Leveraging developments in CCD technology in the 1990s, Gary Bernstein and Tony Tyson built the Big Throughput Camera to map Dark Matter by surveying galaxies in a large volume of our universe. It was placed at the prime focus of the Blanco 4-meter telescope at the National Optical Astronomy Observatories at Cerro Tololo, Chile. This camera was also used by two groups to search the sky for new supernova explosions that could then be scrutinized by other instruments, like the Hubble Space Telescope, to determine their distances. This led to the surprising result in 1998 that the expansion of our universe is accelerating, and to the realization that there must exist a repulsive force driving the acceleration, now called Dark Energy.
J. Anthony Tyson in the Department of Physics at the University of California at Davis donated this camera to the Museum in 2016.
Display Status
This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin
United States of America
Type
EQUIPMENT-Scientific Devices
Manufacturer
Bell Laboratories
Dimensions
3-D (Overall): 59.7 × 50.2 × 55.9cm (1 ft. 11 1/2 in. × 1 ft. 7 3/4 in. × 1 ft. 10 in.)
Approximate: 22.7kg (50lb.)
Materials
mixed metals, silicon
Inventory Number
A20160014000
Credit Line
Gift of J. Anthony Tyson, Department of Physics, University of California at Davis
Data Source
National Air and Space Museum
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
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