SLAC Completes Camera Assembly Clean Room

SLAC Completes Camera Assembly Clean Room

SLAC National Acceleratory Laboratory celebrated completion of the LSST camera assembly clean room on May 8. The clean room is necessary for assembly of the LSST camera because any dust settling on the image sensors would degrade the quality of the precision device. The air inside the new facility is about 1,000 times “cleaner” than ordinary air. The main 1,875 square feet work space has a ceiling height of 24 feet to allow the approximately 10-feet-long camera body to be mounted vertically for optical alignment and final testing.

“The completion of the clean room is a big milestone for the lab,” said LSST Director Steven Kahn. “It’s the first major piece of LSST infrastructure here at SLAC.”

In the photo at left, visitors inspect the clean room. The opening ceremony was the only time visitors will be allowed to go inside without an escort, special training and full-body “bunny suits.”

The DOE laboratory is responsible for providing the LSST’s 3.2 gigapixel digital camera. Assembly of the camera will occur over the next four years.

Adapted from a SLAC news feature. Photo credit: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

Financial support for Rubin Observatory comes from the National Science Foundation (NSF) through Cooperative Support Agreement No. 1202910, the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science under Contract No. DE-AC02-76SF00515, and private funding raised by the LSST Corporation. The NSF-funded Rubin Observatory Project Office for construction was established as an operating center under management of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA).  The DOE-funded effort to build the the Rubin Observatory LSST Camera (LSSTCam) is managed by the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC).
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 to promote the progress of science. NSF supports basic research and people to create knowledge that transforms the future.
NSF and DOE will continue to support Rubin Observatory in its Operations phase. They will also provide support for scientific research with LSST data.   




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