The Telescope
Thunderbird South is the renewed UBC Southern Observatory, a project led by Professor Aaron Boley, along with Professors Paul Hickson and Harvey Richer. The telescope is located about 75 km southeast of La Serena, Chile in the Andes Mountains. At a height of 5590 ft, with very dry and stable air, as well as dark and clear skies, the observatory offers excellent conditions and many observing opportunities for UBC students and faculty. The system can be directly operated by users remotely, as well as autonomously without direct intervention.
Specs
- Planewave CDK 500 telescope
- L-500 Mount
- Camera: FLI Proline PL16803 Cooled CCD
- Filters: Johnson-Cousins UBVRI + ND14, ND20
- Sensor: ON Semi KAF-16803
- 4096 x 4096 pixels
- 61% Peak Quantum Efficiency
The Operators
Thunderbird South is proudly operated by undergraduate students at UBC, offering direct experience in observational astronomy and remote telescope operation. Two student operators manage the telescope, with each student serving a term of two consecutive semesters. During their time, operators are responsible for capturing astrophotography, supporting outreach and taking data for research projects.
Current Operators
Sharon Chan
Operating Thunderbird South lets Sharon pretend she has the biggest eyes in the universe, stretching her “pupils” from 5 mm to 500 mm. With this superpower, she spends her nights eavesdropping on light that traveled millions of years just to say hello.
Contact: sharonchan6562@gmail.com
Andrea Schildhorn
Though it may seem that Andrea commands the telescope through mere lines of code, in truth, she transcends the limits of light itself, darting between locations to guide Thunderbird South with her own hands.
Contact: andrea.schildhorn1@gmail.com
Previous Operators
Chantal Hemmann
Chantal’s work as a Thunderbird South operator has allowed her a unique view into deep space that she is thrilled to be sharing with others – she loves her job and hopes you enjoy the images as much as she does!
Contact: chantalhemmann@gmail.com
Sean Heakes
Sean believes himself to be a wizard using a scrying spell as he operates Thunderbird South. Join him in the magical adventure of gazing deep into time and far across space.
Contact: sheakes@student.ubc.ca