Dr. Bob Millis
Lowell Observatory

University of Florida Astronomy Colloquium - Sep 21st, 2005

The Discovery Channel Telescope

The 4.2-m Discovery Channel Telescope (DCT) is a project of Lowell Observatory with partial financial support from Discovery Communications, Inc. The DCT design provides for a 2-degree field of view at prime focus, an f/6.2 Ritchey-Chretien focus, and Nasmyth and bent Cassegrain focal positions. Construction of the telescope enclosure and a nearby coating facility will begin during the first week of September at the new 7650 ft elevation site near Happy Jack, AZ. The ULE meniscus primary mirror blank is nearing completion at Corning. Design work on the telescope mount and wide-field corrector optics are well along at Vertex RSI and Goodrich Optical Systems, respectively. In this talk, I will describe the current telescope and facility designs, site characteristics, science goals, instrumentation plans, and partnering opportunities.