The CHARA Array is located on Mount Wilson in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California. The Array utilizes the principles of optical and infrared interferometry to link its six 1-meter telescopes together to produce resolution equivalent to that of a single telescope more than 300 meters in diameter, making it the highest angular resolution optical telescope in the world. A complement of beam combiners offers interferometric capability in the range 0.5 to 2.5 microns. Multibeam combiners (up to six telescopes) support interferometric imaging.
Last updated or reviewed March 2, 2011.