The 36-foot telescope on Kitt Peak, Arizona
The 36-foot telescope on Kitt Peak in Arizona was used to map the millimeter-wave Universe from 1968 until the summer of 1968 when it was closed for an extensive upgrade. In January 1984, the telescope was rededicated as the 12-meter Telescope, for its surface had been refined and its receivers improved to increase its abilities to see these shorter-wavelength radio waves. The 12-meter became famous for detecting dozens of molecules in space and inspiring the design of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).
Credit: NRAO/AUI/NSF
