Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

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Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

Entrance to the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

Organization

Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory

Location

Mount Hopkins, Arizona, USA

Coordinates

31°40′52″N, 110°52′42″W

Altitude

2,250 meters (7,500 feet)

Established

1966-1968

Website
Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory

Telescopes
MMT Observatory	6.5 m reflector
Telescope	1.5 m reflector
Telescope	1.2 m reflector
PAIRITEL	1.3 m reflector
Whipple 10 m	10 m IACT
VERITAS	12 m IACT array
IOTA telescopes	optical/IR interferometry
HAT telescope	optical refractor

The Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and is their largest field installation outside of their main site in Cambridge, MA. It is located near Amado, Arizona on the slopes of Mount Hopkins.

[edit] History

In 1966, roadwork began on the current site with funding granted for the Smithsonian Mt. Hopkins Observatory. The Whipple 10 m gamma-ray telescope was constructed in 1968.

[edit] Equipment

The observatory contains the smaller MMT Observatory which is jointly run by the University of Arizona and houses a 6.5 meter telescope. The observatory also has 1.5, 1.2 meter reflectors and another 1.3 meter reflector named PAIRITEL (Peters Automated IR Imaging Telescope, ex-2MASS ). Also on site are the IOTA (Infrared optical telescope array) which is used by many institutions and the HAT (Hungarian Automated Telescope).

The observatory is known for its pioneering work in ground based gamma-ray astronomy through the development of the Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Technique (IACT) with the Whipple 10 m Telescope during the early 1980s. The Whipple 10 m is still fully operational. In April 2007, VERITAS (a system of 4 IACT telescopes with 12 m reflectors) started full operations at the FLWO basecamp.