KECK I & Keck II
Created: Keck I: March 1993
Keck II: January 1996 Creator: W.M. Keck Observatory (Howard Keck) Location: Mauna Kea, Hawaii Stats: Primary Mirror: 10 m (diameter) Light Collecting Area: 76 m squared Light Gathering Power: 4,000,000x human eye Focal Length: 17.5 m Focal Ratio: f/1.75 Angular Resolution: 0.04 - 0.4 arcseconds Wavelength: Optical, Near-Infrared Type: Reflector |
History:
The concept for the two Keck telescopes was first proposed in 1977 by astronomers at the University of California. In 1985, Howard Keck donated 70 million dollars towards construction of the instruments. A little over 10 years later, both were fully functional. A key element of these telescopes is that they had the ability to make the smaller mirror segments (36 in total) in the telescopes function is a single mirror. Both Keck I and Keck II sit on altazimuth mounts and have laser guide star adaptive optics as seen in the picture below. These optics help accommodate for issues regarding atmospheric turbulence. Keck's location is important as it sits far from city lights and the clear air makes for a thin atmosphere. |