Teide Observatory
Encyclopedia
The Observatorio del Teide
(Teide Observatory) is an astronomical observatory on Tenerife
operated by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
. Opened in 1964, it became one of the first major international observatories, attracting telescopes from different countries around the world because of the good astronomical seeing
conditions. Later the emphasis for optical telescopes shifted more towards Roque de los Muchachos Observatory
on La Palma
. It is considered one of the world's major observatories.
Teide
Mount Teide , is a volcano on Tenerife, Canary Islands. Its summit is the highest point in Spain, the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic, and it is the third highest volcano in the world measured from its base on the ocean floor, after Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea located in...
(Teide Observatory) is an astronomical observatory on Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
operated by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias
The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias is an astrophysical research institute located in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was founded in 1975 at the University of La Laguna.It operates two astronomical observatories in the Canary Islands:...
. Opened in 1964, it became one of the first major international observatories, attracting telescopes from different countries around the world because of the good astronomical seeing
Astronomical seeing
Astronomical seeing refers to the blurring and twinkling of astronomical objects such as stars caused by turbulent mixing in the Earth's atmosphere varying the optical refractive index...
conditions. Later the emphasis for optical telescopes shifted more towards Roque de los Muchachos Observatory
Roque de los Muchachos Observatory
Roque de los Muchachos Observatory is an astronomical observatory located in the municipality of Garafía on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands...
on La Palma
La Palma
La Palma is the most north-westerly of the Canary Islands. La Palma has an area of 706 km2 making it the fifth largest of the seven main Canary Islands...
. It is considered one of the world's major observatories.
Solar telescopes
- Solar Vacuum Tower TelescopeVacuum Tower TelescopeFor the vacuum tower telescope at Sacramento Peak, see Richard B. Dunn Solar Telescope.The Vacuum Tower Telescope is an evacuated-optics solar telescope located at the Teide Observatory on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. It is operated by the Kiepenheuer-Institut für Sonnenphysik ..It has a ...
(VTT): 70 cm diameter. Operated by the Kiepenheuer Institute of Solar Physics, FreiburgFreiburgFreiburg im Breisgau is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. In the extreme south-west of the country, it straddles the Dreisam river, at the foot of the Schlossberg. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Breisgau region on the western edge of the Black Forest in the Upper Rhine Plain...
(GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
). Installed in 1989. - THÉMIS Solar Telescope: 90 cm diameter, built 1996, operated by ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.http://www.themis.iac.es/ - Gregor Solar Telescope: 1.5 m, operated by a GermanGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
consortium. Not operational. - A node of the Birmingham Solar Oscillations NetworkBirmingham Solar Oscillations NetworkThe Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network consists of a network of six remote solar observatories monitoring low-degree solar oscillation modes. It is operated by the High Resolution Optical Spectroscopy group of the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Birmingham, UK, in...
(BiSON), operated by the University of BirminghamUniversity of BirminghamThe University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
, UK.
Nocturnal telescopes
- Carlos Sánchez Infrared TelescopeTelescopio Carlos SánchezThe Telescopio Carlos Sánchez is a 1.52 m Dall-Kirkham type infrared telescope with an equatorial mount and an f/13.8 Cassegrain focus. It is located at Observatorio del Teide on Tenerife, and is operated by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias...
(TCS): 152 cm diameter installed by the UKUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1971 - MonsMons TelescopeThe MONS Telescope has 50cm diameter and was constructed by the University of Mons in 1972 for night observation purposes.It is located at Observatorio del Teide on Tenerife, and is operated by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias....
reflecting telescopeReflecting telescopeA reflecting telescope is an optical telescope which uses a single or combination of curved mirrors that reflect light and form an image. The reflecting telescope was invented in the 17th century as an alternative to the refracting telescope which, at that time, was a design that suffered from...
: 50 cm diameter, operated by the University of MonsUniversity of MonsThe University of Mons is a new Belgian university located in the city of Mons, created by merging the Engineering Faculty of Mons and the University of Mons-Hainaut...
(BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
), built in 1972. - IAC-80 Telescope: 80 cm IACInstituto de Astrofísica de CanariasThe Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias is an astrophysical research institute located in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was founded in 1975 at the University of La Laguna.It operates two astronomical observatories in the Canary Islands:...
telescope, installed in 1991. - OGS TelescopeOGS TelescopeThe OGS telescope, installed in the Teide Observatory, has been built by Carl Zeiss, is owned by ESA and is operated by the IAC ....
: 1 m European Space AgencyEuropean Space AgencyThe European Space Agency , established in 1975, is an intergovernmental organisation dedicated to the exploration of space, currently with 18 member states...
optical ground station for satellite communications, built in 1998. - STARE Telescope: 10 cm Stellar Astrophysics & Research on Exoplanets.
- Bradford Robotic TelescopeBradford Robotic TelescopeThe Bradford Robotic Telescope is an autonomous astronomical telescope located at Teide Observatory, Tenerife in the Canary Islands. It is owned by the University of Bradford and was built between 2002 and 2004 for remote use by schools and individuals worldwide...
: 35cm Telescope for educational use. - (STELLA I and STELLA II) robotic telescopeRobotic telescopeA robotic telescope is an astronomical telescope and detector system that makes observations without the intervention of a human. In astronomical disciplines, a telescope qualifies as robotic if it makes those observations without being operated by a human, even if a human has to initiate the...
s: 120 cm STELLA is an abbreviation of STELLar Activity, operated by Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics (AIP) with the collaboration of the IACInstituto de Astrofísica de CanariasThe Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias is an astrophysical research institute located in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was founded in 1975 at the University of La Laguna.It operates two astronomical observatories in the Canary Islands:...
, put in operation 2006. - SLOOH: US robotic telescopes, built in 2004.
Radio telescopes for cosmic microwave background astronomy
- The 33 GHz interferometer
- The COSMOSOMASCOSMOSOMASCOSMOSOMAS is a circular scanning astronomical microwave experiment to investigate the Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropy and diffuse emission from the Galaxy on angular scales from 1 to 5 degrees. It was designed and built by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias in Tenerife, Spain, in 1998...
Experiment (10 and 15 GHz) - The Very Small ArrayVery Small ArrayThe Very Small Array is a 14-element interferometric radio telescope operating between 26 and 36 GHz that is used to study the cosmic microwave background radiation. It is a collaboration between the University of Cambridge, University of Manchester and the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias...
(VSA: 14-element interferometer at 30 GHz)
Other buildings on the site
The observatory has a visitors' centre and a residencia (hostel) for astronomers.See also
- Teide National ParkTeide National ParkTeide National Park is a national park located in Tenerife . It is centered around 3718m Mount Teide, the highest mountain of Spain and the islands of the Atlantic...
- Mount TeideTeideMount Teide , is a volcano on Tenerife, Canary Islands. Its summit is the highest point in Spain, the highest point above sea level in the islands of the Atlantic, and it is the third highest volcano in the world measured from its base on the ocean floor, after Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea located in...
- Pico ViejoPico ViejoPico Viejo is a volcano located on the island of Tenerife . It is the second highest peak of Tenerife and the Canary Islands with a height of 3,135 m above sea level....
- Instituto de Astrofísica de CanariasInstituto de Astrofísica de CanariasThe Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias is an astrophysical research institute located in Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Spain. It was founded in 1975 at the University of La Laguna.It operates two astronomical observatories in the Canary Islands:...
- Roque de los Muchachos ObservatoryRoque de los Muchachos ObservatoryRoque de los Muchachos Observatory is an astronomical observatory located in the municipality of Garafía on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands...
- Astronomical seeingAstronomical seeingAstronomical seeing refers to the blurring and twinkling of astronomical objects such as stars caused by turbulent mixing in the Earth's atmosphere varying the optical refractive index...