Maidanak Alpine Observatory

Maidanak Alpine Observatory
Maidanak Alpine Observatory
Type of	astronomical observatory
Code	188 ( observations )
Location	Maydanak Plateau , Kashkadarya Region , Uzbekistan
Coordinates
Height	2650 m.
Weather	200 clear nights per year, FWHM = 0.7 ", sky brightness 21.5m / sq. Arc sec.
opening date	1970 year
Site	The official site of the observatory
Instruments
AZT-22 telescope	(D = 1.5 m, f = 11.5 m)
Zeiss Telescope 1000	(D = 1 m, f = 13.2 m)
Zeiss 60 cm telescope	(D = 600 mm, f = 7.2 m)
Zeiss 60 cm telescope	(D = 600 mm, f = 7.2 m)
AFR-1 telescope	(D = 230 mm, f = 2.3 m)

Maidanak Alpine Observatory is an astronomical observatory founded in 1970 on the western part of the Maidanak plateau 45 km south of Shakhrisabz . Since the 1990s, the observatory has been owned by the Mirzo Ulugbek Astronomical Institute at the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan . It is one of the structural units of the Kitab complex of high-altitude astronomical observatories. The Maidanak Observatory is unique in its high-quality atmospheric conditions and geographical location. The main base of the observatory is located near the city of Kitab , on the territory of the Kitab latitudinal station of the Academy of Sciences of Uzbekistan . In the 80s of the 20th century, a unit of the USSR Military Space Forces, known as the OKD "Maydanak", was located on the next peak of Majdanak Mountain.

View of the command and measurement complex Maidanak

Content

Observatory history

For the first time this place with a unique astroclimate drew attention back in 1967 to astronomer V.S. Shevchenko, a graduate of Kharkov University. And already in 1970, a permanent Alpine Maidanak expedition of the Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR was organized at this place. During the initial studies, it was found that the image quality on Majdanak in 80% of cases is better than 1 ". In the period from 1970 to 1975, the joint efforts of V. S. Shevchenko, V. I. Kardopolova, M. M. Zakirova, V. E. Slutsky, G. G. Borzov, I. S. Isakov, B. D. Kokarev, G. I. Shanin, A. G. Shcherbakov on the eastern peak of the mountain were built the House of Astronomers, towers for Zeiss-600 telescopes, additional pavilions for various instruments, at the same time on the Western peak of Maidanak (6 km west of the first buildings) by the efforts of the staff of the GAISH MSU named after Lomonosov Ar Tamonova B. P., Novikova S. B. The GAIS Observatory was created, which was founded in 1974. The Lithuanian station of the Vilnius Astronomical Observatory was established on the eastern peak in 1976. But in 1980, the eastern peak was given to the military to create the Command- therefore, all the astronomical (civilian) works were transferred to the western peak.A new stage in the development of Maidanak and the study of young star complexes began in 1986, when young employees came to the Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR and, graduates of various universities: Ibragimov M.A., Melnikov S. Yu., Chernyshev A.V., Portnov D.L., Shapovalov S.N., Grankin K.N., Yakubov S.D. Observations of more than 100 variable stars on photometers made it possible to draw fundamental conclusions about the phenomenon of rotational modulation of T Tau type stars. In February 1993, all equipment on Majdanak was nationalized by the Uzbek authorities.

Executives

since 1974 - Sergey Borisovich Novikov (1944-2010) - led the High Mountain Central Asian Expedition of the SAI MSU, then the department of the Maydanak Observatory of the SAI MSU ^[2] (he led at least until 1990)
At least since 1995 - Boris Pavlovich Artamonov - Head of the Maydanak Laboratory of GAISH MSU ^[3] ^[4]
Shukhrat Egamberdiev - head of the Maydanak Observatory ^[5]

Basic tools

Lithuanian station :

Zeiss-1000 (D = 1 m, F = 13.2 m; built in 1978, installed in 1981) - in Soviet times belonged to the Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy of the Academy of Sciences of the Lithuanian SSR - nationalized in February 1993
The Grubb Parsons telescope (D = 480 mm, F = 9540 mm) of Vilnius University - nationalized in February 1993 (installed on Maydanak from 1974 to 2005) ^[6]

- transferred to the observatory of Samarkand University ^[7]

AZT-22 telescope

Maydanak station GAISH MSU - High-mountain Central Asian expedition GAISH (Maidanak) - construction completed in 1988:

Zeiss-600 ("Moscow") (D = 600 mm, F = 7200 mm) + FLI IMG1001E (near AZT-22)
AFR-1 - a wide-angle (5 °) astrograph (D = 230 mm, F = 2300 mm) (transported from Moscow to Maidanak in 1988), in 2005 it was equipped with a MASS instrument for measuring atmospheric turbulence ^[8]
AZT-22 (D = 1500 mm, F = 11500 mm) ( LOMO ) + CCD camera (4000 x 4000 pix, 15 microns), put into operation in 1992 ^[9]
Repsold's Meridian Circle (D = 148 mm, F = 2030 mm) (in 1981, transported from Moscow from the Krasnopresnensky Observatory of the GAISH Moscow State University to Maidanak)

The main astronomical observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine ^[10]

Zeiss-600 ("Kiev") (D = 600 mm, F = 7200 mm) - installed in 1975 ^[11]

Kharkov station :

50 cm telescope (Kharkiv) (D = 450 mm, F = 8000 mm)

Branch of the Astronomical Observatory of St. Petersburg University : ^[12]

two unfinished observatory towers for AZT-20 telescopes - mothballed

Other tools:

Zeiss-600 (Tashkent) (D = 600 mm, F = 7200 mm) - installed under the Lithuanian dome, where the Grubb Parsons telescope stood until 2005, and the Ts-600 was transferred from the military in 2006
ASTROTEL-Majdanak : Astrosib RC-500 telescope (D = 508 mm, F = 4064 mm), Apogee Alta U-16M CCD camera (4096 x 4096 pix, pixel = 9 microns), mount Mathis Instruments MI -750 ", field of view 31 'ang. minute ^[13]
The EAST project (Earthshine and Asteroseismology Telescope) is an installation for observing the earth's ash light from the moon (a small instrument). Maksutov’s robotic telescope “Questar” (D = 90 mm, F = 2250 mm) + CCD camera (1024 x 1024 pixels), field of view 0.62 ° (2007) ^[14]
The DIMM project ("Differential Image Motion Monitor", ESO) is an astroclimatic monitoring of the FWHM of Majdanak Mountain. Telestron-11 telescope (D = 280 mm, F = 2800 mm), Schmidt-Cassegrain optical system. It has been working since 1996.

Participants in the creation of the observatory

Astronomical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR
Maidanak Laboratory of the State Astronomical Institute. P.K.Shternberg (since 1974)
Research Institute of Astronomy of Kharkov National University
Lithuanian astronomical station on the city of Maidanak in Uzbekistan ^[15]
The main astronomical observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
Astronomical Observatory of St. Petersburg University

Research Directions

Satellite observations
Gravity Lensing
Gamma-ray burst afterglow observations
Photometry of variable stars
Within the framework of the EAST network, it is planned to conduct observations of the moon's ash light in order to determine fluctuations in the Earth's albedo, which makes it possible to study some issues of global warming
Astroseismic studies of variable stars planned as part of the EAST project
Quasars

Major Achievements

Observations of more than 100 variable stars on photometers made it possible to draw fundamental conclusions about the phenomenon of rotational modulation of T Taurus type stars .
Collaborates with:

Tsinghua University , Xinchu, Taiwan
GAISH MSU
Kharkov Astronomical Institute
University of Pittsburgh , USA
ESO
Institute of Theoretical Physics and Astronomy of the Academy of Sciences of Lithuania and Vilnius University

In the summer of 1991, at the Maydanak Observatory, Timur Kryachko accidentally visually rediscovered comet 103P / Hartley ^[16] ^[17]
Observations of the satellites of Mars from July 23 to November 4 (19 nights) on the Ts-1000 in order to clarify the orbital elements in anticipation of the approach of the Phobos-2 spacecraft . The deviation from the calculated position of Phobos was only 2 km, or in terms of the average opposition, 0.005 angles. sec! ^[18]
On July 31, 1980, Casimir Cernis and Jovaras Petrauskas discovered the new comet Cermis-Petrauskas 1980k (modern designation C / 1980 O1 (Cernis-Petrauskas)) ^[19] ^[20]
Casimir Chernis discovered the comet C / 1983 O1 (Cernis) on July 18/19, 1983 using a 48 cm telescope ^[21]
On August 26, 1994, Casimir Chernis independently discovered the comet C / 1994 P1 (Machholz) using a 48-cm telescope, but in the absence of constant communication it did not have time to report ^[21]
Penetration at AZT-22: in band “B” for 21 minutes of exposure (median exposure) a magnitude of 23 is reached at the level of 5-sigma detection in an aperture of 3 arc seconds. ^[22]
From July 16 to July 22, 1994 - observations of the fall of comet Shoemakers - Levy 9 on Jupiter
Participation in the CoProG program

Telescopes of the Maidanak Observatory

Interesting Facts

The first asteroid in Uzbekistan was discovered in autumn 2007 ^[23] ^[24]
In the very first series of asteroid discoveries, 79 previously unknown asteroids were discovered in 5 hours 30 minutes of observations ^[25]
The first astrovideo in the CIS was filmed in Maidanak ^[26] ^[27]
The ability to observe with a resolution of 0.3 "and objects up to 23 magnitude ^[28]