LBT "First Light"

[tfwthom]

LBT has been undergoing engineering time with one mirror for some time and the "first light" images have been released. Nothing too exciting, I'm sure they are fighting a lot of issues for a telescope design this extreme, but interesting nonetheless.<br /><br />http://medusa.as.arizona.edu/lbto/FL/main.htm <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1" color="#3366ff">www.siriuslookers.org</font> </div>

 

[bobw]

thought the picture was OK too. It is not as spectacular as the new one from the VLT. I am anxious to see some pics from it in interferometer mode.<br /><br />http://medusa.as.arizona.edu/lbto/FL/galaxy_images.htm shows a cool blue color, a white-on-black and a black on white version of the same picture in their "Gallery of LBT First Light Images." <br /><br />Does first light mean that this is the actual first image or the first one they expected to work, or what?<br /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[trustno1fox2]

me... i thought LBT stood for lettuce bacon and tomatoes. lol.

 

[newtonian]

TFWThom - Hi! (I am the former paulharth6)<br /><br />That is truly beautiful - thanks for the link! I like the magnified resolution!<br /><br />On LBT - does that stand for:<br /><br />Lots Better Telescope??

 

[tfwthom]

Large Binocular Telescope Captures First Images of Night Sky<br /><br />By Large Binocular Telescope Corporation<br />October 26, 2005<br /><br />(Tucson, Arizona) --- The Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) partners in the United States, Italy and Germany announced today that they achieved “first light” on Oct. 12, 2005. These exceptional images were obtained with one of the telescope’s two primary mirrors in place and are being released today on the World Wide Web, http://www.lbto.org.<br /><br />This milestone marks the dawn of a new era in observing the Universe as the LBT will peer deeper into space than ever before, and with ten times the clarity of the Hubble Space Telescope. With unparalleled observational capability, astronomers will be able to view planets in distant solar systems, and detect and measure objects dating back to the beginning of time (14 billion years ago). <br /><br />Located on Mount Graham in southeastern Arizona, the $120 million (USD) LBT is a marvel of modern technology. It uses two massive 8.4-meter (27.6 foot) diameter primary mirrors mounted side-by-side to produce a collecting area equivalent to an 11.8-meter (39 foot) circular aperture. Furthermore, the interferometric combination of the light paths of the two primary mirrors will provide a resolution of a 22.8-meter telescope. <br /><br />The “honeycomb” structured primary mirrors are unique in that they are lighter in weight than conventional solid-glass mirrors. The second primary mirror was recently transported from the University of Arizona to Mount Graham and has been installed. By fall 2006, the LBT will be fully operational with both of its enormous eyes wide open.<br /><br />The LBT’s first-light imaging target was an edge-on spiral galaxy (type Sb) in the constellation of Andromeda known as NGC891. This galaxy lies at a distance of 24 million light years. NGC891 is of particular interest because it is emitting copious amounts of distribute <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1" color="#3366ff">www.siriuslookers.org</font> </div>