Inquiries

Q1
How did the Subaru Telescope get its name?
A1
The Subaru Telescope’s original name was "the Japan National Large Telescope," or "JNLT," — named during the new National Astronomical Observatory of Japan(NAOJ)telescope planning phase. In 1991, when construction started, NAOJ held a contest among the Japanese general public to collect name ideas for the telescope. The name "Subaru" was chosen from about 3,500 submissions. Subaru is the Japanese name for the Pleiades star cluster, which is called Makali`i in the Hawaiian language.
Q2
What is the most distinguishable feature of the Subaru Telescope?
A2
The role of an astronomical telescope is to gather faint light from celestial objects with a curved mirror or lens. The 8.3-meter primary mirror of the Subaru Telescope is made from an ultra-low thermal expansion glass, which is one of the world’s largest monolithic mirrors. It is also one of the smoothest mirrors; the mean surface error of the primary mirror is only 0.014 micrometers or microns (micrometers/microns = one millionth of a meter), about 1/5,000 of diameter of a human hair. Note that the effective aperture of the primary mirror is 8.2 meters.
Q3
Why was the Subaru Telescope built near the summit of Maunakea, Hawai`i?
A3
Maunakea meets ideal conditions for astronomical observations like good weather, stable atmosphere to obtain a sharp image of celestial objects, low humidity, and a dark night sky. Another reason for choosing Maunakea is that traveling to Hawai`i from Japan is fairly easy.
Q4
What can you see through the Subaru Telescope?
A4
The Subaru Telescope can observe celestial objects in visible and infrared lights. Stars and galaxies, which consist of stars, can be observed in visible light. Low-temperature star-forming regions and objects hidden in interstellar dust are seen in the infrared.
Q5
What does the Subaru Telescope aim to reveal?
A5
The present Universe has a rich structure that contains galaxies, stars, planets, and various other components where life is nurtured. How did this rich structure begin and evolve? And how will it go on? We challenge fundamental questions about the evolution of the Universe using the Subaru Telescope. In FY2022, the Subaru Telescope 2.0 project started to open new pathways to astronomical research by significantly enhancing the telescope’s capabilities. Subaru Telescope 2.0 set the following four science goals using the four key instruments.
  1. 1) To probe the nature of dark matter and dark energy, and determine the neutrino mass
  2. 2) To understand structure formation in the Universe and the physical process of galaxy formation and evolution
  3. 3) To contribute to multi-messenger astronomy
  4. 4) To identify Earth-like exoplanet candidates
Q6
What is the Hilo Base Facility?
A6
Due to the difficulty of operating at high altitudes on Maunakea, most of the support work for the telescope is done in Hilo, located at the foot of Maunakea. The Hilo Base Facility is also known as the Hilo Office. It houses administrative offices, research laboratories, remote observation rooms, and laboratories for adjusting observation equipment. It takes about two hours by car to get to the Subaru Telescope, Maunakea.
Q7
Are all Subaru Telescope observations conducted at the facility on Maunakea?
A7

Human body temperature adversely affects night-time observations because it disturbs airflow in the enclosure. For this reason, nobody is inside the enclosure during night-time observations. Scientists observe using the control system at the control building next to the enclosure. - Or, in some cases, scientists no longer need to be at the Subaru Telescope on Maunakea to conduct their observations. Instead, they observe at the remote control room at the Hilo Base Facility or even at the NAOJ headquarters in Mitaka, Japan. The same control system at the summit facility is equipped at the remote control rooms in Hilo and Mitaka. Scientists in Hilo and/or Mitaka communicate with the observation support staff at the summit facility with an online meeting system.

control

The enclosure (left)
the control building (right)

Q8
Is the description "the most distant object in the Solar System" and "the most distant galaxy" true?
A8
As stated in the disclaimer on the Subaru Telescope website, all released information, including "the most distant XX," - is written with the most current information available at the time and is subject to change should new information become available.
Q9
I want to visit the Subaru Telescope.
A9
We officially ended the general tour program and have no plan to resume it. Instead, you can explore the Subaru Telescope 3D Virtual Tour. Enjoy the virtual tour anytime and anywhere!
Q10
I want to film the Subaru Telescope and/or conduct a staff interview.
A10
Please see the "Request an interview" page under the "For the Media" section.
Q11
Is there any kids-friendly, age-appropriate content to introduce the Subaru Telescope to K-12 students?
A11
Please visit the Subaru Kids website. Subaru Kids relaunched in 2022 with new content, including fun downloadable activities like paper crafts and coloring sheets. Links to useful websites such as Space Scoop and ALMA education materials are added at the end of the top page. The downloadable materials are absolutely free!
Q12
I want to use Subaru images on my personal website.
A12
The whole site and all works (text, photographs, illustrations, videos, audio files, etc.) on the Subaru Telescope website are owned by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) or their respective copyright holders. NAOJ also owns the copyright for a material with an old credit line, "Credit: Subaru Telescope, NAOJ," on this website. For more details about the scope of free use and credit lines, please read carefully the NAOJ website "Usage of Copyrighted Material." When you need to apply for permission to use or contact NAOJ about our copyrighted material, please use the form "Application for Permission to use Copyrighted Material" linked from the NAOJ "Usage of Copyrighted Material" page.
Q13
I want to know about employment opportunities.
A13
Please see the contact information page.