SCIENTIFIC PROJECTS
The HATNet Project
The Hungarian-made Automated Telescope Network (HATNet) Exoplanet Survey is a geographically distributed network of 7 small telescopes optimized for detecting transiting exoplanets. Since first light in 2003, we have discovered 60 exoplanets to date. This website describes the project, and presents all data used to detect and characterize the transiting exoplanets discovered by the HATNet survey. Use the links on the sidebar to learn more. All HATNet mount and electronics are made and designed by Fornax Mounts.
HATSouth Project
The Hungarian-made Automated Telescope Network-South (HATSouth) Exoplanet Survey is a network of 6 astrograph telescope systems designed to detect transiting exoplanets in orbit around relatively bright stars visible from the Southern hemisphere. The telescopes are distributed over three continents; South America, Africa, and Australia. Since first light in 2009, we have discovered 35 exoplanets to date. This website describes the project, and presents all data used to detect and characterize the transiting exoplanets discovered by the HATSouth survey. Use the links on the sidebar to learn more. All HatSouth mounts and electronics are made and designed by Fornax Mounts.
HAT PI
The HAT-PI Project is building a telescope that will, in a single exposure, observe the majority of the night sky visible from its observing site in Chile in 30 seconds. This is accomplished by attaching up to 63 carefully aligned lens-and-camera sub-units to a large mount. The mount will track stars as they rise and set during the night while the telescope keeps imaging, effectively creating a movie of the night-sky. HAT-PI will enable the detection of a diverse array of objects ranging from near-earth asteroids and exoplanets around bright stars to novae and bright gamma-ray bursts. The large field of view of this instrument, coupled with the dense time-sampling, will vastly improve our understanding of transient astronomical events.
The Principal Investigator for the project is Gáspár Bakos, Associate Professor in the Department of Astrophysical Sciences at Princeton University.
The BlackGem Project
The BlackGEM project is a wide-field telescope array dedicated to measure the optical emission from pairs of merging neutron stars and black holes. A few hours prior to the optical emission, these violent events should also emit copious amounts of gravitational radiation in the form of gravitational waves — ripples in the fabric of space-time itself. BlackGEM is expected to be operational by the end of 2017. In addition, the BlackGEM telescope will for the first time construct a multicolored movie of the dynamic and variable Southern skies! BlackGEM will comprise 15 telescopes of 60cm diameter, all of which will most likely be located at ESO La Silla, Chile. Each telescope will be equiped with a 81 Mpix camera, consisting of a single 10k x 10k CCD, and covering 2.7 square degrees at 0.57 ”/pix. The new FORNAX 200 Mount will be used for the BlackGem project.
FORNAX MOUNTS AMBASSADORS
OUR BRAND PARTNERS:
Fornax has been developing and producing astronomical equipment for 20 years now. Our main focus is manufacturing astronomical mounts, but our range includes other astronomical auxiliary products. In addition to private projects we have been involved in such prestigious projects as the HAT (Hungarian Automated Telescope) project, one of the most successful projects in exo-planet exploration, or the BlackGem project. Our customers include Harvard and Princeton universities. Our mounts are used by many famous astrophotographers, and their award winning pictures taken with the help of our products stand as testament to the quality.
QHYCCD designs and manufactures world-leading astronomical cameras, ranging from entry-level to professional, CMOS and CCD, front-illuminated and back-illuminated, specially crafted for amateur and professional astronomers worldwide.
In a relatively short time, William Optics has established itself and its products as one of the world leaders in short-tube, highly-portable refractors, and has achieved quality recognition for many accessories such as the well celebrated WO Diagonals.
We plan to keep producing fine instruments both for the entry-level and the top-end segments. In the coming year, you will have many pleasant surprises: on top of a whole new range of larger Apochromatic telescopes, we will begin marketing new accessories and binoculars for all pockets.
Far from limiting ourselves to astronomy, in accordance to the founders’ passion for nature in all its aspects, we will increase our efforts to produce superior products for the bird-watching enthusiast and the casual observer alike.