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The Spitzer Space Telescope

Opt. Eng. 51, 011008 (Feb 03, 2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.51.1.011008

Michael Werner

California Institute of Technology, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California 91107

The Spitzer Space Telescope, which has operated very successfully since 2003 in its unique Earth-trailing solar orbit, is NASA’s Great Observatory for infrared astronomy. We provide a quick overview of the optical characteristics of Spitzer and review the observatory design. The main emphasis is on two unique on-orbit activities used to optimize the scientific return from Spitzer: 1. an unusual approach to focusing the telescope that minimized the use of the cryogenic focus mechanism, and 2. a methodology for extending the cryogenic lifetime of Spitzer by actively controlling the telescope temperature.

© 2012 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers

History
Received Jun 23, 2011
Revised Sep 26, 2011
Published online Feb 03, 2012
Citation
Michael Werner, "The Spitzer Space Telescope", Opt. Eng. 51, 011008 (Feb 03, 2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.51.1.011008

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