Special Feature - Steve's Tour of Observatories

The telescopes of the Very Large Array (VLA) as seen during an observing trip in August 1995 to map gravitational lenses.

A rainbow over the Plains of San Augustin, location of the VLA, just after a storm.

The Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) near Big Pine, California. Three of the Millimeter Array telescopes are seen, with the 40-meter telescope behind. The Sierra Nevada mountains are in the far background, and the volcanic cinder cone of Crater Mountain is in the near background.

Calibration of the OVRO 40-meter telescope is done by introducing ambient temperature (300K) and liquid-nitrogen cooled (70K) absorber loads in front of the receiver at the focus. This means we have to point the telescope at the horizon and climb out the feed-leg to the prime focus cage!

Calibration of the OVRO 5-meter telescope is somewhat easier. We used to have to perch on this precarious ladder with the hot and cold load box over the Cassegrain mounted receiver, as shown here. But now we have a winch to help with the procedure!

Steven T. Myers

       National Radio Astronomy Observatory
       P.O. Box O
       1003 Lopezville Rd.
       Socorro, NM 87801
Phone: (505) 835-7294 or 835-7000
  FAX: (505) 835-7027
Email: smyers@nrao.edu
  URL: http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/~smyers

Special Feature - Steve's Tour of Observatories

Steven T. Myers

National Radio Astronomy Observatory P.O. Box O 1003 Lopezville Rd. Socorro, NM 87801 Phone: (505) 835-7294 or 835-7000 FAX: (505) 835-7027 Email: smyers@nrao.edu URL: http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/~smyers