https://www6.slac.stanford.edu/lsst Skip to main content Primary LSST Camera * Intro * LSST science * Camera design * Fun facts * News * Links LSST Camera Diagram of Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) camera lenses and filters LSST Camera: World's largest camera for astronomy An exploded view of the LSST Camera, showing its main components. (Christopher Smith/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) Share Tweet Share Send Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time Ranked as the top ground-based national priority for the field for the 2010s, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory is currently under construction in Chile. The U.S. Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory is leading the construction of its camera - the largest digital camera ever built for astronomy, which will be mounted on the Simonyi Survey Telescope. During the first 10 years of operations, Rubin Observatory will conduct the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), which will cover the entire southern sky and provide the widest, fastest and deepest views of the night sky ever observed. SLAC Professor Aaron Roodman is the deputy director of the observatory and Camera program lead, and SLAC personnel are also participating in Rubin data management and commissioning. SLAC is also leading the DOE's portion of Rubin Observatory operations, with Sr. Staff Scientist Phil Marshall serving as Deputy Director for Rubin Operations, and is host for the Dark Energy Science Collaboration. Rubin Observatory is a federal project jointly funded by the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy, with early construction funding received from private donations through the LSST Corporation. LSST Explainer | Mapping the universe Play video Vera C. Rubin Observatory will conduct the 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), which will collect 60 petabytes of data to address some of the most pressing questions about the structure and evolution of the universe and the objects in it. (Olivier Bonin/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) Close LSST camera explainer October 4, 2022 Vera C. Rubin Observatory will conduct the 10-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), which will collect 60 petabytes of data to address some of the most pressing questions about the structure and evolution of the universe and the objects in it. Olivier Bonin/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Video details LSST science goals What will LSST look at? The LSST will make use of images of the entire visible southern sky that will be taken over and over again for a decade. This vast public archive of data will dramatically advance our knowledge of the dark energy and dark matter that make up 95 percent of the universe, as well as galaxy formation and potentially hazardous asteroids. Dark Matter Gravitational lensing is our best tool for finding dark matter, which makes up about 27 percent of the universe. LSST will benefit from Rubin Observatory's power and large field of view, which will enable us to see weaker lenses, which are more common. Dark matter texture Current composition of the universe Current observations indicate the ordinary matter that we see all around us makes up only 5 percent of our universe. The data collected for the LSST will enhance our understanding of the rest of the universe - dark matter and dark energy. chart of the composition of the universe Dark Energy Dark energy makes up two-thirds of the universe and drives its expansion. With LSST data, scientists will be able to map out in extraordinary detail how the universe has expanded over time, yielding new insight into the nature of dark energy. Dark energy The solar system LSST will allow scientists to undertake a thorough exploration of our solar system with two goals in mind: learning how it originally formed, and protecting Earth from hazardous, near-flying asteroids. Graphic of solar system orbits The Milky Way Individual stars in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies can be resolved in the LSST data. These stars then provide a fossil record that can be decoded to determine how these galaxies formed. Milky Way galaxy The changing sky Rubin Observatory will scan the sky repeatedly to great depth. With LSST, researchers will be able to both discover new, distant transient events and study variable objects throughout our universe. Supernova Camera design Nuts and bolts The LSST Camera project is funded by the DOE and managed by SLAC. Construction began in 2015 in SLAC's new clean room, as the lab is leading the camera's design and fabrication. The 3.2-gigapixel prime focus digital camera will take a 15-second exposure every 20 seconds, which requires very precise focusing due to the rapid repointing. It will produce data of extremely high quality with minimal downtime and maintenance. Camera overview About the size of a small SUV, the LSST Camera is the largest camera ever constructed for astronomy. It is a large-aperture, wide-field optical camera that is capable of viewing light from the near ultraviolet to near infrared wavelengths. Length 12.25 ft (3.73 m) Height 5.5 ft (1.65 m) Weight 6200 lbs (2800 kg) Pixel Count 3200 megapixel Wavelength Range 320-1050 nm Note: 1 nm (nanometer) = 10-9 m or one-billionth of a meter LSST Camera size LSST focal plane diagram Focal plane The focal plane is the heart of the camera, where light from billions of galaxies comes to a focus. It consists of 189 charge-coupled device (CCD) sensors, arranged in a total of 21 3-by-3 square arrays mounted on platforms called rafts. The system is cooled to about -100 degC to minimize noise. The 64-cm-wide focal plane corresponds to a 3.5-degree field of view, which means the camera can capture more than 40 times the area of the full moon in the sky with each exposure. Filter changer The camera also contains a carousel that holds five on-board filters. Each of the filters can be individually swapped out in under two minutes and up to four times a night with the double-rail auto changer. The system also integrates with a manual load-lock changer to allow for a swap-out of a sixth filter. The optimized wavelength range for the LSST Camera is 320-1050 nm (near ultraviolet to near infrared). This range is divided into six spectral bands labeled u-g-r-i-z-y, each associated with one of the filters. For example, an infrared, or "i" filter might be used to observe sources obscured by dust, since infrared wavelengths can pass through the dust. LSST camera filters More technical info about the camera Rubin Observatory stats Fun facts & key numbers The concept behind the Rubin Observatory Project is remarkably simple: conduct a deep survey over an enormous area of sky; do it with a frequency that enables images of every part of the visible sky to be obtained every few nights; and continue in this mode for 10 years to achieve astronomical catalogs thousands of times larger than ever previously compiled - the first time a telescope will catalog more galaxies than there are people on Earth. 27 Foot primary mirror 3.2 Gigapixel detector 15 Terabytes of data per night 37 Billion stars & galaxies 10 Year survey of the sky Vera Rubin Observatory telescope on a mountaintop Rubin Observatory news from SLAC Press Release SLAC completes construction of the largest digital camera ever built for astronomy Once set in place atop a telescope in Chile, the 3,200-megapixel LSST Camera will help researchers better understand dark matter, dark energy and other... April 3, 2024 * 10 min read Researchers examine the LSST Camera News Feature Rubin Observatory will inspire a new era in space missions without ever leaving the ground Vera C. Rubin Observatory's detailed, big-picture view of our Solar System and ability to quickly detect and track moving objects will provide a gold... February 7, 2024 * 4 min read A ring of yellow dots representing surrounds the earth, which projects a green beam onto the dots. News Feature Final supernova results from Dark Energy Survey offer unique insights into the expansion of the universe The latest results put the strongest constraints on the expansion of the universe ever obtained with DES supernova data. January 12, 2024 * 8 min read Blanco Telescope Press Release SLAC completes construction of the largest digital camera ever built for astronomy Once set in place atop a telescope in Chile, the 3,200-megapixel LSST Camera will help researchers better understand dark matter, dark energy and other... April 3, 2024 * 10 min read Researchers examine the LSST Camera News Feature Rubin Observatory will inspire a new era in space missions without ever leaving the ground Vera C. Rubin Observatory's detailed, big-picture view of our Solar System and ability to quickly detect and track moving objects will provide a gold... February 7, 2024 * 4 min read A ring of yellow dots representing surrounds the earth, which projects a green beam onto the dots. News Feature Final supernova results from Dark Energy Survey offer unique insights into the expansion of the universe The latest results put the strongest constraints on the expansion of the universe ever obtained with DES supernova data. January 12, 2024 * 8 min read Blanco Telescope News Feature A day in the life of a mountaintop telescope builder Margaux Lopez is helping prepare the Vera Rubin Observatory for the arrival of the largest digital camera ever built for astrophysics and cosmology. January 5, 2024 * 4 min read Margaux Lopez in front of a telescope building. News Feature Recommendations for U.S. government investments in particle physics include SLAC research priorities A new report outlines suggestions for federal investments needed for the next generation of transformative discoveries in particle physics and cosmology, including priority projects... December 8, 2023 * 3 min read A web of dark matter, in which galaxies are forming. News Brief Rubin Observatory will unlock fossil record of galaxy cluster evolution Vera C. Rubin Observatory's fast-moving telescope and huge digital camera will illuminate the faint glow of free-floating stars within galaxy clusters, providing unprecedented insight... December 4, 2023 * 4 min read A smattering of hundreds of galaxies of different shapes and sizes against a black background. Semi-opaque teal blobs surround and connect many of the galaxies. Show less Show more Stay connected with LSST * twitter * facebook * youtube * linkedin * rss Rubin Observatory links General links * Rubin Observatory Main Website * LSST Corporation * News * Image Gallery * Videos * Employment * Education & Public Outreach * Ways to Participate Scientists & industry * LSST Info for Scientists * Science Collaborations * Science Advisory Committee * Data Management Software Stack * Enabling Science * Website for Project Team * Doing Business with LSST Funding & collaboration Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a federal project jointly funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, with early construction funding received from private donations through the LSST Corporation. The NSF-funded LSST (now Rubin Observatory) Project Office for construction was established as an operating center under management of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA). The DOE-funded effort to build the Rubin Observatory LSST Camera (LSSTCam) is managed by SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC). * National Science Foundation (NSF) * SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory * Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science * Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) * Charles and Lisa Simonyi Fund for Arts and Sciences * LSST Corporation SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory 2575 Sand Hill Road Menlo Park, CA 94025-7015 650.926.3300 * Coming to SLAC * Connect with us * Contact us * * * * * * Sign up for our email Monthly newsletter for cutting-edge science, SLAC milestones and events. Sign up Bold People Visionary Science Real Impact We explore how the universe works at the biggest, smallest and fastest scales and invent powerful tools used by scientists around the globe. 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