December 14, 2017 – The LSST mirrors and camera are designed to be transported on carts, as complete subassemblies, from the telescope to the maintenance level within the summit facility during LSST's ten-year survey lifetime. The mirrors will be recoated approximately every two years and the camera clean room will be available to support maintenance and servicing. Because the maximum load (the M1M3 on its cart) will approach 75 tons, and the equipment must move up and down 27 meters, a custom, robust lifting mechanism is required. PFlow Industries has built a unique 11-meter square Vertical Platform Lift for LSST, and December 7, on Cerro Pachón the folding-edge structure for its movable roof was successfully installed. The folding edge is positioned at the top of the lift tower, and it swings back to allow passage of the lift carriage when the platform lift is called up to the telescope floor. The movable roof, which is pushed up by the lift carriage, minimizes the overall height of the lift structure and aides in airflow over the building. When the lift is not in use, the roof is securely latched down to the building and the folding edge to meet weather protection and seismic requirements. The folding edge structure, itself weighing nine tons, was safely and precisely installed in a single day to minimize interference with the ongoing adjacent assembly of the Dome.
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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