Photogrammetry has been used as an alternative measurement technique for the 32-m primary since 20151, and has gradually replaced our use of holography and laser trackers for this task2 during recent years. Once the object has been targeted, photogrammetry maps may be obtained in around one hour. The technique does not require the installation of special equipment on the antenna, and has the advantage of allowing surface maps to be taken at any chosen elevation. The main drawbacks for the LMT application are environmental, since the antenna operates without an enclosure; strong winds may prevent use of the site tower crane for image taking, while the formation of condensation and frost on the reflector surface will "switch off" the reflective targets. In this paper we discuss comparative measurements taken as the first outer segments were installed, and the use of photogrammetry to carry out the alignment of the fully installed 50-meter surface. At the time of writing this activity is still in progress, however full-surface alignment to the order of just over 100 microns was achieved quite quickly, with multiple elevation maps allowing the development of a usable 50-m active surface model for compensation of gravitational distortions. |
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CITATIONS
Cited by 1 scholarly publication.
Photogrammetry
Reflectors
Actuators
Antennas
Image segmentation
Monochromatic aberrations
Cameras