[Previous] | [Session 1] | [Next]

[1.01] Georgia State's CHARA Array on Mt. Wilson

H.A. McAlister (CHARA, Georgia State University)

Georgia State University's Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy is constructing a six-telescope, optical/IR interferometric array on Mt. Wilson, CA. The light collecting telescopes of the CHARA Array have 1-m apertures and are distributed in a Y-shaped configuration possessing a maximum baseline of 354 m. The instrument will operate in the visible and out to the K-band infrared, achieving limiting resolutions of 200 micro-arcsecs and 1 milli-arcsec in these wavelength regimes. The scientific programs of the Array will emphasize stellar astrophysics through the determination of physical parameters for stars and through the imaging of stellar surfaces. This talk will provide an overview of the facility and present the first scientific results from the Array.

The CHARA Array has been funded by the National Science Foundation, Georgia State University, the W.M. Keck Foundation, and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.