Telescope Design

Abstract

BAUSTIAN : In opening the section which is the beginning of the engineering phase of the symposium, I would like to make a few short remarks. Essentially, as we all know, telescope design is merely a method of combining a number of optical components and maintaining their optical alignment during the operation of the telescope. The engineering problem is not only one of shop fabrication and field erection but also of providing for an unknown host of future improvements, modifications, and additions that will be made to the basic telescopes. Essentially, the engineers should design a mounting that leaves as many doors as possible open to these future modifications and additions. It is one of the few large fabrications that envision a useful life of at least 50 years. Therefore, it might be appropriate to caution engineers, since the expected lifetime of these instruments is 50 years or more, that ease of fabrication, which involves a relatively short period of the total life of telescope, should not be made the basic design consideration.