The Technical Departments of The MPIA is where some of the instruments used by todays astronomers, both ground based

and in space, are designed and built. As technology advances, these instruments will become more and more sensitive, resulting in greater detail and resolution. Thus allowing greater detail The MPIA has contributed towards the James -Webb Space Telescope, which when Located on the Knigstuhl Mountain near Heidelberg, Germany, is one of many institutes that make up the Max Planck Society. Completed in 1974 the MPIA deals with current astronomical questions and is behind the development of new observational methods launched in 2018 will take over from the Hubble Space Telescope, with better instruments.

M AX P L AN C K INSTITUTE FOR AS T R O N O M Y ( M P I A)

An artists impression of the James Webb telescope

The MPIA has two departments: Scientific Departments and Technical Departments. The Scientific Departments is further split into: Planet and Star formation and Galaxies and Cosmology The department for Planet and Star formation deals with understanding what processes drive the birth of stars which could later lead to the formation of planets. To do this the use a combination of instruments: ground based obersavatories and telescopes in space The ground based instruments use a mutliwavelength spectrum while the space insturments are in the Infared, this along with computer simulations, theoretical models and laboratory based experiments has helped refine our understanding on the processed involved. Some of the telescopes and instruments used by the MPIA:

Max Planck (1858 1947) for which the world renowned society is named after. He is known for the first works of the quantum world. ESA launched a mission to analyse the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) and named it in his honour

A partnership between the MPIA, USA, Germany and Italy resulted in the construction of the Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) in 1989, which houses 2 primary 8.4m mirrors. Situated in on Mt. Graham, Arizona, USA at a height of 3190m. An image of the primary mirrors on the LBT.

The department for Galaxies and Cosmology deals with trying to answer the key questions about how the universe began, what lead to the formation of the galaxies like our own Milky War galaxy and other fundamental questions, such as what is Dark energy? What is Dark Matter? How do/did these mysterious particles play a role in the creation of the universe, the expansion of the universe, the formation of Galaxies? The department uses ground based telescopes and instruments such as: The MPIA are also involved in work with the ESO telescope the Very Large Telescope (VLT), this is located in the Chilean Andes at a height of 2700m.

3.5m LAICA (Large Area Imager for Calar Alto)

PANIC (Panoramic Near-IR Camera) this is used on the 2.2m telescope at Calar Alto observatory

Panoramic image of the VLT

2.2m MAGIC (MPI for Astronomy General-purpose near-IR Camera)

ASTRA

(ASTrometric

and

phased-

Herschel IR telescope EChO (Exoplanet Characterization Observatory)

Referenced Astronomy) this is an upgrade of the KECK near IR interferometer