The baseline design for the enclosure of the E-ELT is based on a spherical dome concept. This dome is tightly fitted to
the TRV so that its surface, the enclosed volume and consequently the system overall cost are minimized.
The large slit that is required for observation-as compared to the enclosure volume-, much larger than in smaller
telescopes, poses a big challenge to the design. This affects the slit covering system design, for which dynamic issues
must be carefully considered in order to prevent operation problems, as well as the dome structure and other mechanisms
such as the windscreen and the crane, that have to cover a large 45m span.
This paper presents a design that solves all these difficulties in both a cost-effective and reliable way. The design work
presented in this paper has been performed under contract with the European Southern Observatory.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.