Press Releases: Gemini Observatory

20 March 2000: After traveling in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower, through the Panama Canal and up a steep, narrow mountain road to a remote peak in Chile, one of the world's largest astronomical telescope mirrors arrived safely at the Gemini South Observatory on March 17th, 2000. The mirror, which can collect more light than two million human eyes, is the heart of the Gemini South Telescope on Cerro Pachón, a mountain in central Chile. The telescope will soon join its identical twin, on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, to provide extremely high-resolution images of the universe.

25 June 1999: At a ceremony on Mauna Kea today, astronomers revealed some of the sharpest infrared images ever obtained by a ground-based telescope. These first high-resolution images from Gemini North reveal the remarkable power of the telescope's technologies, which minimize distortions that have blurred astronomical images since Galileo first pointed a telescope skyward almost 400 years ago. The clarity of these images is equivalent to resolving the separation between a set of automobile headlights at a distance of 2,000 miles!

25 June 1999: At a ceremony in Hawaii today, astronomers revealed some of the sharpest infrared images ever obtained by a ground-based telescope. These first high-resolution images from the new Gemini North Observatory show the remarkable power of the telescope's technologies, which minimize distortions that have blurred astronomical images since Galileo first pointed a telescope skyward almost 400 years ago. The clarity of these images is equivalent to resolving the separation between a set of automobile headlights at a distance of 2,000 miles!

15 April 1999: The Gemini Observatory has received $600,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to support a significant expansion of the internet connection speed between its Mauna Kea observatory, its Hilo headquarters in University Park, and the rest of the world. By coordinating the Gemini grant with a similar but different NSF grant recently made to the University of Hawaii's (UH) Information Technology Services, all of the Big Island observatories and UH-Hilo will share in the benefits of this much improved connection.

23 December 1998: Over the past two weeks, the Gemini North telescope near the summit of Hawaii's Mauna Kea has succeeded in accomplishing several key steps in the completion of this state-of-the-art 8-meter telescope facility.

18 November 1998: On November 18, 1998, the Gemini Observatory Northern Operations Center at the University of Hawaii's University Park will be officially dedicated and blessed. This new 17,000+ square foot facility is the first permanent home for the Gemini Observatory's scientific, technical and administrative staff. The building will also contain the Observatory's remote access control center, instrument labs, meeting & conference facilities and will serve as a hub for Gemini's world-wide communication network that connects the seven countries participating in the Gemini Project. The building's lobby has been designed to greet visitors with exhibits that will interpret Gemini research for the public and display current scientific research done at the observatory.

3 August 1998: "Gemini Observatory Update", to appear in Hilo's Tribune Herald, Friday August 7th.

29 June 1998: Measuring over 26 feet across, the largest single-piece telescope mirror ever to travel to Mauna Kea arrived safely at its final destination, 13,780 feet above sea level, on Sunday, June 28th. Weighing in at over 25 US tons and encased in a 20-ton steel crate, the mirror took three days to travel from Kawaihae Harbor to the Gemini Observatory site. As one of the widest loads ever transported to the summit, the 28 foot-wide crate required road improvements and even temporary removal of road signs before the mirror could make the final 65-mile journey to its home on the top of Hawai'i.

18 February 1998: AURA announced today that final polishing of the primary mirror for the northern hemisphere Gemini 8-Meter Telescope has achieved remarkable results. According to Larry Stepp, Gemini Optics Manager, "This mirror is the best mirror of its size ever polished." The Gemini 8-Meter Telescopes Project is an international partnership among the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil to build two state-of-the-art 8-meter telescopes--one on Mauna Kea, Hawaii; the other on Cerro Pachon, Chile.

18 February 1998: The Australian Academy of Science today welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Education, Dr. David Kemp, that Australia is to join the International Gemini Project now building two astronomical telescopes for optical and infrared wavelengths in Hawaii and Chile.

13 February 1998: PPARC announced today that the first Director of the UK Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh will be Dr Adrian Russell.

4 February 1998: REOSC Optique has just completed acceptance testing of the first Gemini primary mirror, with excellent results. Larry Stepp witnessed the tests at REOSC from January 12-23, and was impressed by their thoroughness. The Gemini Project has benefited from REOSC's experience with the first three ESO VLT primary mirrors, but the Gemini specifications required additional tests beyond those required by ESO.

29 August 1997: Dear Mr. Ramirez: With this message I acknowledge receipt of your e-mail informing the National Science Foundation, as Executive Agency for the Gemini Partnership, that CONICYT has met fully the conditions set by the Gemini Partner agencies for re-entry into the project, and done so within the allowed time.

24 June 1997: The groundbreaking ceremony for the Gemini North Telescope Base Facility will take place on June 24, 1997 at the University of Hawaii at Hilo University Park. The Base Facility will provide sea level operations support for the 8.1-meter Gemini telescope currently under construction atop Mauna Kea. The announcement of the groundbreaking ceremony was made by Dr. Matt Mountain, Director of the Gemini Project - an international partnership to build twin eight-meter telescopes, one on Mauna Kea, Hawaii and one on Cerro Pachon, Chile.

9 May 1997: On May 13, 1997, one of the largest glass objects ever created, the GEMINI II telescope mirror blank, will leave Corning's Canton, N.Y. plant as it makes its way to the port of Ogdensburg for a transatlantic voyage to France for polishing.

8 February 1996: The Gemini 8-meter Telescopes Project is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Fred Gillett as the Gemini Project Scientist.

30 January 1996: Fifty-five blocks of low-expansion ULE™ glass were successfully fused together at Corning's Canton, New York facility today to form the second Gemini primary mirror blank. The resulting blank is over 8.1 meters in diameter, 27 cm thick, and weighs approximately 32,000 kg. It is the second of two that Corning is fabricating for the Gemini 8-M Telescopes Project, and comes only three months after the delivery of the first Gemini mirror blank.

11 October 1995: Corning Incorporated has completed the first of two 8.1-meter primary mirror blanks for the Gemini Project telescope. The Gemini project is an international partnership of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil.

30 September 1994: Ceremonies in 1994 October in both the northern and southern hemispheres will herald construction of the $176 million, 8.1-meter Gemini twin telescopes. Ground-breaking will take place October 6 for the northern telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, followed by an October 22 inauguration for construction of the southern telescope in Cerro Pachon, Chile.