An → adaptive optics instrument
at the → European Southern Observatory
(ESO) → Very Large Telescope (VLT)
in service since 2001. It provides adaptive optics assisted imaging,
imaging polarimetry, and → coronagraphy
(only L) in the 1-5 μm range.
It consists of two components: NAOS (Nasmyth Adaptive Optics System)
and CONICA (COudé Near Infrared CAmera).
The adaptive optics system, NAOS, is equipped with both
→ <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/visible/">visible</a></i> and → <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/infrared/">infrared</a></i>→ <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/wavefront-sensor/">wavefront sensor</a></i>s.
It contains five → <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/dichroic-filter/">dichroic filter</a></i>s
which split the light from the telescope between CONICA and one of the
NAOS wavefront sensors.
CONICA is the → <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/infrared-camera/">infrared camera</a></i> and
→ <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/spectrometer/">spectrometer</a></i> attached to NAOS and
equipped with an Aladdin 1024 × 1024 pixel InSb array detector. It
possesses several wheels carrying masks/slits (including focal plane
coronagraphic masks), filters, polarizing elements,
→ <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/grism/">grism</a></i>s and several
cameras allowing → <i><a class="linkVoir" href="/terms/diffraction-limited/">diffraction-limited</a></i>
sampling across the full wavelength range.
See also: NaCo, from NAOS (→ Nasmyth,
→ adaptive; → optics;
→ system) + CONICA
(→ coude; → near-infrared;
→ camera).
