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Gemini Observatory
Article By:
Hamilton, John C. Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Hilo, Hilo, Hawaii.
Last reviewed:2002
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.YB020910
Gemini Observatory consists of identical 8-m (319-in.) telescopes located at two of the best observing sites in the world. Gemini North (Fig. 1) at Mauna Kea, Hawaii (elevation 4214 m or 13,824 ft) and Gemini South at Cerro Pachon, Chile (elevation 2715 m or 8907 ft). Design-optimized for infrared observations, the telescopes use the latest materials-manufacturing techniques and computer control technology to achieve image quality that is unprecedented for ground-based astronomy. With adaptive optics systems that remove most of the atmosphere-produced distortion, Gemini can routinely produce high-resolution images (under 0.18 arcsecond in the K band infrared window at 2.2 μm wavelength).
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