Large Binocular Telescope

The Large Binocular Telescope is an optical and infrared observatory on Mount Graham, Arizona, with two 8.4-meter primary mirrors mounted side by side.

Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer: An instrument that combines light from the Large Binocular Telescope’s two mirrors for interferometric observations. It uses the telescope’s separated apertures to study fine angular structure and faint infrared sources.
Primary mirror: The main light-collecting and focusing mirror in a reflecting telescope. Each of the telescope’s two 8.4-meter primary mirrors gathers light for its instruments.
Exoplanet imaging: The direct detection of planets orbiting stars beyond the Sun. High-resolution observations can help separate a planet’s light from its host star.
Roger Angel: An American astronomer and optical scientist known for developing large lightweight telescope mirrors. Angel’s mirror technology helped make the telescope’s two large primaries possible.
Very Large Telescope: A European Southern Observatory facility in Chile comprising four 8.2-meter Unit Telescopes and smaller auxiliary telescopes. Unlike the Large Binocular Telescope’s two mirrors on one mount, its main telescopes are separate units.
Adaptive optics: Techniques that correct image distortions caused by atmospheric turbulence or optical imperfections. Adaptive optics sharpens images from each large mirror, enabling high-resolution observations.
Gregorian telescope: A reflecting telescope design that uses a concave secondary mirror beyond the primary mirror’s focus. The Large Binocular Telescope uses Gregorian optics to feed its instruments.
Protoplanetary disk: A rotating disk of gas and dust surrounding a young star, where planets can form. Infrared imaging can reveal structures in disks that mark planet-forming processes.
University of Arizona: A public research university in Tucson, Arizona. University of Arizona astronomers and engineers led the observatory’s development.
Keck Observatory: An astronomical observatory in Hawaii with two telescopes, each using a segmented 10-meter primary mirror. Keck uses segmented primaries, whereas the Large Binocular Telescope has two single 8.4-meter mirrors.

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