Why is GROWTH-India telescope in news? « Back to Questions List
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GROWTH-India telescope is a fully robotic optical research telescope commissioned six months ago. The telescope is arranged at the Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO) located in Hanle, Ladakh. GROWTH stands for ‘Global Relay of Observatories Watching Transients Happen’. The facility is a collaborative initiative of many countries. GROWTH India telescope is designed to monitor cosmic events happening for shorter periods. The primary research objective of the project is time domain astronomy that involves the research of explosive transients and variable sources in the universe. The robotic telescope made its first observation of nova explosion, thereby grabbing headlines in media. The first observation of GROWTH-India telescope is a follow up study of nova explosion. Violent eruptions occurring on the surface of white dwarf stars are known as nova explosions. Such explosions lead to temporary increase in the brightness of stars. A supernova leads to death of the star, but in the case of nova explosion, the star regains its earlier state after the explosion. During such explosions, the inner material of the star is thrown out facilitating the study of inside of stars. The first observation of nova explosion by GROWTH-India telescope occurred between November 8 and November 10, 2018. By virtue of the design, GROWTH-India telescope monitors cosmic events occurring for much shorter than light years – years, days and even hours.
The 0.7 m GROWTH-India telescope is fully robotic and can operate on its own. The telescope can move its focus from one part to another part of the sky in just about 10-15 seconds. The camera of the robotic telescope is so powerful that it can watch stellar objects that are thousands to millions of light years away. GROWTH initiative is a collaborative project of universities and research institutes from the India, Germany, the US, the UK, Taiwan, Japan, and Israel are part of the initiative.
The GROWTH-India telescope is set up with three objectives:
The Indian Astronomical Observatory (IAO) is operated by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore. GROWTH-India telescope is the third highest optical telescope in the world. The telescope is situated at an elevation of 4,500 meters (14,764 ft). The Hanle site of IAO is located at an ideal place that offers visible, infrared and submillimeter observations throughout the year. Snow, humidity, ambient temperature, water vapour in atmosphere, pollution and concentration of atmospheric aerosols are less at Hanle, making it a best suited location for astronomical observation. What are black holes?What is dark energy?
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