New design for lighter and smaller space telescopes

27th January 2016

Enaie Azambuja

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Lockheed Martin is developing a telescope that trades the bulky structure of current two-mirror models for a thin layer of hundreds - or potentially thousands - of tiny lenses that transmit the image to a silicon chip, similar to the camera in smartphones. The system is called SPIDER (Segmented Planar Imaging Detector for Electro-optical Reconnaissance), and works on the principle of interferometry.

This is not a new technique in astronomy, but miniaturising it has the potential to be revolutionary. SPIDER detectors reduce the size, weight, and power needs by 10 to 100 times, which could make a significant difference when it comes to planning space observatories.

Although it’s currently a simple prototype, it is significantly more versatile than any other telescope. A SPIDER can be produced in just a few weeks, it’s scalable, and it's easy to repurpose and repair.

“We can only scale the size and weight of telescopes so much before it becomes impractical to launch them into orbit and beyond,” said Danielle Wuchenich, senior research scientist at Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Technology Center, in a statement.

What a future telescope using the SPIDER technology might look like. Lockheed Martin

SPIDER was developed with funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and with research partners at the University of California, Davis. The technology is not only applicable to astronomy, but also to safety sensors in cars, as well as reconnaissance instruments. The team believes it will need between five to 10 years before it’s employed.

“SPIDER has the potential to enable exciting discoveries by putting high-resolution imaging systems within outer planet system orbits such as Saturn and Jupiter,” said Alan Duncan, a senior fellow at Lockheed Martin, in a statement. “The ability to reduce size, weight and power could significantly change the game. With 10 to 100 times the resolution of a comparable-weight traditional telescope, imagine what you could discover.”