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Optical Telescopes at Devasthal Observatory, Nainital

Resonance volume 25, pages 1507–1526 (2020)Cite this article

Abstract

Three modern optical telescopes of sizes 1.3-m, 3.6-m, and 4-m are installed at Devasthal, Nainital, located in the central Himalayan region of Kumaun, Uttarakhand. The 3.6-m Devasthal optical telescope is designed to be a technologically advanced and complex astronomy instrument. All three telescopes are used for night observations of celestial objects. The sky performance of the 3.6-m telescope is not only internationally competitive but also at par with the performance of other similar telescopes located elsewhere in the world. This article provides the global importance of the Devasthal observatory for optical and near-infrared observations in the present era of multi-wavelength astronomical studies.

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Suggested Reading

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Acknowledgments

I am grateful to Prof. N Sathyamurthy for persuading me to write this article for students, specially at the undergraduate level and to Prof. Dhruba Saikia for the careful reading of the draft manuscript and providing valuable comments. Efforts and dedication of ARIES team led by Dr Brijesh Kumar and Dr Amitesh Omar for installing the optical observational facilities at Devasthal are greatly appreciated. Thanks to the National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI), Prayagraj for the award the NASI Senior Scientist Platinum Jubilee Fellowship; Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany for the award of long-term group research linkage program and Director, and IIA for hosting and making available facilities of the institute.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Sarajapur Road, Koramangala, Bengaluru, 560 034, India

    Ram Sagar

  2. Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences Manora peak, Nainital, 263 001, India

    Ram Sagar

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  1. Ram Sagar
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Correspondence to Ram Sagar.

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Presently National Academy of Sciences India (NASI) Honorary Scientist working at Indian Institute of Astrophysics. Instrumental in formation of ARIES, an Autonomous Research Institute, under Department of Science & Technology, Government of India. Played key role in establishing world-class optical observational facilities at Devasthal, Nainital.

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Sagar, R. Optical Telescopes at Devasthal Observatory, Nainital. Reson 25, 1507–1526 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12045-020-1072-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12045-020-1072-1

Keywords

  • Optical telescopes
  • sky performance
  • night optical observatory