РАТАН-600 - РАдиоТелескоп Академии Наук, or 'the Academy of Science Radio Telescope', Russia's RATAN600 radio telescope has a 600m dish and is a marvel of ingenuity and innovation.
Inspired by the success of the restored Pulkova Observatory, in 1965 the Russian astrophysics community decided to build a fully modern radio telescope. There were different ideas about that, but in 1967, a technical plan was approved and released, and in 1968 earth moving began at a quiet spot 970 m.above sea level in the North Caucasus, where nearby a 6m optical telescope observatory was also being built.
The Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR Leningrad Branch directed the planning and construction of the radio telescope and the development of it's instrumentation. The actual work was done via partnerships under the Ministries of Power Engineering, Machine Engineering, Electronic Industry, and others.
But the most demanding, complex work was performed by the radio astronomers themselves - the staff of the Leningrad Branch of the SAO and the Radio Astronomy Section of the SAE in Zelenchukskaya. This work included the following:
The RATAN was officially opened in 1977, although observations began earlier, and development is continuing even now.
The RATAN-600 consists of a 576 m diameter circle of 895 rectangular radio reflectors. Each of the 2×7.4 m reflectors can be pointed towards a central conical receiver or to one of five cylindric reflectors, making a partially steerable antenna with the resolving power of a 600 m diameter dish (when using the central conical receiver). This is the world's largest diameter individual radio telescope.
Radio frequency observations can be made in the frequency band 610 MHz to 30 GHz, though primarily in the centimetric waveband, with an angular resolution of up to 2 arcseconds.
RATAN-600 has also contributed to radio observation for the SETI project and is currently working with the Max Planck Institute's research. Interstingly, solar corona observation has it own group.
Visit for a full history: http://www.sao.ru/hq/CG/cold/part2.htm
http://www.sao.ru/ratan/
The RATAN-600 is also the first aperture-synthesis reflector-type telescope.
solar group: http://www.sao.ru/hq/sun/
http://www.sao.ru/ratan/technic/desc.html.en
Inspired by the success of the restored Pulkova Observatory, in 1965 the Russian astrophysics community decided to build a fully modern radio telescope. There were different ideas about that, but in 1967, a technical plan was approved and released, and in 1968 earth moving began at a quiet spot 970 m.above sea level in the North Caucasus, where nearby a 6m optical telescope observatory was also being built.
The Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR Leningrad Branch directed the planning and construction of the radio telescope and the development of it's instrumentation. The actual work was done via partnerships under the Ministries of Power Engineering, Machine Engineering, Electronic Industry, and others.
But the most demanding, complex work was performed by the radio astronomers themselves - the staff of the Leningrad Branch of the SAO and the Radio Astronomy Section of the SAE in Zelenchukskaya. This work included the following:
- final surfacing of the panels (none of the enterprises drawn to the project undertook this work),
- putting the first sector of the main reflector into operation (the north section in 1974),
- the geodesic and radiometric adjustment of the main mirror and developing the corresponding instruments, and, finally,
- the high-sensitivity radiometers were constructed by the joint efforts of engineer-radio astronomers and enterprises in the electronics industry.
The RATAN was officially opened in 1977, although observations began earlier, and development is continuing even now.
The RATAN-600 consists of a 576 m diameter circle of 895 rectangular radio reflectors. Each of the 2×7.4 m reflectors can be pointed towards a central conical receiver or to one of five cylindric reflectors, making a partially steerable antenna with the resolving power of a 600 m diameter dish (when using the central conical receiver). This is the world's largest diameter individual radio telescope.
Radio frequency observations can be made in the frequency band 610 MHz to 30 GHz, though primarily in the centimetric waveband, with an angular resolution of up to 2 arcseconds.
RATAN-600 has also contributed to radio observation for the SETI project and is currently working with the Max Planck Institute's research. Interstingly, solar corona observation has it own group.
Visit for a full history: http://www.sao.ru/hq/CG/cold/part2.htm
http://www.sao.ru/ratan/
The RATAN-600 is also the first aperture-synthesis reflector-type telescope.
solar group: http://www.sao.ru/hq/sun/
http://www.sao.ru/ratan/technic/desc.html.en
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