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M. Bode, D. Carter, I.A. Steele, M.W. Simcoe (Liverpool JMU)
The Liverpool Telescope (LT) is undergoing the final stages of assembly and test before becoming operational on La Palma (Canaries) at the end of this year. A state-of-the-art 2m telescope, it is one of 3 currently being built at JMU, incorporating design features from 4 and 8m-class telescopes, but designed from the outset to operate very reliably and fully automatically. Its optical quality takes full advantage of the excellent seeing on the site. The LT has a fully opening enclosure, which minimises local thermal effects and the time taken to slew to new targets. Instruments include a CCD camera and spectrograph.
The LT's primary science drivers involve rapid reaction to targets of opportunity (e.g. novae, supernovae, GRB's, long-period comets); systematic monitoring of variable sources (including the above, plus LPV's, AGN, gravitational lenses etc.); simultaneous observations with other facilities (both on the ground and in space), and time-critical observations (e.g. of particular binary phases). Although most of the LT's time is set aside for research as a UK national facility, time is also available for schools and planetaria, through the UK National Schools Observatory programme.
The Liverpool Telescope is funded via EU, PPARC and JMU grants.
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The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: mfb@astro.livjm.ac.uk