Communications with the Telescope

Robotic telescopes across the globe

Operating robotic telescopes relies on the vital communications link between the telescope, usually high on a mountain top somewhere in the world, and its control centre, often found in a university research department many miles away.

The Internet provides an ideal solution for cost effective communications. A dedicated communication link would be very costly to install for every robotic telescope in the world.

Internet communication technology is used to:

• Send the night's observing schedule to the telescope from the control centre.
• Allow the telescope to be continually monitored while in operation.
• Allow the instrument to be remotely controlled from a control centre for testing purposes.
• Send image data back to the control centre for professional astronomers and schools to use.