SPECIAL NOTICE
99 -- Request for Information (RFI) Liquid Mirrors
- Notice Date
- 7/26/2022 11:28:08 AM
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- Contracting Office
- DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY (DARPA)
- ZIP Code
- 00000
- Solicitation Number
- DARPA-SN-22-46
- Response Due
- 9/1/2022 1:00:00 PM
- Point of Contact
- Michael Nayak, Program Manager, DARPA/DSO
- E-Mail Address
-
DARPA-SN-22-46@darpa.mil
(DARPA-SN-22-46@darpa.mil)
- Description
- The surface of a fluid in equilibrium is a constant potential energy surface, which is why most liquids lie flat under the influence of gravity. However, when rotated at a constant angular velocity about a vertical rotation axis, the equipotential surface takes the form of a paraboloid, a shape that focuses light. This is the principle behind a liquid mirror telescope (LMT); light incident upon a reflective liquid surface spinning at a constant angular velocity converges at an effective prime focal point. Traditional ground-based LMTs can only point straight upward, presenting a key challenge: zenith-restricted telescopes are limited in the imagery they can gather. Space-based LMTs could substitute spacecraft thrust for gravity, but are optically limited by containment systems to prevent the liquid component from boiling off in vacuum. To address this, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Defense Sciences Office (DSO) is requesting information related to methods by which a mirror comprised of a reflective liquid surface spun into a light-focusing shape may be compelled to maintain that shape even if tilted out of plane (against the force of gravity) or in the vacuum environment (the absence of gravity). Such methods would remove the zenith-only pointing restriction and enable future ground- and space-based LMTs to be used in a way more analogous to traditional point-and-slew telescopes at a significantly lower price point.
- Web Link
-
SAM.gov Permalink
(https://sam.gov/opp/d01a28a60db341cdb4db1d4e88111dce/view)
- Record
- SN06401670-F 20220728/220726230107 (samdaily.us)
- Source
-
SAM.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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