AAO is leading a major international project to deliver the Adaptive Optics Bench for Wide and Narrow fields (AOB-WAN), a transformative upgrade for the 8-metre Gemini North Telescope in Hawaii. Acting like “automatic prescription glasses” for the telescope, the adaptive optics system will correct for atmospheric turbulence in real time, providing astronomers with sharper, more detailed views of planets, stars, and distant galaxies.
AAO heads the system overall design—covering optics, mechanics, and electronics—along with assembly, integration, verification, and commissioning. This leadership underscores our world-class expertise in advanced instrumentation and precision optics.
In collaboration with partners from France, Portugal, New Zealand, and across Australia, the project is progressing steadily and has now entered the Critical Design phase. By uniting cutting-edge technology with international collaboration, AOB-WAN is setting a new benchmark in astronomical instrumentation and showcasing Australia’s capability to deliver complex, high-precision optical systems for the world’s most powerful telescopes.