SOAR Adaptive Module (SAM)
TECHNICAL DETAILS
The correction of the wave-front will be achieved using a low-altitude (10km)
Rayleigh laser guide star. The nominal average optical power of the Nd:YAG
solid-state laser beam will be 8W, wavelength 355nm, pulse frequency 10kHz.
The launch telescope of ~10" diameter will be located behind the SOAR secondary
mirror, the laser - at the telescope elevation ring. The UV laser beam will
be aircraft-safe.
In addition to the laser, SAM will get signals for tip-tilt correction from
one to three guide stars located in a circular field of 5' diameter around
the science field. The magnitude limit will be R< 18, ensuring 90% sky
coverage at Galactic pole. It will be possible to use bright (R< 10) natural
stars instead of laser if available - in this mode the resolution will be
higher, but the uniformly-corrected field will be smaller.
SAM will be permanently mounted at the side port of the optical ISB. The
struts of the cage around ISB will be modified to accommodate SAM. The SAM
mass will be 120kg. The maximum science-instrument mass exceeds 100kg, being
restricted only by the total load of the ISB.
SAM will be controlled by the telescope operator by means of a user-friendly
software that hides the complexity of adaptive optics and automatically adapts
to changing atmospheric conditions. SAM will be designed as heavy-duty facility
instrument fully compatible with the SOAR operational model.