Design parameters and measured performance of the IRAM 30-m Millimeter Radio Telescope

The “Millimeter Radio Telescope” (MRT) is operated by the Institute for Radio Astronomy in the millimeter range (IRAM) and is located at 2850-m altitude in the Sierra Nevada, near Granada, Spain. It is a reflector antenna of 30-m diameter with a surface accuracy of 0.08 mm and a pointing accuracy of better than 2 arcsec. The telescope is equipped with sensitive receivers for the atmospheric windows between 0.8- and 7-mm wavelength. The authors describe the optics layout of the receiver and calibration system, which allows simultaneous observations at a number of frequencies. The special design aspects of the antenna, in particular the control of thermal deformations and the achievement of a high reflector and pointing accuracy are described. The authors compare the design computations with the characteristics of the telescope, derived from several years of operation and optimization. The success of the design is demonstrated by observational experience. The authors conclude the paper with a short review of some of the astronomical results obtained with the telescope