The exponential growth in exoplanet studies is a powerful reason for developing very large optical systems optimized for narrow-field science. Concepts which cross the boundary between fixed aperture telescopes and interferometers, combined with technologies that decrease the system moving mass, can violate the cost and mass scaling laws that make conventional large-aperture telescopes relatively expensive. Here we describe a concept which breaks this scaling relation in a large optical/IR system called “Colossus”1.

Date Published: 22 July 2014
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 9145, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes V, 91451G (22 July 2014); doi: 10.1117/12.2056594

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9145:
Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes V
Larry M. Stepp; Roberto Gilmozzi; Helen J. Hall, Editor(s)