Design brief for the new CTAO telescope array appears to be "make them look like implausible props from a sci-fi movie" and I am in love

[mexicals@mastodon.social]

@bencc @jonty squares are not the bestagons

[bencc@morehammer.uk]

@Mexicals @jonty Indeed not. I feel like their paper model PDF needs a proper version too: https://www.ctao.org/wp-content/uploads/LST_Paper_Model_Sept2025.pdf

[boxly@hachyderm.io]

@lpbkdotnet @jonty I was planning to make a slightly smaller and cost optimised version of this for EMF next time https://petrvacek.com/portfolio/fluidum/

[bencc@morehammer.uk]

@Mexicals @jonty It doesn't look like there's any square mirrors, so I wonder if this was from pre-mirror testing.

[queekusme@mastodon.scot]

@jonty someone needs to do this as an installation for EMFCamp28, this is cool as fuck!

[lpbkdotnet@mstdn.social]

@boxly @jonty that would be amazing!

Also, serious death-ray potential if it's as sunny as it was this year

[boxly@hachyderm.io]

@lpbkdotnet @jonty I'm not sure if that is something to mitigate or take advantage of

[lpbkdotnet@mstdn.social]

@boxly @jonty "yes!"

[unnick@booping.synth.download]

@lpbkdotnet@mstdn.social @jonty@chaos.social i think you could make do with just 1 laser by using diffraction gratings to split it

[whitequark@social.treehouse.systems]

@jonty long exposure shot right

[gsuberland@chaos.social]

@jtruk @jonty haaa

[blake@corteximplant.com]

@jonty Oh hell yea!

[nflux@gts.exile.social]

@jonty serious Death-Star vibes, but very cool!

[jonty@chaos.social]

@whitequark According to the description it was just a really foggy night!

[boxly@hachyderm.io]

@queekusme @jonty on it

[queekusme@mastodon.scot]

@boxly @jonty 🥳

[cararemixed@mastodon.social]

@jonty One of my neighbors whe I was a teen had access to a really high end 6 axis CNC and made a laser collimator which I used to focus my homemade 8" telescope. Shit was so cool and saved me sooo much time. If I ever make a telescope again, the collimation process is going to be part of the design from the start.

[rodneylives@mefi.social]

@jonty Just don't aim that thing at Alderaan

[falken@social.falkensweb.com]

@jonty that thing is bonkers

https://www.ctao.org/emission-to-discovery/telescopes/lst/

45 meters tall and 100 tons, moves between any two sky points in 20 seconds!

#science

[iris@neuromatch.social]

@jonty wait, that one looks like it's made of square panels instead. Alt text says hexagonal. (Still very cool.)