The laser guide star facility for the Thirty Meter Telescope
Abstract
The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) will utilize adaptive optics to achieve near diffraction-limited images in the near-infrared using both natural and laser guide stars. The Laser Guide Star Facility (LGSF) will project up to eight Na laser beacons to generate guide stars in the Earth's Na layer at 90 - 110 km altitude. The LGSF will generate at least four distinct laser guide star patterns (asterisms) of different geometry and angular diameter to meet the requirements of the specific adaptive optics modules for the TMT instruments. We describe the baseline concept for this facility, which draws on the heritage from the systems being installed at the Gemini telescopes. Major subsystems include the laser itself and its enclosure, the optics for transferring the laser beams up the telescope structure and the asterism generator and launch telescope, both mounted behind the TMT secondary mirror. We also discuss operational issues, particularly the required safety interlocks, and potential future upgrades to higher laser powers and precompensation of the projected laser beacons using an uplink adaptive optics system.
Additional Information
© 2006 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the TMT partner institutions. They are the Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy (ACURA), the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), the California Institute of Technology and the University of California. This work was supported, as well, by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which is operated by AURA under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, and the National Research Council of Canada.Attached Files
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 95636
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20190521-100633617
- Association of Canadian Universities for Research in Astronomy (ACURA)
- Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)
- Caltech
- University of California
- Canada Foundation for Innovation
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO)
- NSF
- Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation
- National Research Council of Canada
- Created
-
2019-05-21Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
-
2021-11-16Created from EPrint's last_modified field
- Caltech groups
- Thirty Meter Telescope
- Series Name
- Proceedings of SPIE
- Series Volume or Issue Number
- 6272