Mechanical design considerations for a 3m class fast pointing telescope

M. Riva; F. Bortoletto; C. Bonoli; V. De Caprio; P. Spanó; S. Covino; E. Molinari; F. Vitali; M. Zannoni; G. Chincarini

doi:10.1117/12.857202

5 August 2010 Mechanical design considerations for a 3m class fast pointing telescope

M. Riva, F. Bortoletto, C. Bonoli, V. De Caprio, P. Spanó, S. Covino, E. Molinari, F. Vitali, M. Zannoni, G. Chincarini

Proceedings Volume 7733, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes III; 77330X (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.857202
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2010, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

A number of scientific observations take advantage of the use of robotic, fast pointing telescopes; in particular, fast reacting small telescopes were especially useful for gamma ray burst follow-up which now require better performances and greater telescope size. However, increasing telescope size could imply some limitations in terms of operability and technological solutions. In order to select the best telescope configuration it is necessary to take into account mechanical set up, pointing strategy, wind effects and the resulting effective costs. This paper will investigate and compare the characteristics of traditional alt-az and alt-alt telescope configurations considering also an innovative alt-alt set up to be developed as an alternative to the mainstream layout of present medium class telescopes. In the alt-alt case the system exploits the heritage of larger telescope projects like LBT, coupled with a more traditional fork mounted to match the alt-alt kinematics, so obtaining a more stable machine and minimizing the blind spot limitation.

Citation Download Citation

M. Riva, F. Bortoletto, C. Bonoli, V. De Caprio, P. Spanó, S. Covino, E. Molinari, F. Vitali, M. Zannoni, and G. Chincarini "Mechanical design considerations for a 3m class fast pointing telescope", Proc. SPIE 7733, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes III, 77330X (5 August 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.857202

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available