Antarctic TianMu Staring Observation Project I: Overview and Implementation of the Prototype Telescope

TL;DR

This paper presents the design, deployment, and successful operation of the Antarctic TianMu prototype telescope, demonstrating its potential for wide-field, high-cadence time-domain optical observations in Antarctica's extreme environment.

Contribution

It introduces a novel Antarctic telescope prototype based on drift-scan CCD technology, optimized for harsh polar conditions, and validates its stable operation over two years.

Findings

Prototype operated reliably in Antarctica for over two years

Demonstrated advantages of drift-scan CCD technology in polar conditions

Provides a foundation for future Antarctic time-domain astronomy arrays

Abstract

Wide-field rapid sky surveys serve as critical observational methods for time-domain astronomical research. The Antarctic region, with several months of continuous dark nights annually, is an ideal site for time-domain astronomical observations. The Antarctic TianMu Staring Observation Project aims to deploy a fleet of small telescopes, adopting an array observation model to conduct time-domain optical observations in Antarctica, featuring wide-sky coverage, high-cadence sampling, long-period staring, and simultaneous multi-band measurements. Considering the severe challenges optical telescopes face in Antarctica, including extremely low temperatures, unattended operation, and limited power supply and network transmission, we have designed and developed the Antarctic TianMu prototype telescope based on drift-scan charge-coupled device technology. In October 2022, our prototype (with an aperture of 18 cm), named AT-Proto was transported to Zhongshan Station in Antarctica aboard China's 39th Antarctic Research Expedition. It has since operated stably and reliably in the frigid environment for over two years, demonstrating the significant advantages of this technology in polar astronomical observations. The experimental observation results of AT-Proto provide a solid foundation for the subsequent construction of a time-domain astronomy observation array in Antarctica.