Rubin Observatory

The mirror on Rubin Observatory’s Simonyi Survey Telescope is polished and recently installed! ?? To manage such a larger precision convex surface, we used novel measurement techniques to ensure this mirror is ready to push scientific frontiers and contribute to a better understanding of our Universe. ? Learn more: https://bit.ly/4enAwpT

Astronomy has long used light to explore the Universe, but photons aren't the only cosmic messengers in town! Just like we can use our multiple senses to learn about the world around us, combining the information from multiple cosmic "messengers" gives scientists a better idea of how the Universe works ?? These cosmic messengers include photons?, gravitational waves??, neutrinos??, and cosmic rays?? Once Rubin comes online, it'll join a global "multi-messenger" network of cosmic detectors, and its wide view and keen eye will help scientists detect and study more multi-messenger sources more quickly than ever before?? ??: https://lnkd.in/gY5KxgEt . . . NSF NOIRLab | SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory | National Science Foundation (NSF) | U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) | Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy

Ever wondered what it's like at Rubin Observatory? At the recent Rubin Community Workshop, attendees got a virtual tour of the observatory site—and you can watch it now too! What was your favorite part? Watch the full tour ?? https://lnkd.in/gRcpWRff

Commissioning camera: ? With ComCam reinstalled, we officially have 2 out 3 main telescope components in place! In just a few weeks, summit staff will install the 8.4-meter primary/tertiary mirror—and Rubin will finally have a complete telescope system for the very first time! The commissioning camera is a 144 megapixel version of Rubin's 3200-megapixel car-sized camera and is used to test and troubleshoot the telescope's systems ahead of installing the full LSST Camera.

Mirror, mirror reflecting so bright, who are those tiny figures in your sight? ?? Rubin Observatory's secondary mirror was recently uncovered for the first time since its installation, giving some unique selfie opportunities ?? With the stray light baffle now installed, we're another step closer to having a complete telescope system for the first time! The first iteration of the complete system will use the commissioning camera—the smaller 144-megapixel version of the huge LSST Camera that is used for testing. After on-sky testing during the coming months, the full 3200-megapixel LSST Camera will be installed toward the end of this year.

Say cheese! Rubin Observatory photographs pretty well, in our (not so) humble opinion ? Celebrate #WorldPhotographyDay with us by grabbing one of these new wallpapers for your phone! ????

Just a few more hours to cast your vote for #SXSW2025! Help Rubin get to the stage by 11:59p PDT TONIGHT! ??: ls.st/sxsw2025

Great news! A new research opportunity will take students all the way to La Serena, Chile ???? in NSF NOIRLab's new REU Chile Program ??. Undergraduate students will have the opportunity to work closely with a NOIRLab research mentor on a research topic at the forefront of astrophysics. The program is open to undergraduate students who are U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, or U.S. permanent residents. Interested students are invited to apply by submitting the required materials by 23 September 2024. Read more: https://lnkd.in/e_2t5cSp

Reminder! You still have five days to cast your vote for sessions for #SXSW2025! Might we suggest a vote for the Rubin Observatory panel? ?? Voting is open until August 18! ??: ls.st/sxsw2025

"We're approaching a transition in our understanding of the cosmos, from uncovering more mysteries to actually solving them." To answer cosmic questions we haven't been able to answer, we had to build an observatory unlike any other. Rubin Observatory will transform our understanding of our Universe, what it's made of, and how it has evolved starting in 2025. In just its first year, Rubin Observatory will collect more data than all previous telescopes *combined!* Although it was first proposed to study dark matter, Rubin's science goals have expanded dramatically to address some of our most pressing questions across the cosmos. By the end of its ten-year survey, Rubin will have made exquisite measurements of more than 36 billion stars, galaxies, supernovae, and Solar System objects in total—more than 4x the population of the entire Earth. Join us in this next exciting decade for astrophysics as we begin to #CaptureTheCosmos in 2025! Learn more via the National Science Foundation (NSF): https://lnkd.in/eQmYdyCW