![]() ![]() ![]() TMT officials say that once complete, it is expected to produce images that are three times sharper than images from the existing Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea and 12 times sharper than even the Hubble Space Telescope. The technologies for building segmented-mirror telescopes and for adaptive optics corrections were pioneered by UC scientists and have been realized in the extremely successful Keck Observatory telescopes. Special adaptive optics will correct for the blurring of Earth’s atmosphere, enabling the TMT to study the universe as clearly as if the telescope were in space. Its primary mirror will be comprised of 492 individually segmented mirrors that will work together as a single reflective surface 30 meters across - a size slightly larger than a basketball court. ![]() TMT scientists and engineers, including those affiliated with UC, have been working for years on the design of the telescope. Groundbreaking on the eight-year project is expected to occur later this spring, with the telescope becoming fully operational by 2022.Īlong with allowing UC astronomers to collaborate internationally, the telescope "promises to revolutionize our understanding of the universe, and will benefit the eight UC campuses that have vibrant astronomy and astrophysics programs,’’ said UC spokesman Steve Montiel. Keck Observatory that UC has operated with Caltech since 1993. The Thirty Meter Telescope will stand atop the Mauna Kea volcano on the island of Hawaii, near the W.M. The project - which has been spearheaded by UC and the California Institute of Technology since 2003 - will be built and run by a consortium of universities and scientific organizations from Canada, China, India and Japan. Once complete, the TMT will be the largest and most powerful land-based optical/infrared telescope on Earth. That epic quest took a big step forward Thursday when the Board of Regents approved UC’s financial participation in the development and operation of the Thirty Meter Telescope, commonly known at the TMT. The University of California is on a mission to revolutionize humankind’s understanding of the cosmos, by building the world’s most powerful telescope. ![]()
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