Stars just got clearer, closer for Rice astronomers

Stars just got clearer, closer for Rice astronomers
NSF grant funds telescope upgrade

BY FRANZ BROTZEN
Rice News Staff

For Rice scientists staring into the night sky, the stars just got a little clearer. The National Science Foundation (NSF) has announced it will fund the refurbishment of a telescope at the McDonald Observatory in western Texas that is used by Rice astronomers.

COURTESY OF THE MCDONALD OBSERVATORY

A $517,000 grant by the National Science Foundation will upgrade one of four main telescopes at McDonald Observatory in western Texas.

The $517,000 grant will upgrade one of four main telescopes at McDonald by replacing the mount and telescope tube and setting up a remote capability so that astronomers in Houston and Austin can use it without having to travel to western Texas. The primary 30-inch mirror, instrumentation and dome will be kept.

“Refurbishing the McDonald Observatory’s 30-inch telescope for remote operation will greatly expand the educational and research opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students at Rice,” said Christopher Johns-Krull, professor of physics and astronomy. “It will also give our faculty long-term access to a high-quality telescope at an excellent site with which they will be able to conduct cutting-edge research on such diverse topics as extra-solar planets, young stars and supernovae.”

The original mount, Johns-Krull explained, was designed for a 24-inch mirror. With the current 30-inch mirror and weight of modern instrumentation, the ability to track celestial objects has been compromised. The instrument, a prime focus wide-field
imager, however, was recently added and doesn’t need an upgrade. This instrumentation allows scientists to take full advantage of the light-gathering ability of the telescope, Johns-Krull said.

COURTESY OF THE MCDONALD OBSERVATORY

The grant will enable an upgrade to McDonald’s 30-inch telescope, which will include a remote capability so astronomers in Houston and Austin can use it without having to travel.

The option to use the telescope remotely from the Rice campus is a huge plus, he said.
“Most students are interested in distant galaxies, black holes, quasars. With Houston’s lights, you can’t see these things here.”

But, at an elevation of 2,000 meters in the Davis Mountains and 450 miles west of Austin, the McDonald facility offers a spectacular viewing platform. Now Rice undergrads, graduate students and faculty will be able to use that platform without having to take the lengthy trip.

The grant, made in collaboration with Juan Carlos Reina, professor of physics and astronomy at the Houston Community College (HCC), comes through the Program for Research and Education with Small Telescopes (PREST), a branch of the NSF. It became official Sept. 1, and construction is expected to begin this fall.

When it is completed, the new telescope will also be used by scientists at HCC and the University of Texas at Austin, which runs the observatory. In addition, according to NSF rules, telescope time must be available to the wider astronomical community 10 percent of the time.