dynamically detect subatomic- or picometer-sized distortions tagged posts

Goddard optics experts Babak Saif (left) and Lee Feinberg (right), with help from engineer Eli Griff-McMahon an employee of Genesis, have created an Ultra-Stable Thermal Vacuum system that they will use to make picometer-level measurements. Credit: NASA/W. Hrybyk

Astronomers have shown for the first time that they can dynamically detect subatomic- or picometer-sized distortions – changes that are far smaller than an atom – across a 5-foot segmented telescope mirror and its support structure. NASA optics experts are well on the way to toppling a barrier that has thwarted scientists from achieving a long-held ambition: building an ultra-stable telescope that locates and images dozens of Earth-like planets beyond the solar system and then scrutinizes their atmospheres for signs of life.

To fi...