Apparatus to search for optical flashes of astronomical origin

摘要

An apparatus is proposed to search for optical flashes in the night sky with the time resolution of ～ 5s. The origin of the flashes could be the same as Gamma Ray Bursts observed by astronomers and attributed to the most powerful cataclysms ever observed. The apparatus called "it of the sky" covers large part of a visible sky hemisphere down to about 20 degrees above the horizon. It consists of 16 photo-lenses with 50 mm focal length, each equipped with CCD of 2000 x 2000 pixels. Significant part of data analysis is performed in real time.