The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) - art. no. 626729

The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) is being developed by a consortium of universities and research institutions to address the science goals set forth in the National Academy of Sciences most recent Decadal Survey. The telescope will be located in northern Chile and used for astronomical research at wavelengths from the atmospheric UV cut-off through the mid-IR. The GMT is designed with a segmented primary mirror consisting of seven 8.4 meter diameter mirrors and will have a collecting area equal to a filled aperture 21.9 meter telescope and the diffraction limited performance of a 24.5 meter telescope in the IR. The design builds on technology in the areas of structures, mirror fabrication, adaptive optics, and instrumentation developed for the current generation 6.5 in and 8.4 in telescopes. The GMT Project has recently completed its Conceptual Design Phase. This paper summarizes the telescope and enclosure concepts, site evaluation, and the GMT program.