Interior Photos of UKIRT

Interior Photos of UKIRT

In the UKIRT dome, this plaque hangs showing the dedication of the telescope in 1979.

Below are some interior photos taken of UKIRT including wide views of the full telescope. Some images show UKIRT with the WFCAM instrument (the long black cylindrical instrument in the center of the primary mirror), while others were taken while WFCAM was removed for maintenance. Click on a single image to get a larger view of the photo. (Copyright: Laurie Chu and Jessica Stasik)

  • UKIRT with WFCAM (center) pointed toward zenith
  • View of UKIRT from below with instruments attached at the base
  • A closer view of UKIRT with WFCAM (center) pointed toward zenith
  • WFCAM removed from UKIRT
  • Wide view of UKIRT from ground level
  • Secondary mirror of UKIRT and the wind screen is at the top of the dome
  • Wide view of UKIRT from ground level
  • UKIRT primary mirror with mirror cover, WFCAM removed
  • WFCAM on UKIRT in the parked position
  • Fisheye Lens view from the South Column platform
  • Fisheye Lens view from below, looking directly up at WFCAM with the telescope in its park position
  • Fisheye Lens view from below, looking up at WFCAM with the telescope in its park position
  • UKIRT with the mirror cover open
  • UKIRT in the WFCAM park position with the mirror cover open
  • Close-up of WFCAM and the secondary mirror with windscreen behind
  • The mirror cover closed on UKIRT
  • A high dynamic range image of UKIRT with WFCAM (Copyright: Tom Kerr)

In the next set of pictures, some more close-up photos show the instruments, individual components, and the back end of UKIRT. (Copyright: Laurie Chu and Jessica Stasik)

  • Back of UKIRT with several mounted instruments
  • WFCAM service rack
  • Central component open to feed wires to WFCAM
  • Back of UKIRT with CGS4 instrument service rack on left
  • Posted on the UKIRT mount
  • The gold pin shown here is the sheer pin that can break with earthquakes and affect the pointing accuracy
  • This is one of the support structures for the telescope. At the top are the sheer pins shown in the previous image
  • Inside one of the mounts are the control drives for the RA motion
  • On the side of the telescope are the control drives for the Dec motion
  • The track that the dome moves on
  • Controls for operating the telescope drives or stopping the telescope’s movement in an emergency
  • UKIRT in the parked position showing the instrument suite on the back of the telescope

Operations of UKIRT are now done remotely from Hilo but the photos below were taken in 2010 when operations took place at the summit. These are photos inside the control room. (Copyright: Jason Chu).

  • Control room, behind the black curtain is a window into the UKIRT dome
  • Control room, circa 2010

In the lower level is a kitchen space and outside the control room are the computer servers to operate and control the telescope. Below are some images of these areas. (Copyright: Laurie Chu)

  • Kitchen/lounge
  • Kitchen/lounge
  • Computer servers
  • Computer servers

Additional interior fisheye shots capture the full view of UKIRT with the dome shutter open. The first photo is taken at night with the light of the moon shining through the dome shutter (Copyright Paul Hirst) and the second photo was taken during the day (Copyright: Tom Kerr).

  • UKIRT at night
  • UKIRT in the day pointed at zenith