Secondary Mirror Assembly Completed
TTL 
are now in the
final stages of the construction of the Liverpool Telescope, destined for La Palma in the Canary Islands.
TTL engineers have just installed the secondary mirror, which is located at the very top of the telescope. This mirror reflects the light from the primary mirror towards the telescope's camera which is located at the very bottom of the instrument. The secondary mirror also focuses the telescope by moving slightly under computer control.
In the pictures below, TTL engineers carefully attach the cradle that safely holds the mirror while it is lifted by the crane. Finally the mirror is lowered on to the support assembly.
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These next set of pictures show the top ring, which supports the secondary mirror assembly. It is being rotated into position so that a light baffle can be fitted.
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The light baffle is carefully moved towards the secondary mirror assembly
The light baffle is a tube that protects the secondary mirror from stray light that may reduce overall image contrast. On the right you can see the baffle about to be lifted and fixed into place.
A similar light baffle is also located around the primary mirror.
The secondary mirror is an extremely expensive optical part with a very delicate reflective surface and care is taken not to damage it during the assembly.
Below you can see the stages where the secondary mirror assembly is being attached to the telescope.
The secondary mirror and its support ring weighs around 1000 kilos with the secondary mirror making up 87 kilos of that weight.
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