We present the technical status of the Ultra Lightweight Telescope for Research in Astronomy (ULTRA) program. The program is a 3-year Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program funded by NSF. The MRI is a collaborative effort involving Composite Mirror Applications, Inc. (CMA), University of Kansas, San Diego State University and Dartmouth College. Objectives are to demonstrate the feasibility of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) composite mirror technology for ground-based optical telescopes. CMA is spearheading the development of surface replication techniques to produce the optics, fabricating the 1m glass mandrel, and constructing the optical tube assembly (OTA). Presented will be an overview and status of the 1-m mandrel fabrication, optics development, telescope design and CFRP telescope fabrication by CMA for the ULTRA Telescope.

Date Published: 11 July 2006
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 6267, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes, 62670D (11 July 2006); doi: 10.1117/12.672132

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 6267:
Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes
Larry M. Stepp, Editor(s)