PON Upgrade of the Sardinia radio Telescope
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Metrology - Control systems
The OA-C has the responsibility of producing the SRT metrology system, this task represents a big challenge in the project, moreover the systems optics must be optimized in order to perform good observations at high frequencies.
The metrology group, which is coordinated by the OA-C, is focussed on measuring all possible radiotelescope deformations which might decrease the efficiency of the SRT when observing high frequency signals.
The SRT has been designed to observe with high frequency up to 100 GHz (λ=3mm), this means that it must be characterized by a pointing precision of 1 arcsec and a surface RMS of 0.190mm.
These specifications would not be possible if the telescope were to function passively (the 64m diameter reflector weighs roughly 3000 tons). Therefore deformation control systems are necessary, these deformations are mainly caused by gravity, thermal gradients and wind effects.
The metrology group, which is coordinated by the OA-C, is focussed on measuring all possible radiotelescope deformations which might decrease the efficiency of the SRT when observing high frequency signals.
The SRT has been designed to observe with high frequency up to 100 GHz (λ=3mm), this means that it must be characterized by a pointing precision of 1 arcsec and a surface RMS of 0.190mm.
These specifications would not be possible if the telescope were to function passively (the 64m diameter reflector weighs roughly 3000 tons). Therefore deformation control systems are necessary, these deformations are mainly caused by gravity, thermal gradients and wind effects.