OVERVIEW

The optical designer is constantly challenged to make a design accommodate the thermal, mechanical, and vibrational environment in which it must operate. A wide range of tools make this possible, but the design process is still an art. Ironically, as optical technology has advanced, the demands on the performance of the mechanical structure and mechanisms involved have become more and more difficult. It is now common to find requirements for space optical structures' stability to be well below a micrometer. Without such precise management, the exquisite wavefront control demanded by today's systems could not be met. Even ground telescopes must exhibit outstanding mechanical system performance. In both cases, the modern designer is blessed and cursed by the availability of sensing and actuation systems blessed because they provide the last level of control of large optical systems and make their revolutionary performance possible, and cursed because the range of technologies now required to design such systems is beyond the capacity for any one person to understand. The modern, large optical system requires thoughtful input from a variety of skilled engineers, including structural, controls, materials, computer, mechanical, and optical engineers, and those associated with the specific operating environment.

A space observatory must, of course, be designed by a team that includes all of those mentioned above as well as experts in spacecraft, attitude control, power, thermal, and other areas. The ground telescope is only slightly less complex, as its design team must include those familiar with geotechnical issues, aerodynamics, and civil engineering.