Design of the WIKEE Multi-Instrument Camera System

The Wide field Infrared Kuiper belt and Exoplanet Explorer (WIKEE) Telescope is a 0.7 meter, folded three-mirror Gregorian telescope that will provide a cost effective method for celestial observation. Instead of having the light be reflected to three different instruments all at once, the system will rotate, connecting to them as needed, providing extra clarity as well as frugality. These instruments so far include two cameras, one being infrared, and a spectrometer. A 90 mm prototype is being constructed which will operate in the 0.7-2.1 micron band. The final 0.7 meter design will have a higher resolution and a maximum field of view of 0.5 degrees. The optical basket of the telescope is a multifaceted mechanism which allows connection to several types of receivers in short succession by means of the “G.W.I.S. Imager”, which rotates the tertiary and fold mirrors on a swivel. Spot diagrams and wavefront analysis present high accuracy and low aberrations. The adapted three mirror Gregorian reflector system is cost effective and versatile, allowing greater operating range with even less aberrations than other reflector designs. The next steps include work on the telescope’s sensors, in particular creating a photodiode interface that will be used for infrared imaging. In the future, an algorithm will be created which will take the image of an asteroid and determine its orbit around the corresponding celestial body.