SMCAS
SMART
SMART Project Information
A SMART Partnership
In January 2011, the SMCAS board of directors approved our partnering with the College of San Mateo, the Mars Institute, and the SETI Institute on the San Mateo Arctic Research Telescope (SMART).
The project objective is to put a remotely operated telescope in or near the Haughton-Mars Project location in the High Arctic (north of the Arctic Circle), a world first. The scientific advantage of this location is that the 3 month Arctic night will provide for long duration observing, such as planet transit observations. It will also serve as a test bed for operation of a remote inaccessible telescope, such as might be placed on the Moon.
This exciting project will further our Society goals of supporting astronomy education, public outreach, and research. Besides being an exciting scientific project to be involved with, one that will most important I think is that this project will help CSM increase the quality and reputation of the CSM astronomy program, to the benefit of current and future CSM astonomy students. Ultimately that will help develop the next generation of amatuer and professional astronmers so vital to the future of our Society! -Marion Weiler
Since our January start, project team members from CSM (Mohsen Janatpour, Darryl Stanford, and Dean Drumheller), SMCAS (Ed Pieret, Marion Weiler), MI (Pascal Lee, Stephen Braham), and SETI (Doug Caldwell, Kevin Martin) have held monthly planning meetings in preparation for this summer's field season at Haughton Crater.
Current plans are for the CSM student intern, Luis Alvarez, to participate in an on-site Moffett Field NASA Ames field science training program being developed by the Mars Institute, with possible funding from Google. This will occur the week of June 20th.
Then on July 9th, Luis will join Pascal Lee and the rest of the team on their journey by National Guard C-137 transport airplane to Vancouver, BC, Resolute Bay, and then by Twin Otter aircraft for the last leg to the Haughton-Mars Project Research Station on Devon Island in the High Arctic. Luis will spend approximately 3 weeks on this trip.
While on assignment, Luis will survey possible sites for the telescope location as well as work with Dr. Lee's team in testing equipment and procedures to be used in a possible future Mars landing. This will be a unique transformative education experience for Luis!
Robotic Telescope in the Arctic
The goal of the SMART project is to design, install and operate an robotic telescope observatory at the Haughton-Mars Project Research Station(HMPRS), located at the Haughton Impact Crater on Devon Island in the High Arctic. Many of you may remember the excellent presentation about HMPRS given by Dr. Pascal Lee, Chairman of the Mars Institute, at our November general meeting. To date, HMPRS has not had an astronomy component as part of its infrastructure. This project will fill that gap.
SMART will be a ‘world first’ facility: the first robotic observatory near the north pole, and its proposed use of renewable energy would be a world’s first. This is a very exciting project, and there are many ways for SMCAS and its members to become involved, from making donations to providing consulting and advice on observatory design! In addition, members may have the opportunity to travel to HMPRS if they desire to do so.
Internship Opportunities
The primary scientific goal of the telescope is to take advantage of wintertime’s continuous darkness to conduct long-observation-time scientific research focused on the search for extrasolar planets. The science program for the telescope will be under the guidance of SETI Institute scientist Dr. Doug Caldwell (instrumentation scientist on the Kepler mission), and, importantly for our outreach and education goals, will provide internship opportunities for CSM astronomy students, helping us train the next generation of astronomers. Other science missions may be accommodated, as well as use by CSM or SMCAS. In addition, the observatory could provide a proof of concept to NASA for a remotely operated autonomous telescope observatory, such as could possibly be set up on the Moon or Mars.
This year’s goal is to conduct a feasibility study of the SMART concept. This will involve analyzing the HMPRS site and weather for appropriateness for establishing an observatory there. A key part of the feasibility study will be conducted by the CSM astronomy student intern who will be sent to HMPRS for the summer 2011 field season. They will review possible observatory sites, install any needed wintertime data collection instrumentation such as a weather station or full sky camera.
A key role for CSM in the project is providing qualified CSM student interns to work on the project. SMCAS is pleased to announce that the initial CSM Astronomy Program student intern selected to work on this project is our own SMCAS member Luis Alvarez! Luis will have the opportunity to work directly with scientists as a valued team member.
Donations Required
It is important to note that SMART will be funded and equipped primary through donations. A key role for SMCAS in the SMART project is assisting with ongoing fundraising, and particularly for the short term need to cover the travel expenses of the CSM intern, estimated to be $6,000 for the 2011 field season.
In summary, this is a very exciting and worthwhile partnership for SMCAS and its project partners. We expect this to be a long term relationship with our partners, a team collaboration which will provide value to astronomy science, the community, CSM astronomy students, as well as to our membership. Please feel free to contact us (Ed Pieret, Marion Weiler) with any questions regarding SMART. We look forward to keeping you informed about the project!
Please click HERE to donate to this project.
As a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, donations to SMCAS and this project are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. 100% of your donation will go to the project.
Current Project Status