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

TL;DR

The paper addresses the challenge of time-domain astronomy requiring continuous, high-cadence, wide-field monitoring, particularly for short-timescale transients and high-inclination solar-system bodies. It proposes the Antarctic TianMu Staring Observation Project (ATSOP) and validates a prototype, AT-Proto, based on drift-scan CCD cameras within a temperature-controlled dome and a remote operation framework designed for extreme polar conditions. Key contributions include a detailed technical scheme for a 180 mm drift-scan telescope, remote control via Iridium links, and field-tested performance showing stable operation, sub-arcsecond-level image quality for short exposures, and meaningful detection limits (e.g., g-band SNR>5 at g≈14.8–15.3 for 30–110 s exposures). The results provide a solid foundation for scaling to a 30-telescope Antarctic array to enable continuous, multi-band observations of transients and high-inclination small bodies, filling a critical gap in short-timescale time-domain astronomy and offering valuable data for stellar physics, solar system studies, and transient science.

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.

Figures (10)

• Figure 1: Equatorial coordinate sky map near the South Celestial Pole. The staring area of ATSOP is marked in yellow, with a total area of 1,229 square degrees, encompassing part of the Galactic Disk, part of the high galactic latitude region, and the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds.
• Figure 2: The structure of AT-Proto, showing key components, including the temperature-controlled dome, telescope system with a drift-scan CCD camera (180 mm aperture, 3k × 3k pixel array), ITO-coated windows, and remote operation and control system.
• Figure 3: Structure diagram of the AT-Proto remote control system, showing two core components: The Antarctic field terminal (hardware controllers and satellite modems) and the Shanghai control center, which enables remote equipment status monitoring, start/stop control, on-site image processing, and transmission of preprocessed results from Shanghai. Remote data transmission is conducted via satellite terminals connecting to the global Internet.
• Figure 4: AT-Proto at Zhongshan station.
• Figure 5: First light image obtained by AT-Proto on February 19, 2023.