Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

The Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory; it is his largest field office and is near Amado (Arizona ) on the slopes of Mount Hopkins. It was founded in 1968.

Instruments

The observatory houses the MMT Observatory, which is operated in conjunction with the University of Arizona and is home to a reflecting telescope with a diameter of 6.5 m.

Other telescopes are

  • A 1.5 m telescope,
  • A 1.2 m telescope,
  • And a 1.3 m telescope.

The latter bears the name PAIRITEL (Peters Automated IR Imaging Telescope ), which was originally for the Two Micron All Sky Survey ( 2MASS ) was used.

On the premises and the Infrared optical telescope array ( IOTA ), which is used by many institutions and the Hungarian Automated Telescope ( HAT) is located.

Special recognition has reached the observatory in the study of astronomical high-energy gamma radiation, for example in 1984 with the development of an imaging Cherenkov telescope ( Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope, IACT ).

Four kilometers east of the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS ), a gamma-ray observatory is composed of four 12 m telescopes (31 ° 40 '30 " N, 110 ° 57 ' 8" W31.675058333333 - 110.95215833333 ).

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