Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument

Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument

DESI installed on the Nicholas U. Mayall 4-meter Telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory
Alternative names	DESI
Part of	Kitt Peak National Observatory Nicholas U. Mayall Telescope
Location(s)	Kitt Peak, Arizona
Coordinates	31°57′51″N 111°36′00″W / 31.96406°N 111.6°W / 31.96406; -111.6
Organization	Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Altitude	2,100 m (6,900 ft)
Wavelength	360 nm (830 THz)–980 nm (310 THz)
Built	2015– (2015–)
First light	2019
Telescope style	scientific instrument spectrometer
Website	desi.lbl.gov
Location of Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument
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The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is a scientific research instrument for conducting spectrographic astronomical surveys of distant galaxies. Its main components are a focal plane containing 5,000 fiber-positioning robots, and a bank of spectrographs which are fed by the fibers. The instrument enables an experiment to probe the expansion history of the universe and the mysterious physics of dark energy.^[1][2] The main DESI survey started in May 2021. DESI sits at an elevation of 6,880 feet (2,100 m), where it has been retrofitted onto the Mayall Telescope on top of Kitt Peak in the Sonoran Desert, which is located 55 miles (89 km) from Tucson, Arizona, US.

The instrument is operated by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory under funding from the US Department of Energy's Office of Science. Construction of the instrument was principally funded by the US Department of Energy's Office of Science, and by other numerous sources including the US National Science Foundation, the UK Science and Technology Facilities Council, France's Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, Mexico's National Council of Science and Technology, Spain's Ministry of Science and Innovation, by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, by the Heising-Simons Foundation, and by collaborating institutions worldwide.^[3][4]