Other
Scientific paper
Sep 2004
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2004natur.431..278l&link_type=abstract
Nature, Volume 431, Issue 7006, pp. 278-281 (2004).
Other
100
Scientific paper
One of the most important considerations when planning the next generation of ground-based optical astronomical telescopes is to choose a site that has excellent `seeing'-the jitter in the apparent position of a star that is caused by light bending as it passes through regions of differing refractive index in the Earth's atmosphere. The best mid-latitude sites have a median seeing ranging from 0.5 to 1.0arcsec (refs 1-5). Sites on the Antarctic plateau have unique atmospheric properties that make them worth investigating as potential observatory locations. Previous testing at the US Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station has, however, demonstrated poor seeing, averaging 1.8arcsec (refs 6, 7). Here we report observations of the wintertime seeing from Dome C (ref. 8), a high point on the Antarctic plateau at a latitude of 75° S. The results are remarkable: the median seeing is 0.27arcsec, and below 0.15arcsec 25 per cent of the time. A telescope placed at Dome C would compete with one that is 2 to 3 times larger at the best mid-latitude observatories, and an interferometer based at this site could work on projects that would otherwise require a space mission.
Ashley Michael C. B.
Lawrence Jon S.
Tokovinin Andrei
Travouillon Tony
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