About CCAT

CCAT will be a 25-meter telescope for submillimeter astronomy located at 5,600 m altitude on Cerro Chajnantor in northern Chile. CCAT will combine high sensitivity, a wide field of view, and a broad wavelength range to provide an unprecedented capability for deep, large-area, multicolor submillimeter surveys. Science objectives include studies of galaxy formation and evolution throughout the history of the Universe; the hot gas pervading clusters of galaxies; star formation, protoplanetary disks, and debris disks in the Milky Way galaxy; Kuiper belt objects in the outer reaches of the Solar System; and comets. Instrumentation will include bolometer cameras, direct detection spectrometers, and heterodyne receiver arrays.

CCAT was ranked the highest priority among medium scale, ground based projects by the Astro2010 survey. This survey, undertaken by the National Research Council, a component of the National Academies, recommends priorities for the most important scientific and technical activities in astronomy and astrophysics for the coming decade. The survey report, Astro2010 Decadal Survey: New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics, was released on 2010 August 13.