16 - 21 June 2024
Yokohama, Japan
Conference 13094 > Paper 13094-217
Paper 13094-217

New Robotic Telescope system progress towards critical design review

On demand | Presented live 18 June 2024

Abstract

The 4m class New Robotic Telescope (NRT) is an optical facility designed to revolutionize the rapid follow-up and classification of variable and transient objects. The project is at the stage where key systems are progressing through their detailed design phases, which presents a major engineering challenge for all project partners to manage design progress of the high-level interfacing systems while still ensuring the delivery of top-level science requirements. The freezing of key system architecture features at the preliminary design review in 2021 has allowed significant progress to be made towards a target of Engineering First Light (EFL) in 2027. The project critical path is currently driven by the optics and the enclosure. Both of these components are novel in design: the NRT will have an 18-segment primary mirror and a large, fully-opening clamshell enclosure. Particular progress has been made regarding enclosure design, software & control, science & operations software and the focal station and associated science support instrumentation. The Critical Design Review for the M3 (fold mirror) was completed Q4 2022 which enabled manufacturing of the first NRT glassware to begin and prototyping of the complete opto-mechanical, hardware and software subsystem for its control to take place. The NRT will join the 2m Liverpool Telescope on La Palma, and as such this existing facility has been exploited to prototype the new science operations user interface and the NRT wavefront sensor.

Presenter

Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Iain Steele is now NRT PI, having been Liverpool Telescope Director for the past 15 years.
Author
David Copley
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Stuart D. Bates
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Beth Garton
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
David Heffernan
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Helen E. Jermak
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Adrian McGrath
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Chloe Miossec
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Presenter/Author
Liverpool John Moores Univ. (United Kingdom)
Author
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Alberto Prieto
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Rafael Rebolo
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (Spain)
Author
Francisco Javier De Cos Juez
Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnologías Espaciales de Asturias, Univ. de Oviedo (Spain)
Author
Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnologías Espaciales de Asturias, Univ. de Oviedo (Spain)
Author
Cesar Rodríguez Pereira
Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnologías Espaciales de Asturias, Univ. de Oviedo (Spain)
Author
Fernando Sánchez Lasheras
Instituto de Ciencias y Tecnologías Espaciales de Asturias, Univ. de Oviedo (Spain)
Author
Fernando Abarzuza
Light Bridges (Spain)