RATAN-600
View of the observatory from a neighboring hill
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| Alternative names | RATAN-600 |
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| Location(s) |
Zelenchukskaya  , Russia
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| Coordinates | 43°49′33″N 41°35′11″E / 43.8258°N 41.5864°ECoordinates: 43°49′33″N 41°35′11″E / 43.8258°N 41.5864°E |
| Altitude | 970 m (3,180 ft) |
| Wavelength | 1.38, 2.70, 3.90, 7.6, 13, 31.1 cm (21.72, 11.10, 7.69, 3.94, 2.31, 0.96 GHz) |
| Built | 1968–1977 |
| First light | 12 July 1974
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| Telescope style |
radio telescope
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| Diameter | 576 m (1,889 ft 9 in) |
| Collecting area | 1,200 m2 (13,000 sq ft) |
| Website | www |
 Location of RATAN-600
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The RATAN-600 (Russian: РАТАН-600 – радиоастрономический телескоп Академии наук - 600, an acronym for the "Academy of Sciences Radio Telescope - 600") is a radio telescope in Zelenchukskaya, Russia. It comprises a 576 m diameter circle of rectangular radio reflectors and a set of secondary reflectors and receivers, based at an altitude of 970 m. Each of the 895 2×7.4 m reflectors can be angled to reflect incoming radio waves towards a central conical secondary mirror, or to one of five parabolic cylinders. Each secondary reflector is combined with an instrumentation cabin containing various receivers and instruments. The overall effect is that of a partially steerable antenna with a maximum resolving power of a nearly 600 m diameter dish, when using the central conical receiver, making it the world's largest-diameter individual radio telescope.
The telescope can operate in three modes:
Simultaneous independent observations at various discrete azimuths are possible: For this, a sector of the ring is coupled with one of the secondary mirror and receiver units (which can be positioned on railway tracks) while another sector in conjunction with another secondary mirror is similarly used for an independent observation. At a wavelength of 8 cm, the effective collecting area of the entire ring is 1,000 square metres (11,000 sq ft) with a resolving power in the horizontal plane of 1 arcminute.
The RATAN-600 is primarily operated as a transit telescope, in which the rotation of the Earth is used to sweep the telescope focus across the subject of observation. Radio frequency observations can be made in the frequency band 610 MHz to 30 GHz, though primarily in the centimetric waveband, with an angular resolution of up to 2 arcseconds. Observation of the Sun at radio wavelengths, in particular of the solar corona, has been a long-standing focus of the RATAN-600's scientific programme. It has also contributed to radio observation for the SETI project. The RATAN-600 has not suffered from the persistent technical problems of the neighbouring BTA-6, and has generally been in high demand since it began operation in mid-1974.
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Wikipedia