A Telescope for Submillimeter Spectroscopy from the South Pole

该项目的目的是在南极开发和使用一个新的设施，以便在光谱的亚毫米波长区域进行天文和大气观测。这台新的望远镜将有1.2米的孔径，一个最先进的超导绝缘超导外差接收器和声光光谱仪。该仪器将利用极地寒冷大气中极低的水蒸气含量，这是极地高原独有的条件。通常是水蒸气限制了该光谱区域观测的灵敏度。该项目被称为南极亚毫米望远镜和远程天文台（ASTRO）。一些具体的科学目标是：对南方天空选定区域的原子碳和一氧化碳进行调查；对恒星形成云、附近星系和质量下降恒星包层的观测；测量大气臭氧、一氧化碳和可能的其他微量气体的分布，以进一步了解极地平流层和每年臭氧空洞的原因；寻找原星系。该项目将由美国国家科学基金会极地项目部、天文科学部、at&t贝尔实验室、伊利诺伊大学和波士顿大学联合支持。该望远镜最终将提供给除了最初的三个机构之外的其他机构的研究人员进行观测。

It is the purpose of this project to develop and use a new facility at the South Pole for the purpose of making astronomical and atmospheric observations in the sub-millimeter wavelength region of the spectrum. This new telescope will have a aperture of 1.2 meters, a state-of-the art superconducting-insulating- superconducting hetrodyne receiver and an acousto-optic spectrometer. The instrument will take advantage of the very low water vapor content of the cold polar atmosphere, conditions that are unique to the polar plateau. It is normally the water vapor that limits the sensitivity of observations in this spectral region. The project is called Antarctic Submillimeter Telescope and Remote Observatory (ASTRO). Some specific science objectives are: Atomic carbon and carbon monoxide surveys of selected regions of the southern skies; Observations of star-forming clouds, nearby galaxies and envelopes of mass-losing stars; Measuring the profiles of atmospheric ozone, carbon monoxide and possibly other trace gases to further understanding of the polar stratosphere and the causes of the annual ozone hole, and; A search for protogalaxies. The project will be jointly supported by NSF's Division of Polar Programs, Division of Astronomical Sciences, AT&T Bell Laboratories, The University of Illinois and Boston University. The telescope will eventually be made available for observations by investigators from institutions other than the original three.