The SAO lunar laser.

Abstract

The SAO lunar-ranging system is currently being installed at the Agassiz Observatory, Harvard, Massachusetts, USA. It employs a high-radiance neodymium-glass laser and a transmitting telescope whose aperture diameter is only 0.2 m. This telescope is a coude refractor specially built for the purpose, with tracking accuracy 1 second of arc. The receiving instrument is the 1.5-m telescope at the Agassiz Observatory. However, the laser transmitting unit can be moved to other locations where telescopes of similar size are available. Since the large telescope does not transmit the laser radiation, it remains in a normal mode of operation and the regular observing schedule is not disrupted. During routine operation, the receiver field will be larger than that of the transmitter, thus imposing less of a constraint on the tracking capability of the large optical instrument.