Discovery Channel Telescope, Research telescope at Happy Jack, United States.
The Discovery Channel Telescope is a Ritchey-Chrétien research telescope situated in a forested highland area of Arizona, operated by Lowell Observatory. Its primary mirror measures 4.3 meters across, making it one of the largest optical telescopes in the continental United States.
The telescope was completed in 2012 as part of a partnership between Discovery Communications and Lowell Observatory, an institution founded in the 1890s. It represented the observatory's first major new instrument in several decades, extending a long tradition of planetary and deep-sky research in northern Arizona.
The telescope carries the Discovery Channel name because the television network funded a large part of its construction. This connection between a media company and a research observatory is something visitors often notice when they first read the site's official name.
The site sits on a remote mountain outside Flagstaff and is best reached by car, as there is no regular public transport to the area. Because temperatures drop quickly after sunset at this elevation, warm layers are worth bringing even during summer months.
The primary mirror is only about 10 centimeters (4 inches) thick despite spanning more than 14 feet (4.3 meters), making it unusually thin for its size. To stop the glass from distorting under its own weight, a system of 156 moving supports constantly adjusts the mirror's shape during observations.
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