Аннотация:The design and current construction status of the Submillimeter Array is discussed. The array will consist of eight 6-m elements that are reconfigurable to achieve baselines from 8 to 508 m. The array will be located on Mauna Kea in Millimeter Valley, at an elevation of 4,080 m, and will cover all bands from 180 to 900 GHz. Provisions are being made to include the CSO and JCMT telescopes in the array, which will substantially increase its capability. Most of the development and assembly is underway at the test site in Westford, Massachusetts and in Taiwan. Holography and radiometry of planets at 3.3 mm wavelength have been carried out on the prototype antenna of the array. It is expected to reach its performance specifications, which include 12 micrometer surface accuracy and 1' pointing. The prototype correlator is complete and board replication is underway. Most of the civil work at the site is complete. Interferometric tests of two antennas in Westford are expected to begin in mid-1998, and similar tests on Mauna Kea are expected to begin in 1999.
