“It allows astronomers to obtain spectra of objects over the complete optical range, from the near-ultraviolet to the near-infrared.” “The Kast spectrograph is unique at Lick Observatory,” said Filippenko. Astronomers research the chemical composition of stars, probe the surroundings of massive black holes, and study massive intergalactic hydrogen clouds, among other projects.Īlex Filippenko, professor of astronomy at UC Berkeley, said the Kast Spectrograph is crucial for his team’s long-term study of supernovae, or exploding stars. The spectrograph is used to analyze faint celestial objects at distances ranging from our own solar system to the far reaches of the universe. “We will be able to make observations that can currently only be done at a handful of places.”
LICK OBSERVATORY UPGRADE
“With this award, we will be bringing the Kast up to the standards of the best observatories in the world,” said Brad Holden, a research astronomer at UC Santa Cruz and principal investigator for the Kast upgrade project.
Major funding for the upgrade was provided by a $300,000 grant from the Heising-Simons Foundation. Its powerful and flexible double-camera design makes it the most important and most used instrument on the 3-meter Shane Telescope at Lick Observatory, located on Mount Hamilton east of San Jose.īill and Marina Kast, the donors for whom the instrument is named, initiated the current upgrade program with a $50,000 donation announced in early 2014. UC Santa Cruz has been awarded $350,000 in combined grant and donor funds for a major upgrade to the Kast Spectrograph at Lick Observatory.Īstronomers throughout the UC system use the Kast Spectrograph for scientific research across a broad range of observational programs.
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