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| Alternative names | MKO | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Observatory code | 568 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Mauna Kea, Hawaii County, US | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 19°49′20″N 155°28′30″WCoordinates: 19°49′20″N 155°28′30″W | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Altitude | 4,205 m (13,796 ft) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Telescopes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Location of Mauna Kea Observatories
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The Mauna Kea Observatories (MKO) are a number of independent astronomical research facilities and large telescope observatories that are located at the summit of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi, United States. The facilities are located in a 525-acre (212 ha) special land use zone known as the "Astronomy Precinct", which is located within the 11,228-acre (4,544 ha) Mauna Kea Science Reserve. The Astronomy Precinct was established in 1967 and is located on land protected by the Historical Preservation Act for its significance to Hawaiian culture.
The location is near ideal because of its dark skies from lack of light pollution, good astronomical seeing, low humidity, high elevation of 4,205 meters (13,796 ft), position above most of the water vapor in the atmosphere, clean air, good weather and low latitude location.
Origin and background
After studying photos for NASA's Apollo program that contained greater detail than any ground-based telescope, Gerard Kuiper began seeking an arid site for infrared studies. While he first began looking in Chile, he also made the decision to perform tests in the Hawaiian Islands. Tests on Maui's Haleakalā
were promising, but the mountain was too low in the inversion layer and
often covered by clouds. On the "Big Island" of Hawaiʻi, Mauna Kea is
considered the highest island mountain in the world. While the summit is
often covered with snow, the air is extremely dry.
Kuiper began looking into the possibility of an observatory on Mauna
Kea. After testing, he discovered the low humidity was perfect for
infrared signals. He persuaded Hawaiʻi Governor John A. Burns to bulldoze a dirt road to the summit where he built a small telescope on Puʻu Poliʻahu, a cinder cone peak. The peak was the second highest on the mountain with the highest peak being holy ground, so Kuiper avoided it.
Next, Kuiper tried enlisting NASA to fund a larger facility with a
large telescope, housing and other needed structures. NASA, in turn
decided to make the project open to competition. Professor of physics,
John Jefferies of the University of Hawaii placed a bid on behalf of the university. Jefferies had gained his reputation through observations at Sacramento Peak Observatory.
The proposal was for a two-meter telescope to serve both the needs of
NASA and the university. While large telescopes are not ordinarily
awarded to universities without well-established astronomers, Jefferies
and UH were awarded the NASA contract, infuriating Kuiper, who felt that
"his mountain" had been "stolen" from him.
Kuiper would abandon his site (the very first telescope on Mauna Kea)
over the competition and begin work in Arizona on a different NASA
project. After considerable testing by Jefferies' team, the best
locations were determined to be near the summit at the top of the cinder
cones. Testing also determined Mauna Kea to be superb for nighttime
viewing due to many factors, including the thin air, constant trade
winds and being surrounded by sea. Jefferies would build a 2.24 meter
telescope with the State of Hawaiʻi agreeing to build a reliable, all
weather roadway to the summit. Building began in 1967 and first light
was seen in 1970.
Other groups began requesting subleases on the newly accessible
mountaintop. By 1970, two 24 in (0.6 m) telescopes had been constructed
by the United States Air Force and Lowell Observatory. In 1973, Canada and France agreed to build the 3.6 m CFHT on Mauna Kea.
However, local organizations started to raise concerns about the
environmental impact of the observatory. This led the Department of Land
and Natural Resources to prepare an initial management plan, drafted in
1977 and supplemented in 1980. In January 1982, the University of
Hawaiʻi Board of Regents approved a plan to support the continued development of scientific facilities at the site.
In 1998, 2,033 acres (823 ha) were transferred from the observatory
lease to supplement the Mauna Kea Ice Age Reserve. The 1982 plan was
replaced in 2000 by an extension designed to serve until 2020: it
instituted an Office of Mauna Kea Management,
designated 525 acres (212 ha) for astronomy, and shifted the remaining
10,763 acres (4,356 ha) to "natural and cultural preservation". This
plan was further revised to address concern expressed in the Hawaiian
community that a lack of respect was being shown toward the cultural
value the mountain embodied to the region's indigenous people.
As of 2012, the Mauna Kea Science Reserve has 13 observation
facilities, each funded by as many as 11 countries. It is one of the
world's premier observatories for optical, infrared, and submillimeter
astronomy, and in 2009 was the largest measured by light gathering
power.
There are nine telescopes working in the visible and infrared spectrum,
three in the submillimeter spectrum, and one in the radio spectrum,
with mirrors or dishes ranging from 0.9 to 25 m (3 to 82 ft). In comparison, the Hubble Space Telescope has a 2.4 m (7.9 ft) mirror, similar in size to the UH88, now the second smallest telescope on the mountain.
Controversies
Planned new telescopes, including the Thirty Meter Telescope, have attracted controversy due to their potential cultural and ecological impact. The multi-telescope "outrigger" extension to the Keck telescopes, which required new sites, was eventually canceled. Three or four of the mountain's 13 existing telescopes must be dismantled over the next decade with the TMT proposal to be the last area on Mauna Kea on which any telescope would ever be built.
Management
The Reserve was established in 1968, and is leased by the State of Hawaiʻi's Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). The University of Hawaiʻi manages the site and leases land to several multi-national facilities, which have invested more than $2 billion in science and technology. The lease expires in 2033 and after that 40 of 45 square kilometers (25 of 28 square miles) revert to the state of Hawaii.
Location
Mauna Kea Observatories seen from the base of Mauna Kea
The altitude and isolation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean
makes Mauna Kea one of the best locations on earth for ground-based
astronomy. It is an ideal location for submillimeter, infrared and
optical observations. The seeing
statistics show that Mauna Kea is the best site in terms of optical and
infrared image quality; for example, the CFHT site has a median seeing
of 0.43 arcseconds.
Accommodations for research astronomers are located at the Onizuka Center for International Astronomy (often called Hale Pōhaku), 7 miles (11 km) by unpaved steep road from the summit at 9,300 feet (2,800 m) above sea level.
An adjacent visitor information station is located at 9,200 feet
(2,800 m). The summit of Mauna Kea is so high that tourists are advised
to stop at the visitor station for at least 30 minutes to acclimate to
atmospheric conditions before continuing to the summit, and scientists
often stay at Hale Pōhaku for eight hours or more before spending a full
night at observatories on the summit, with some telescopes requiring
observers to spend one full night at Hale Pōhaku before working at the
summit.
Telescopes
The Submillimeter Array of radio telescopes at night, lit by flash.
From
left-to-right: United Kingdom Infrared Telescope, Caltech
Sub-Millimeter Observatory (closed 2015), James Clerk Maxwell Telescope,
Smithsonian Sub-Millimeter Array, Subaru Telescope, W.M. Keck
Observatory (I & II), NASA Infrared Telescope Facility, Gemini North
Telescope
Telescopes found at the summit of Mauna Kea are funded by government
agencies of various nations. The University of Hawaiʻi directly
administers two telescopes. In total, there are twelve facilities
housing thirteen telescopes at or around the summit of Mauna Kea.
- Caltech Submillimeter Observatory (CSO): Caltech — closed 2015
- Canada–France–Hawaiʻi Telescope (CFHT): Canada, France, University of Hawaiʻi
- Gemini North Telescope: United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Chile, Australia, Argentina, Brazil
- NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF): NASA
- James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT): China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, United Kingdom, Canada
- Subaru Telescope: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
- Sub-Millimeter Array (SMA): Taiwan, United States
- Thirty Meter Telescope, proposed for Mauna Kea, alternatively the Canary Islands[22]
- United Kingdom Infrared Telescope (UKIRT): Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center, University of Hawaiʻi, University of Arizona
- University of Hawaiʻi 88-inch (2.2 m) telescope (UH88): University of Hawaiʻi
- University of Hawaiʻi 36-inch (910 mm) telescope (Hoku Kea): University of Hawaii at Hilo
- One receiver of the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA): United States
- W. M. Keck Observatory: California Association for Research in Astronomy
CSO, UKIRT, and Hoku Kea are scheduled for decommissioning as part of the Mauna Kea Comprehensive Management Plan.
Opposition and protests
In Honolulu, the governor and legislature, enthusiastic about the
development, set aside an even larger area for the observatory after the
initial project, causing opposition on the Big Island, in the city of Hilo. Native Hawaiians
(kānaka ʻōiwi) believed the entire site was sacred and that developing
the mountain, even for science, would spoil the area. Environmentalists
were concerned about rare native bird populations and other citizens of
Hilo were concerned about the sight of the domes from the city. Using
town hall meetings, Jefferies was able to overcome opposition by
weighing the economic advantage and prestige the island would receive. There has been substantial opposition to the Mauna Kea observatories that continues to grow.
Over the years, the opposition to the observatories may have become the
most visible example of the conflict science has encountered over
access and use of environmental and culturally significant sites.
Opposition to development grew shortly after expansion of the
observatories commenced. Once access was opened up by the roadway to the
summit, skiers began using it for recreation and objected when the road
was closed as a precaution against vandalism when the telescopes were
being built. Hunters voiced concerns, as did the Hawaiian Audubon Society who were supported by Governor George Ariyoshi.
The Audubon Society objected to further development on Mauna Kea over concerns to habitat of the endangered Palila, a species endemic
to only specific parts of this mountain. The bird is the last of the
finch billed honeycreepers existing on the island. Over 50% of native
bird species had been killed off due to loss of habitat from early
western settlers or the introduction of non-native species competing for
resources. Hunters and sportsmen were concerned that the hunting of
feral animals would be affected by the telescope operations.
A "Save Mauna Kea" movement was inspired by the proliferation of
telescopes, with opposition believing development of the mountain to be
sacrilegious. Native Hawaiian non-profit groups, such as Kahea,
whose goals are the protection of cultural heritage and the
environment, oppose development on Mauna Kea as a sacred space to the
Hawaiian religion.
Today, Mauna Kea hosts the world's largest location for telescope
observations in infrared and submillimeter astronomy. The land is
protected by the United States Historical Preservation Act due to its
significance to Hawaiian culture, but still allowed development.
2006 Kiholo Bay earthquake
A number of the telescopes sustained minor damage during the October 15, 2006 Kiholo Bay earthquake and aftershocks. JCMT was performing an inclinometry run and recorded the earthquake on its tilt sensors. Both CFHT and W. M. Keck Observatory were operational and back online by October 19.
