The Weizmann Fast Astronomical Survey Telescope (FAST; PI: Eran Ofek) is a 55-cm Schmidt telescope. The telescope is located in Mizpe-Ramon, Israel.
The telescope is part of the Weizmann Astronomical Observatories.
The Telescopes were designed and built in the Weizmann Institute. The telescope design provides a 23 deg2 corrected field of view on a 9x9 cm in the focal plane. Our first-generation camera has a 7 deg2 field of view and is capable of taking 100 images per second with low read noise.
The telescope is exploring the night sky on sub-second time scales. Among the main science goals are the detection and characterization of small trans-Neptunian objects, and the study of fast stellar variability.
| Aperture | 55 cm |
| Focal length | 108 cm |
| Focal ratio |
1.96 |
| Location | Mizpe-Ramon, Israel |
| 1st gen camera FOV | 7 deg2 |
| Pixel scale | 2.3" |
| Road noise | 1.5 e- |
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Left: The W-FAST telescope and dome in Mizpe-Ramon. The red surface is due to the reflection of the W-FAST blue filter in the primary mirror. |
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Left: The W-FAST I telescope. Bottom: The W-FAST dome.
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Left: The W-FAST I telescope during first vertical light tests in the Weimann Institute. Bottom: Ofir Hershko connecting the W-FAST telescope to its mount.
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Left: Eran Ofek inspecting the W-FAST primary mirror in its cage. Bottom: The Weimzann and Wise observatory team installing the W-FAST I dome in Mizpe-Ramon.
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