logotypy

 

Project title: Polish-German Astrophysical Observatory - support for ESO space and instrumental missions

OCA/ESO

 

Funding basis: Decision of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education no: DIR/WK/2018/09, DIR/WK/2018/2020/09-1, DIR/WK/2018/2020/09-2, DIR/WK/2018/2020/09-3, DIR/WK/2018/2022/09-4, DIR/WK/2018/2022/09-5, DIR/WK/2018/2023/09-6

Project budget: 19 404 788,95 PLN


 

The key scientific task of the project is to performbrightness measurements of about 500 bright stars in several filters, both in the visual and near-infrared range, as well as high-resolution spectroscopy. Photometric measurements must have an uncertainty of no more than 0.008 mag, while radial velocity measurements must have an accuracy of at least 30 m/s for eclipsing systems and 200 m/s for pulsating stars. These data will be used to calibrate several key distance measurement methods, and thus serve to greatly improve the calibration of the cosmic distance scale and the determination of the Hubble constant.

 

The project tasks include:

  1. construction of two robotic optical telescopes (with 1.5m and 80 cm diameter mirrors) equipped with modern CCD cameras and their assembly together with domes, filters, electronics and software in the Observatory Cerro Armazones (OCA) in Chile
  2. preparation of the observatory site for the planned construction of the telescopes
  3. observations and analysis of the obtained astronomical data in order to measure precise distances to many different cosmic objects.

 

The work envisaged in the project will be carried out in a unique astronomical observatory located at the foot of Cerro Armazones in northern Chile, called Observatory Cerro Armazones (OCA). The Cerro Armazones mountain was chosen by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) to host the world's largest telescope, the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), due to its stable weather conditions, with more than 340 clear nights per year and record low humidity, therefore the telescopes being built and installed within this project will be in close proximity to the ELT.

https://araucaria.camk.edu.pl/