Hexapod-Telescope
Encyclopedia
Telescope
A telescope is an instrument that aids in the observation of remote objects by collecting electromagnetic radiation . The first known practical telescopes were invented in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 1600s , using glass lenses...
mounting developed by engineers of the company Vertex in collaboration with astronomers of the Astronomy Department of the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (AIRUB) in Germany.
Instead of the classical mounting using two axles, the mirror is supported by six extensible struts (hexapod
Stewart platform
A Stewart platform is a type of parallel robot that incorporates six prismatic actuators, commonly hydraulic jacks. These actuators are mounted in pairs to the mechanism's base, crossing over to three mounting points on a top plate. Devices placed on the top plate can be moved in the six degrees...
). This configuration allows the telescope to move in all six spatial degrees of freedom and also provides strong structural integrity. As a result, the ratio of bearing pressure and its own weight is very high. Furthermore, the six-leg structure allows for a very precise positioning and repeatability. The disadvantage of the system is that controlling hexapods is much more complex than conventional telescope mountings.
Led by Prof. Rolf Chini, the HPT was thoroughly tested in Bochum
Bochum
Bochum is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area and is surrounded by the cities of Essen, Gelsenkirchen, Herne, Castrop-Rauxel, Dortmund, Witten and Hattingen.-History:...
. In 2006, it was moved to its new location in Cerro Armazones
Cerro Armazones
Cerro Armazones is a mountain located in the Sierra Vicuña Mackenna of the Chilean Coast Range, approximately 130 km south-east of Antofagasta in the Antofagasta Region, Chile. It has a height of 3,064 m and is located in a privileged zone for optical astronomy since it receives almost 350...
in the Atacama desert in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
. In collaboration with the Astronomy Department of the University in Antofagasta, AIRUB is constructing a new observatory there. A new control building was built for the HPT.
Together with the Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl
Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl
The Heidelberg-Königstuhl State Observatory is an historic astronomical observatory located near the summit of the Königstuhl hill in the city of Heidelberg in Germany...
, AIRUB is developing a spectrograph called BESO. It is a copy of the FEROS spectrograph which is being successfully operated by the European Southern Observatory
European Southern Observatory
The European Southern Observatory is an intergovernmental research organisation for astronomy, supported by fifteen countries...
.
Further reading
- Theodor Schmidt-Kaler: The Hexapod Telescope: A New Way to Very Large Telescopes. In: Progress in Telescope and Instrumentation Technologies, ESO Conference and Workshop Proceedings, ESO Conference on Progress in Telescope and Instrumentation Technologies, ESO, Garching, 27–30 April 1992, Garching: European Southern Observatory (ESO), 1992, edited by Marie-Helene Ulrich, p.117