Subaru Telescope

Mauna Kea Observatory: Subaru Telescope

Subaru Telescope, a Japanese 8.2-metre (27-foot) optical-infrared telescope located on the dormant volcano Mauna Kea (4,163 metres [13,658 feet]) on the island of Hawaii. An adaptive optics system consisting of 261 actuators can change the shape of the mirror so that it is not affected by deformations caused by gravity. To minimize air turbulence near the telescope, the dome that surrounds the telescope is cylindrical instead of a hemisphere, as is the case with most other observatories. Astronomers using Subaru have taken the first images of a forming binary star and discovered that supernova explosions are not spherically symmetric. Construction on Subaru began in 1992, and the first observations were made in 1999. The telescope is named for the Japanese name for the Pleiades and is operated by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.