NANTEN2 telescope

45-m telescope
The NANTEN2 project refers to the upgrade of the NANTEN telescope and its relocation from its previous site at the Las Campanas Observatory to the highlands of Atacama in Northern Chile. This move to Atacama represents a step up in observing location. At an altitude of 4800 m, the atmosphere that can be such a hindrance to astronomical observations is thin. This, and an unusually high proportion of clear days make Atacama the ideal site for the new and improved NANTEN2 telescope. The new NANTEN2 will be at the cutting edge of modern radio astronomy, pioneering observations in the sub-mm band which will illuminate our view of the universe.
Sub-mm radiation is the name given to electromagnetic waves with a wavelength of between 300 microns and 1000 microns (1 mm). Most importantly for our observations, they are the waves strongly emitted from the hot, dense clouds of gas in which stars are born. Using the 350 micron radiation emitted by molecules of Carbon Monoxide, the new NANTEN2 will be able to make radio maps of the universe in which the high density and high temperature regions where stars from will stand out clearly. Furthermore, NANTEN2 will be able to detect the characteristic radiation emitted from atomic carbon (CI) which marks the borders between atomic and molecular gas. There are great expectations that NANTEN2's observations may shed light on the mechanisms by which these high density, high temperature gas clouds are born.
As part of the NANTEN2 project, we are installing a new extremely hugh precision dish. In order to meet the standards needed for sub-mm observations, the dish's surface must be smooth to within 15 microns. The new NANTEN2 telescope will also form a vital link to the sub-mm astronomy of the future. By 2011, Atacama will also be the home of the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter Array) telescope, the largest of its kind yet designed. NANTEN2 will make the world's first wide field sub-mm observations, acting as a guide for ALMA, and paving the way for deeper observations to follow.