Millimeter and Submm-Interferometry on MT. Graham, Arizona

Abstract

This paper draws attention to the potential for use of telescopes now under construction or planned for the near future as part of the Mt. Graham International Observatory, located in the Pinaleño Mts. east of Tucson, Arizona, for interferometer observations at mm-and submm-wavelengths. The Submillimeter Telescope (SMT) should be completed by early 1993. A collaboration between the Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie and Steward Observatory, the SMT is a high-precision 10-m diameter telescope which will be useful for short-wavelength VLBI observations. A large optical telescope, consisting of two 8.4-m diameter mirrors on a common mount, is in the early design stages. When completed, it will provide for short-baseline (approx. 20-m) interferometry between the two optical mirrors, as well as interferometry with the SMT over baselines of a few hundred meters.