Barr Associates, Inc. Selected to Provide Large Area Filters for Pan-STARRS Prototype Telescope for Institute of Astronomy at University of Hawaii
Share:
Barr Associates, Inc. ("Barr") has been selected to design and build a set of large area filters for the Institute of Astronomy at University of Hawaii. These filters will be 21 inches in diameter and will be used in four identical 1.8 meter telescopes that make up the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System ("Pan-STARRS").
The main science goal of Pan-STARRS is to detect potentially hazardous objects in the solar system. In addition, the wide-field, repetitive nature of the observations from Pan-STARRS allows it to be a contributor to other astronomical research areas ranging from solar system astronomy to cosmology. Pan-STARRS will have the ability to detect potential collision threats that could become dangerous to the Earth and be capable of locating nearly all 1 km and 300 km objects that pass by the Earth. It will also be capable of cataloging 99% of the stars that have been observed by visible light within the northern hemisphere. Not only will the stars in the Milky Way galaxy be noted but stars from neighboring galaxies will be documented as well. Some of the stars that will be cataloged could include, erupting stars, eclipsing binaries, RR Lyrae stars and Cepheids. For additional information regarding the significance and progress of the Pan-STARRS project, please visit: http://pan-sta rrs.org/ Being awarded this contract underscores Barr's strong heritage and capabilities in designing and manufacturing precision filters for astronomical applications. In particular it demonstrates Barr's ability to build such precision filters with large diameters. "The physical size of approximately 500mm for the Pan-STARRS filters is unprecedented in astronomy and we chose Barr both for their technical experience in this field and for their competitive pricing." says Dr. Jeff Morgan, Senior Telescope Engineer for Pan-STARRS. According to Barr's President, Ali Smajkiewicz, "We are very excited to be a part of such an important project in the field of astronomy and want to continue demonstrating our commitment and focus to build our capabilities for this market." The progress of the construction of the filters will also be posted on the Pan-STARRS website listed above.
Barr Associates, Inc. (www.barrassociates.com), founded in 1971, is the largest independent designer and manufacturer of precision thin film coatings and optical filters. Based in Westford, Massachusetts, Barr deploys coating technologies from below 200nm to 30 microns and manufacturing capacities from small prototype jobs to large-volume production to service leading companies and innovators across diverse markets. For inquiries please call (978) 692-7513 E-mail: barr@barrassociates.com.
Contact Name: Sharon Palermo
Organization:
Title: Marketing Coordinator
E-mail: spalermo@barrassociates.com
