Telescope mount models correct telescope pointing by compensating for repeatable errors. Geometric misalignments and manufacturing errors account for most of the repeatable variation. The pointing performance of a telescope depends strongly on the ability to accurately estimate the repeatable errors in the presence of other sources of uncertainty. This paper reviews the factors contributing to uncertainty in pointing models and describes an approach to eliminating one common but controllable cause of model degradation.

Date Published: 16 September 2004
PDF: 9 pages
Proc. SPIE 5497, Modeling and Systems Engineering for Astronomy, (16 September 2004); doi: 10.1117/12.550753

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 5497:
Modeling and Systems Engineering for Astronomy
Simon C. Craig; Martin J. Cullum, Editor(s)