Moon & Orion Rising From NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF)
The NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) is an astronomical observatory located near the 4205m (13,800ft) summit of Mauna Kea, an extinct volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii. It features a 3-meter (9.8 ft) telescope optimized for observations in infrared. The IRTF is operated by the University of Hawaii under a cooperative agreement with NASA.A minimum of 50% of IRTF observing time is devoted to planetary science.
I've had the opportunity to use the IRTF on numerous occasions with my colleagues from Goddard Space Flight Center and our Infrared Heterodyne Spectrometer. Our spectroscopic research projects include measuring winds on Venus, mapping ozone on Mars, and studying hydrocarbons in the atmospheres of Jupiter, Saturn and Titan. We observed the atmospheric aftermath of Comet Shoemaker-Levy's impact with Jupiter, and have provided ground based observations of the planets in support of NASA missions.
Technical Details
- Title: Moon & Orion Rising From NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF)
- Subject: NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF)
- Location: Mauna Kea, HAWAII
- Camera: Nikon FE with 28mm Nikkor lens
- Exposure: 1 hour at f/2.8
- Film: Ektachrome 400
- File Name: MK91-311w.jpg
- Original Image Size: 2730 x 3963 pixels (10.8 megapixels); 9.1" x 13.2" @ 300 dpi
- Rights: Copyright 2007 by Fred Espenak. All Rights Reserved. See: Image Licensing.