project Mont Abu Observatory

AMOS designed, manufactured and installed the 2.5m Mount Abu telescope of the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in India. The telescope is located in Mount Abu observatory site at Gurushikar in Rajasthan. The site, situated 1680 m above the see level, is one of the best in India for Astronomical Observations in the visible and infrared wavelengths (0.4  µm to 2.5 µm). PRL research in astronomy and astrophysics mainly focuses on exoplanets, evolution of the solar system and structures of galaxies. The telescope is be operated mostly in combination with the optical fiber-fed high-resolution cross-dispersed echelle spectrograph named PARAS-2 and developed by PRL.

The telescope design is based on a Ritchey-Chretien Cassegrain configuration with a focal length of 20 m. The image quality in operation is maintained thanks to the active optic system where the 2.5 m primary mirror shape is controlled by means of 42 force axial actuators and the position of the secondary by means of a hexapod. Built-in wavefront sensor and camera provide feedback information respectively for the active optic and tracking closed loop. The telescope can host at Cassegrain focus one main instrument and two side instruments that are selected automatically.

Major components such as the mount structural parts, the 2.5 m primary mirror, the active mirror cell, the control software, etc. were produced at AMOS. The integration of all the components in AMOS main assembly hall was followed by the alignment of the optics, the tuning of the axes, the functional tests and finally the performance on sky in September 2020. The telescope was installed in 2022.

Since then, it has contributed to the discovery of exoplanets by PRL and various other discoveries.