The submillimeter array

Abstract

The Submillimeter Array, a collaborative effort between the Smithsonian Institution and the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, was largely completed by November 2003, when scheduled science observations began. At that time the array consisted of eight six-meter diameter antennas equipped with receivers designed to operate in the atmospheric windows around 230, 345 and 650 GHz. During the past three years a number of improvements and upgrades have been made to the array which now performs nightly astronomical observations on a routine basis. These upgrades will be discussed as well as plans for short-term improvements.