http://arxiv.org/abs/1604.02446
Upgrades at the 2.3 meter Wyoming Infrared Observatory telescope have provided the capability for fully-remote operations by a single operator from the University of Wyoming campus. A line-of-sight 300 Megabit/s 11 GHz radio link provides high-speed internet for data transfer and remote operations that include several real-time video feeds. Uninterruptable power is ensured by a 10 kVA battery supply for critical systems and a 55 kW autostart diesel generator capable of running the entire observatory for up to a week. Construction of a new four-element prime-focus corrector with fused-silica elements allows imaging over a 40′ field-of-view with a new 4096×4096 UV-sensitive prime-focus camera and filter wheel. A new telescope control system facilitates the remote operations model and provides 20” rms pointing over the usable sky. Taken together, these improvements pave the way for a new generation of sky surveys supporting space-based missions and flexible-cadence observations advancing emerging astrophysical priorities such as planet detection, quasar variability, and long-term time-domain campaigns.
J. Findlay, H. Kobulnicky, J. Weger, et. al.
Mon, 11 Apr 16
5/52
Comments: 28 pages, 11 figures
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