CHARA array enclosure control system

Braden E. Hines; Theo Armand ten Brummelaar

doi:10.1117/12.461565

13 December 2002 CHARA Array Enclosure Control System

Braden E. Hines, Theo Armand ten Brummelaar

Proceedings Volume 4848, Advanced Telescope and Instrumentation Control Software II; (2002) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.461565
Event: Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, 2002, Waikoloa, Hawai'i, United States

Abstract

The CHARA Array at Mt. Wilson consists of six telescopes spread over hundreds of meters of rugged territory. Making efficient use of such a large physical instrument requires automation and tele-operation of the distributed resources. One system which is key to making daily operations routine is the enclosure control system, which is used to open and close the walls of the enclosure in order to enable quick equilibration of the telescope with its environment in order to minimize ground seeing effects on observations. This paper describes this enclosure control system, which is a distributed hardware/software system consisting of software running on a central control station in the operations room, together with software and hardware installed on six remote computers. The system must be robust in the presence of absent or intermittent nodes or network connections, must provide for both manual or remote control of the enclosures, and must provide for hardware and personnel safety. Remote operation of the system from Atlanta, Georgia has been demonstrated, and the system has proven extremely robust in regular use to date.

Citation Download Citation

Braden E. Hines and Theo Armand ten Brummelaar "CHARA Array Enclosure Control System", Proc. SPIE 4848, Advanced Telescope and Instrumentation Control Software II, (13 December 2002); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.461565

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