When Vera c. When the Rubin Observatory launches observations in 2023, its SUV-sized camera will be able to capture a full panorama of the southern sky every few nights. And that requires a new kind of before me that has never been seen before.
Imaging sensors for the world’s largest digital camera have been captured for the first time by teams from the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (originally Stanford Liner Accelerator Center) in the Department of Energy in California, capturing 3,200 megapixels.
Once the SLLC is in the array camera of these sensors. Once established in and delivered to the Rubin Observatory in Chile, it will contribute to a 10-year legacy survey of the observer’s space and time.
The survey will serve as a list of billions of galaxies and astrophysical objects objects, essentially creating the “greatest astronomical movie of all time” and unlocking the mysteries of the universe.
The first 3,200-megapixel images captured using sensors are so versatile that they would only need a 378 4K ultra-high-definition TV screen to display at its full size.
The assembly of the sensors on the camera’s central plane was completed in January, and the first images were used to investigate it.
“The central aircraft will produce images for LSST, so it is the competent and sensitive eye of the Rubin Observatory,” Vincent Riot, LSST camera project manager, said in a statement. Riot is from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California.
Similar to the imaging sensor in a digital camera, the camera’s focal plane includes 189 sensors, each providing 16 megapixels. And it’s more than 2 feet wide, compared to the usual 1.4-inch-wide sensor in a digital full-frame camera.
This makes the sensor large enough to print a portion of the sky that is equal to 40 full moons.
The capabilities of the observatory will enable it to see 100 million times more obscure objects than we can see with the naked eye. It is designed to map galaxies, explore dark energy and dark matter, and survey the solar system.
During a 10-year survey, the camera camera is expected to capture 20 billion galaxies.
“This data will improve our knowledge of how the galaxy has evolved over time and will allow us to test our models of dark matter and dark energy more deeply and precisely than ever before,” said Steven Ritz, project scientist at the University of California’s LSST Camera. , Santa Cruz, in a statement.
“From a detailed study of our solar system to the study of distant objects to the edge of the visible universe – the observatory will be a wonderful facility for a wide range of sciences.”
Getting the first images
Before the LSST camera could look up at the sky, he had to go through a delicate assembly with a test.
It took six months for the central plane to assemble. Each grid of nine sensors is called a scientific raft, and 25 spots along the grid had to be fitted into their spots. The sensors can easily crack if they come in contact with each other, and they only have a small distance between the rafts – less than five human hairs wide.
And the rafts cost about $ 3 million. This explains why the team spent a year in preparation before starting to install any rafts.
The central plane itself is inside a cryostat, a device that keeps the sensors at a cool negative 150 degrees Fahrenheit, which is the temperature they need to operate.
However, the assembly of the central aircraft was completed in January, but the coronavirus epidemic prevented the team from reaching the lab to take the first images using the focal plane in May – and even then, instead of the limited staff and social distance there.
While testing the central plane is underway, the first images are a huge landmark.
Although the marrow itself is not fully assembled, the team was able to use a 150-micron pinhole that acted as a projector for the central plane to take initial pictures.
The first images include the Romanesco vegetable, which was selected for its detailed surface, as well as Vera Rubin herself, who is named for the observer.
Rubin, who died in 2016, once mentored fellow aspiring female astronomers and advocated for women in science. It is fitting that the first national U.S. nominee for a female astronomer. The observatory is in his honor. Rubin, considered one of the most influential female astronomers, provided some of the first evidence that dark matter – which includes the universe, but cannot be seen – exists.
Has revealed the amount of detail the sensor can capture in new images.
“Taking these images is a great achievement,” said Aaron Rudman, professor and chairman of the Department of Physics and Astrophysics and SLAC scientist responsible for assembly and testing of LST cameras.
“With tight specifications we really pushed the limits of what is possible to take advantage of every square millimeter of the central plane and maximize the science we can do with it.”
Next comes the Mera assembly: the world’s largest optical lens, shutter and filter exchange system, by inserting a focal plane and crystal at the camera body.
The team predicted that the camera would be ready for testing in mid-2021 before being sent to Chile.
“It’s a milestone that brings us a bigger step closer to exploring the fundamental questions about the universe in a way we haven’t been able to before,” said John Hewitt, SLAC’s chief research officer and associate lab director of basic physics. .
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