Katzman Automatic Imaging Telescope

The Katzman Automatic Imaging Telescope is a robotic observatory at Mount Hamilton that uses a 76-centimeter mirror to survey the night sky. The system operates entirely on its own, capturing roughly 100 images per hour as it searches for transient astronomical events.

The telescope began operating in 1998 as an automated system designed to detect sudden changes in the night sky. Its rapid identification of transient objects became central to modern astronomical research and discovery.

More than 100 undergraduate students from the University of California Berkeley have participated in research projects using this telescope for astronomical observations.

The observatory sits on a remote mountaintop and operates entirely on its own at night, so visitors cannot interact directly with the equipment. It makes sense to check ahead for visitor access and learn about the surrounding observatory facilities.

The system can respond to sudden sky events and detected a gamma-ray burst just seconds after it occurred. This lightning-fast reaction capability allows the instrument to catch fleeting cosmic events that other telescopes would miss.