West Texas Observing Support
Observing Manuals, Technical Support, Emergency Contacts, and News
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2.7 m Harlan J. Smith Telescope
Cassegrain f/8.8 Ritchey-Chretien focus
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Prime f/3.9 focus
Cassegrain f/13.7 focus
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The 0.9 m telescope is currently used for public educational programs and special viewing events.
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f/3.0 focus
Non-UT Research Facilities Hosted at McDonald
Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope
McDonald hosts one of the nodes of the Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope and receives 15% of the telescope time on the global network. The first 1 m telescope in the network achieved first-light at McDonald on March 31, 2012.
McDonald hosts one of the two robotically controlled telescopes of the MONET project. The twin is located in South Africa. Installation in West Texas began in November 2005. The Observatory will likely receive a 10-15% share of each instrument.
The observatory hosts a 20" telescope for Boston University's Imaging Science program.
McDonald hosts one of the four globally networked Robotic Optical Transient Search Experiment telescopes, and receives 30% of the telescope's time.
