Structural analysis and modifications to the V. M. Blanco telescope for dark energy camera (DECam) installation

P. Schurter; A. Montané; R. Tighe; Timothy M. C. Abbott; F. Muñoz; Douglas Neill

doi:10.1117/12.2057717

22 July 2014 Structural analysis and modifications to the V. M. Blanco telescope for dark energy camera (DECam) installation

P. Schurter, A. Montané, R. Tighe, Timothy M. C. Abbott, F. Muñoz, Douglas Neill

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9145, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes V; 91455G (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057717
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2014, Montréal, Quebec, Canada

Abstract

To substantially upgrade the Blanco telescope a new Dark Energy Camera (DECam)5 was developed. The Blanco telescope was commissioned in 1974 before the benefits of modern heavy instruments were foreseen. Consequently, the mass of DECam is greater than the original instrument payload. DECam was installed on the Blanco in 2012^{1, 2}. The telescope mount was rebalanced about the declination assembly by redesigning the Cassegrain cage to accommodate a significant increase in balancing mass. Finite element analysis was used to both determine the structural integrity of the new telescope configuration and to predict the effects of this added mass on the relative displacement between the primary and secondary mirrors. The counterweight system is described.

Citation Download Citation

P. Schurter, A. Montané, R. Tighe, Timothy M. C. Abbott, F. Muñoz, and Douglas Neill "Structural analysis and modifications to the V. M. Blanco telescope for dark energy camera (DECam) installation", Proc. SPIE 9145, Ground-based and Airborne Telescopes V, 91455G (22 July 2014); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2057717

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