Curtis Schmidt Telescope

Photograph Curtis Schmidt Telescope

 

The Curtis Schmidt telescope is owned by the University of Michigan and operated by Michigan’s Department of Astronomy.  It was originally installed in the Portage Lake Observatory near Dexter, Michigan, in the early 1950s and moved to Cerro Tololo in 1966.

It is named for Heber D. Curtis, Director of the University of Michigan Observatories from 1930 to 1942.

For scientists: More details can be found on the science page.

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Curtis Schmidt Telescope

Name(s) Curtis Schmidt Telescope
Status Not Operational
Broad Science Goals Wide field imaging and objective prism spectroscopy.
Site Cerro Tololo, Chile
Location Coordinates 30º 10’ 08.60’S
70º 48’ 22.63’W
Altitude  
Enclosure  
Type Optical
Optical Design f/3.5 Reflecting Schmidt 
Field of View 1.6x1.6 degrees
Diameter: Primary M1 0.9 meters (0.61-meter aperture) 
Material: Primary M1  
Diameter: Secondary M2  
Material: Secondary M2  
Mount English style
First Light Date Early 1950s
Adaptive Optics  
Images taken with the Curtis Schmidt Telescope Link
Images of the Curtis Schmidt Telescope Link
Videos of the Curtis Schmidt Telescope Link
Press Releases with the Curtis Schmidt Telescope Link

 

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