End the old telescope 60 cm and 110 years old! From now on, the Observatory of Pic du Midi in the Hautes Pyrenees welcomes one new to observe the phenomena of the starry sky. With a size of 50cm, this ultra-modern tool is above all intended for university education.

The instrument made its first observations on the night of December 15 to 16, 2021. And thanks to this equipment, the students could “apprehend all the subtleties of astronomical observation before later using very large telescopes from international observatories”, indicates the University of Toulouse III Paul Sabatier in a communicated.

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Tested by Paul Sabatier students since January 10

Since January 10, 2022, the operation is thus piloted from Toulouse by the university. It hosts 23 students of the Astrophysics, Space Sciences and Planetology Master’s degree. Soon, students from the University of Franche-Comté and then from the University of Bordeaux will come to make their observations. “Others will also follow”, assures Paul Sabatier.

Above, the new 50 cm telescope dedicated to university training. © / Michel Rieutord (IRAP)

Just like its predecessor, the equipment also remains open to amateur astronomers Flask’associations T60.

The objective is to increase professional-amateur collaborations and the dissemination of knowledge scientists to the general public”, specifies the university.

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Made by a Californian and French company

The old telescope went to join the Pic du Midi museum. And if the diameter of the new one is slightly smaller than that of its elder, “it already displays superior performance thanks to the quality of its optics and mechanics”, assures the university.

the optical tube is based on the so-called configuration Corrected Dall-Kirkham1. It was carried out by the california company Plane Wave. For its part, the equatorial mount was manufactured by the French society Alcor system. This company also installed the telescope at the top of the Pic du Midi.

A return to basics for its director, Cyril Cavadore, a former student of the University of Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier and already an amateur astronomer at the time!”, rejoices the establishment.

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A large field of view

Thanks to that short focal length (wide angle), this telescope has a big eye champion. It thus allows “theobservation of extended objects and low contrast (such as galaxies close to the Milky Way)”, specifies the university. It also allows to monitor transient phenomena, such as the photometric tracking of stars with a known planetary system.

These scientific programs will above all be carried out by students in astrophysics”, are thus the university.

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