IRAIT project: future mid-IR operations at Dome C during summer

• Main Authors: TOSTI, Gino, BUSSO, Maurizio Maria, I. Collaboration
• Other Authors: Tosti, Gino, Busso, Maurizio Maria, I., Collaboration
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2003
• Subjects: Antarctica; infrared:general; telescope; site testing; survey; infrared: stars; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Concordia Station; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11391/993203; http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2003MSAIS.2.82T

The project IRAIT consists of a robotic mid-infrared telescope that will be hosted at Dome C in the Italian-French Concordia station on the Antarctic Plateau. The telescope was built in collaboration with the PNRA (sectors Technology and Earth-Sun Interaction and Astrophysics). Its focal plane instrumentation is a mid-infrared Camera (5-25 mu m), based on the TIRCAM II prototype, which is the result of a join effort between Institutes of CNR and INAF. International collaborations with French and Spanish Institutes for the construction of a near infrared spectrographic camera have also been started. We present the status of the project and the ongoing developments that will make possible to start infrared observations at Dome C during the summer Antarctic campaign 2005-2006.