14 DAY TRIAL // The Multi-Object Spectrometer For Infra-Red Exploration (MOSFIRE) instrument, recently installed on the W. M. Keck Observatory's Keck I Telescope, has just been opened for the first time. The camera was able to collect an impressive “first light” image of the famous Antennae Galaxies.
The Observatory features two 10-metre (33-foot) telescopes located next to each other, which function through a technique known as optical interferometry. This allows the light from both mirrors to be combined in a single beam, producing highly detailed images.
With the addition of the MOSFIRE camera, the observatory's capabilities are greatly expanded at infrared wavelengths. The Keck I Telescope is now able to pierce through the massive dust clouds located at the cores of galaxies, or surrounding forming stars inside nurseries, Universe Today reports.
The IR spectrometer needs to be kept at a chilly -243 degrees Fahrenheit (-153ºC), in order to prevent its own heat from interfering with observations. Below is a video of how the camera was installed.
