equipped with a high resolution spectrograph for the purpose of using high-precision radial velocity measurements to detect exoplanets. ROC fabricated the 2.4 m primary mirror. For more information see:
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Catalina Sky Survey 1.5 m Spacewatch 0.9 m
Telescopes
The Spacewatch 0.9 m telescope is the oldest telescope on Kitt Peak, built in 1923. In 2002 ROC fabricated a new, lightweight primary mirror for the telescope using a mirror blank cast by Wangsness Optics. The instrument's primary mission is the detection of near-earth asteroids (NEA's), in particular the detection of PHA's, potentially hazardous asteroids. More information can be found at www.spacewatch.lpl.arizona.edu where there is included a wonderful set of pictures of the original telescope. ROC also fabricated a 1 m primary mirror for Spacewatch as well as refigured the 1.5 m telescope primary mirror for the Catalina Sky Survey sited on Mt Lemmon near Tucson.
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Yunnan 2.4 m
Telescope
The Yunnan Telescope is a 2.4 m Ritchey-Chretien telescope located at the Lijiang Observatory in southwest China. It is one of the largest optical telescopes in China and is used with a wide variety of instruments for a range of astronomical observations primarily in the visible. ROC fabricated both the 2.4 m primary and the 0.9 m secondary mirrors. More information about the telescope can be found at: http://english.ynao.cas.cn/ and a view from a visitors perspective can be found at:
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Himalayan Chandra 2 m
Telescope
The Himalayan Chandra Telescope is a 2 m telescope sited on Mt. Saraswati in Hanle, India operated by the Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO). ROC fabricated both the 2 m primary mirror and the 0.42 m double-arch secondary mirror. More information can be found at: https://www.iiap.res.in/iao/cycle4.html
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MAGNUM 2 m
Telescope
MAGNUM or Multicolor Active Galactic Nuclei Monitoring project utilized a 2 m telescope sited on Haleakala, Maui, Hawaii. The telescope, operated by the University of Tokyo, observed AGN's (quasars, blazars) from 2000-2008. ROC fabricated the 2 m primary mirror and the 0.42 m secondary mirror. More information can be found at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multicolor_Active_Galactic_Nuclei_Monitoring
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Pomona College 1 m
Telescope
The Pomona College 1 m telescope sits atop Table Mountain at NASA's JPL facility in Southern California where students at Pomona and the other Claremont Colleges can pursue astronomical research. ROC fabricated both the 1 m primary mirror and the 0.25 m secondary mirror. More information about the telescope can be found at:
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1 m Lenses for a
Camera Obscura
One of the world's largest camera obscuras is located at the Visitors Center for the Mt. Graham International Observatory at Discovery Park on the campus of EAU in Safford, AZ. The camera incorporates 2, 1 m diameter lenses that project an image of the mountain on a 12 x 5 foot screen. ROC fabricated both lenses for the camera. More information can be found at:
Chabot Observatory
36" Telescope (Nellie)
Chabot Observatory is a principal part of the Chabot Space and Science Center located in the East Bay outside of Oakland, CA.The observatory has 3 telescopes, one of which is a 36" aperture cassegrain that is used for public viewing. The 36", named "Nellie", is one of the largest public viewing telescopes in the country. ROC fabricated both the primary and secondary mirrors. More information can be found at:
