Current as of August 2011
Updated July 2013
The LSST is a proposed 8.4-meter ground-based telescope that will survey the entire visible sky deeply in multiple colors every week from a mountaintop in Chile. It will open a movie-like window on the universe and address some of the most pressing questions in astronomy and physics, while driving advances in data-intensive science and computing.
Uniquely capable six-band digital optical survey to address over 100 new explorations of our universe, including four Key Science Goals: Dark matter, dark energy, formation of galaxies, potentially hazardous asteroids
A transformative view of our universe: The Big Picture. An unprecedented volume of the universe will be monitored. Accessible to scientists and public alike. Open data, open source.
Telescope sited on Cerro Pachón, Chile. Coordinates: (Google Earth) (Google Map)
Science Operations begin seven years after construction start. With a calendar year 2014 construction start, first light will be in 2019, early science in 2020, and science operations in 2021.
9.6 square degree field of view for each exposure. 20,000 square degree sky coverage.
Pair of 15-second deep exposures every 40 seconds. Tile entire accessible sky a few times a week. Each piece of sky imaged 2000 times over 10-year survey lifetime. Flip book of the sky, celestial cinematography.
24th magnitude single visit; 27th magnitude co-added over survey lifetime in 6 optical – near-IR bands.
