Review of lunar telescope studies at MSFC
Abstract
In the near future astronomers can take advantage of the lunar surface as the new 'high ground' from which to study the universe. Optical telescopes placed and operated on the lunar surface would be successors to NASA's Great Observatories. Four telescopes, ranging in aperture from a 16-m, IR/Vis/UV observatory down to a 1-m, UV 'transit' instrument, have been studied by the Lunar Telescope Working Group and the LUTE (lunar telescope ultraviolet experiment) Task Team of the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). This paper presents conceptual designs of the telescopes, provides descriptions of the telescope subsystem options selected for each concept, and outlines the potential evolution of their science capabilities.
- Publication:
-
AIAA Space Programs and Technologies Conference and Exhibit
- Pub Date:
- September 1993
- Bibcode:
- 1993aiaa.conf.....H
- Keywords:
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- Lunar Surface;
- Telescopes;
- Lunar Observatories;
- Mission Planning;
- Design Analysis;
- Technology Assessment;
- Requirements;
- Astronomy