Editing Magellan Telescopes

{{Short description|Optical telescopes located at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile}}
{{Infobox telescope}}

The '''Magellan Telescopes''' are a pair of {{convert|6.5|m|adj=mid|ft|-diameter}} optical [[telescope]]s located at [[Las Campanas Observatory]] in [[Chile]]. The two telescopes are named after the astronomer [[Walter Baade]] and the [[philanthropist]] [[Landon T. Clay]]. [[First light (astronomy)|First light]] for the telescopes was on September 15, 2000 for the Baade, and September 7, 2002 for the Clay. A consortium consisting of the [[Carnegie Institution for Science]], [[University of Arizona]], [[Harvard University]], the [[University of Michigan]] and the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] built and operate the twin telescopes. The telescopes were named after the sixteenth-century Portuguese explorer [[Ferdinand Magellan]].

The [[Giant Magellan Telescope]] (GMT) is an [[extremely large telescope]] under construction, as part of the US Extremely Large Telescope Program.<ref name="STD-20220206">{{cite news |author=[[Center for Astrophysics|Harvard & Smithsonian]] |title=Mission Critical: Giant Magellan Telescope Ranked a National Priority |url=https://scitechdaily.com/mission-critical-giant-magellan-telescope-ranked-a-national-priority/ |date=6 February 2022 |work=[[SciTech (magazine)|SciTechDaily]] |access-date=7 February 2022 }}</ref>

== Current instruments on the Magellan Telescopes ==
Baade telescope: 
* Inamori Magellan Areal Camera and Spectrograph (IMACS)
* FourStar
* Folded port InfraRed Echellette (FIRE)
* Magellan Echellete (MagE)
Clay telescope: 
* Magellan Inamori Kyocera Echelle (MIKE) spectrograph
* Low-Dispersion Survey Spectrograph-3 (LDSS-3)
* Megacam imager
* MagAO-X
* Michigan/Magellan Fiber System (M2FS)

== Magellan Planet Search Program ==
{{Main|Magellan Planet Search Program}}
This program is a survey of stars searching for planets using the MIKE echelle spectrograph mounted on the 6.5 m Magellan II (Clay) telescope.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0004-637X/693/2/1424|title=Low Mass Companions for Five Solar-Type Stars from the Magellan Planet Search Program|journal=The Astrophysical Journal|last1=Minniti|first1=Dante|last2=Butler|first2=R. Paul|last3=López-Morales|first3=Mercedes|last4=Shectman|first4=Stephen A.|last5=Adams|first5=Fred C.|last6=Arriagada|first6=Pamela|last7=Boss|first7=Alan P.|last8=Chambers|first8=John E.|year=2009|doi=10.1088/0004-637X/693/2/1424|volume=693|number=2|pages=1424–1430|arxiv=0810.5348|bibcode=2009ApJ...693.1424M|s2cid=119224845}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/0004-637X/711/2/1229|title=Five Long-Period Extrasolar Planets in Eccentric Orbits from the Magellan Planet Search Program|journal=The Astrophysical Journal|last1=Arriagada|first1=Pamela|last2=Butler|first2=R. Paul|last3=Minniti|first3=Dante|last4=López-Morales|first4=Mercedes|last5=Shectman|first5=Stephen A.|last6=Adams|first6=Fred C.|last7=Boss|first7=Alan P.|last8=Chambers|first8=John E.|year=2010|doi=10.1088/0004-637X/711/2/1229|volume=711|number=2|pages=1229–1235|arxiv=1001.4093|bibcode=2010ApJ...711.1229A|s2cid=118682009}}</ref>

== MagAO Adaptive Optics System ==
In 2013, Clay (Magellan II) was equipped with an [[Adaptive optics|adaptive]] secondary mirror called MagAO which allowed it to take the sharpest visible-light images to date, capable of resolving objects 0.02 arcseconds across—equivalent to a [[Dime (United States coin)|dime]] (1.8 cm) seen from {{convert|100|mi}} away.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.space.com/22467-telescope-takes-sharpest-night-sky-images.html|title=New Telescope Tech Takes Sharpest Night Sky Photos Ever|publisher=[[Space.com]]|date=21 August 2013|last=Wall|first=Mike|access-date=29 July 2020}}</ref>

MagAO was originally intended for the [[Large Binocular Telescope]] (LBT), but the secondary mirror was damaged before it could be installed. The project leader Laird Close and his team were able to repair and repurpose the broken mirror for use on Magellan II. As built for the LBT, the original MagAO mirror had a diameter of {{convert|36|in|m}}. However, the edge of the mirror was broken. Technicians at [[Steward Observatory]] were able to cut the mirror to {{convert|33.5|in|m}} in diameter, thereby removing the broken edge.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://azstarnet.com/news/science/university-of-arizona-astronomers-see-more-clearly-than-ever/article_ba3373b0-d06f-5193-abc3-103c77562e33.html|title=University of Arizona astronomers see more clearly than ever|work=[[Arizona Daily Star]]|date=22 August 2013|last=Beal|first=Tom|access-date=29 July 2020|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130825002412/http://azstarnet.com/news/science/university-of-arizona-astronomers-see-more-clearly-than-ever/article_ba3373b0-d06f-5193-abc3-103c77562e33.html|archive-date=25 August 2013}}</ref>

== Gallery ==
{{comparison optical telescope primary mirrors.svg|280px}}
<gallery>
File:Magscope.jpg|Part of Las Campanas Observatory after snowfall, with the Magellan telescopes at the right.
File:Magellan telescopes.jpg|Telescopes at night
</gallery>

== See also ==
* [[List of largest optical reflecting telescopes]]
* [[Giant Magellan Telescope]]
* [[Gran Telescopio Canarias]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [http://obs.carnegiescience.edu/Magellan/ Magellan Project homepage – Carnegie Institution for Science]
* [http://www.lco.cl/telescopes-information/magellan/ Las Campanas Observatory Magellan Telescopes homepage]

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[[Category:Infrared telescopes]]
[[Category:Reflecting telescopes]]
[[Category:Science and technology in Chile]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Antofagasta Region]]