List of highest astronomical observatories
This is a list of the highest astronomical observatories in the world, considering only ground-based observatories and ordered by elevation above mean sea level. The main list includes only permanent observatories with facilities constructed at a fixed location, followed by a supplementary list for temporary observatories such as transportable telescopes or instrument packages. For large observatories with numerous telescopes at a single location, only a single entry is included listing the main elevation of the observatory or of the highest operational instrument if that information is available.
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History of high altitude astronomical observatories
Prior to the late 19th century, almost all astronomical observatories throughout history were located at modest elevations, often close to cities and educational institutions for the simple reason of convenience.[1] As air pollution from industrialization and light pollution from artificial lighting increased during the Industrial Revolution, astronomers sought observatory sites in remote locations with clear and dark skies, naturally drawing them towards the mountains. The first permanent mountaintop astronomical observatory was the Lick Observatory constructed from 1876 to 1887, at the modest elevation of 1,283 m (4,209 ft) atop Mount Hamilton in California.[2] The first high altitude observatory was constructed atop the 2,877 m (9,439 ft) Pic du Midi de Bigorre in the French Pyrenees starting in 1878, with its first telescope and dome installed in 1904.[3] Astronomical observations were also made from Mont Blanc in the late 1800s.[4]
A few other high altitude observatories (such as the Lowell Observatory in Arizona and Sphinx Observatory in Switzerland) were constructed through the first half of the 20th century. However, the two most important and prominent of the early 20th century observatories, Mount Wilson Observatory and Palomar Observatory, were both located on mid-elevation mountaintops of about 1,700 m (5,600 ft) in southern California.[5] The stunning successes and discoveries made there using the world's largest telescopes, the 100-inch Hooker Telescope and 200-inch Hale Telescope, spurred the move to ever higher sites for the new generation of observatories and telescopes after World War II, along with a worldwide search for locations which had the best astronomical seeing.
Since the mid-20th century, an increasing number of high altitude observatory sites have been developed at locations around the world, including numerous sites in Arizona, Hawaii, Chile, and the Canary Islands.[6][7] The initial wave of high-altitude sites were mostly in the 2,000–2,500 m (6,600–8,200 ft) range, but astronomers soon sought even higher sites above 3,000 m (9,800 ft). Among the largest, best developed, and most renowned of these high altitude sites is the Mauna Kea Observatory located near the summit of a 4,205 m (13,796 ft) volcano in Hawaii, which has grown to include over a dozen major telescopes during the four decades since it was founded. In the first decade of the 21st century, there has been a new wave of observatory construction at very high altitudes above 4,500 m (14,800 ft), with such observatories constructed in India, Mexico, and most notably the Atacama Desert in northern Chile, now the site of several of the world's highest observatories. The scientific benefits of these sites outweigh the numerous logistical and physiological challenges which must be overcome during the construction and operation of observatories in remote mountain locations, even in desert, polar, and tropical island sites which magnify the challenges but confer additional observational advantages.
Sites at high altitude are ideal for optical astronomy and provide optimal seeing, being above a significant portion of the Earth's atmosphere with its associated weather, turbulence, and diminished clarity. In particular, sites on mountaintops within about 80 km (50 mi) of the ocean often have excellent observing conditions above a stable inversion layer throughout much of the year.[8] High altitude sites are also above most of atmosphere's water vapor, making them ideal for infrared astronomy and submillimeter astronomy as those wavelengths are strongly absorbed by water vapor. On the other hand, high altitude does not offer as significant an advantage for radio astronomy at longer wavelengths, so relatively few radio telescopes are located at such sites. At the far end of the spectrum, for the extremely short wavelengths of x-ray and gamma ray astronomy, along with high-energy cosmic rays, high altitude observations once again offers significant advantages, enough that many experiments at these wavelengths have been conducted by balloon-borne or even by space telescopes, although a number of high-altitude ground-based sites have also been used. These include the Chacaltaya Astrophysical Observatory in Bolivia, which at 5,230 m (17,160 ft) was the world's highest permanent astronomical observatory[9] from the time of its construction during the 1940s until surpassed in 2009 by the new University of Tokyo Atacama Observatory,[10] an optical-infrared telescope on a remote 5,640 m (18,500 ft) mountaintop in Chile.
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Highest permanent observatories
Permanent observatories above 3,000 m:
Highest temporary observatories
Temporary observatories above 3,000 m:
Observatory Name | Elevation | Observatory Site | Location | Coordinates | Established | Type of Observatory | Major Instruments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Receiver Lab Telescope[22] | 5,525 m (18,127 ft) | Cerro Sairecabur | Atacama Desert, Chile | 22°43′0″S 67°53′30″W | 2002 | Submillimeter, 1–2 THz[23] | |
PLATO (PLATeau Observatory)[24] | 4,091 m (13,422 ft) | Dome A | East Antarctic Ice Sheet, Antarctica | 80°22′S 77°21′E | 2008 | Optical, submillimeter | |
Concordia Station | 3,233 m (10,607 ft) | Dome C | East Antarctic Ice Sheet, Antarctica | 75°06′S 123°20′E | 2005 | Optical, infrared, submillimeter[25] |
Other important high altitude observatories
This is a selected list of the most important and notable high altitude observatories between 1700 and 3000 m; it is not intended to list all of the numerous observatories worldwide in this elevation range:
References
Note: References for most elevations can be found in the linked main article for each observatory.
- Citations
- Krisciunas (1988), see Chapters 1–5.
- Krisciunas (1988), see Chapter 6: Harvard, Lick, Yerkes, and the rise of astrophysics.
- Brunier (2005), p.20-21.
- Richalet, Jean-Paul (2001). "The Scientific Observatories on Mont Blanc". High Altitude Medicine & Biology. 2 (1): 57–68. doi:10.1089/152702901750067936. PMID 11252700.
- Krisciunas (1988), see Chapter 7: Mt Wilson and Palomar.
- Zirker (2005), see Chapter 4: The Rise of the Great Centers.
- Krisciunas (1988), see Chapter 8: The Present.
- Krisciunas (1988), p. 141.
- Zanini, A.; Storini, M.; Saavedra, O. (2009). "Cosmic rays at High Mountain Observatories". Advances in Space Research. 44 (10): 1160–5. Bibcode:2009AdSpR..44.1160Z. doi:10.1016/j.asr.2008.10.039.
- Yoshii, Yuzuru; et al. (11 August 2009). "The 1m telescope at the Atacama Observatory has Started Scientific Operation, detecting the Hydrogen Emission Line from the Galactic Center in the Infrared Light" (Press release). School of Science, the University of Tokyo. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- Yao, Y.; et al. (2011). "The NAOC Ali Observatory, Tibet" (PDF). The 11th Asian-Pacific Regional IAU Meeting.
- Stone, Richard (7 September 2012). "World-Class Observatory Rising on 'Roof of the World'" (PDF). Science. 337 (6099): 1156–7. Bibcode:2012Sci...337.1156S. doi:10.1126/science.337.6099.1156. PMID 22955808. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
- "Indian Astronomical Observatory Site". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "2m Optical Infrared Telescope". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- 羊八井观测站 [YBJ International Cosmic Ray Observatory] (in Chinese). Archived from the original on 11 January 2011. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "YBJ International Cosmic Ray Observatory". Archived from the original on 21 October 2009. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "Mauna Kea Observatories, Summit Map". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "Barcroft Observatory, White Mountain Research Station". Archived from the original on 11 June 2010. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "USGS Topographic Map, Mount Barcroft, CA". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "Topographic Map of VLBA Mauna Kea Site". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "USGS Topographic Map, Kilohana, HI". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "Receiver Lab Telescope". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- Marrone DP, Blundell R, Tong E, Paine SN, Loudkov D, Kawamura JH, Luhr D, Barrientos C (2005). "Observations in the 1.3 and 1.5 THz Atmospheric Windows with the Receiver Lab Telescope". Sixteenth International Symposium on Space Terahertz Technology: 64. arXiv:astro-ph/0505273. Bibcode:2005stt..conf...64M.
- "PLATO – Dome A robotic observatory". Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- "Concordia station, Dome C, Antarctica". 100 Hours of Astronomy. Archived from the original on 29 April 2010. Retrieved 24 December 2009.
- "Martin A. Pomerantz Observatory". Retrieved 28 December 2009.
- "Topographic Map of La Silla Observatory". Retrieved 28 December 2009.
- "Topographic Map of Las Campanas Observatory". Retrieved 28 December 2009.
- Bibliography
- Brunier, Serge; Lagrange, Anne-Marie (2005). Great Observatories of the World. Firefly Books. ISBN 1-55407-055-4.
- Krisciunas, Kevin (1988). Astronomical Centers of the World. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-30278-1.
- Zirker, Jack B. (2005). An Acre of Glass: A History and Forecast of the Telescope. The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-8234-6.