JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo

Keck Interferometer

Keck Interferometer

The Keck Interferometer was a ground-based instrument that combined the light from the twin Keck telescopes to create an instrument equal in power to an 85-meter telescope that could detect and study stars and planets beyond our solar system.

Visit Mission Website

Mission Statistics

Launch Date

March 12, 2001

Type

Ground-based

Target

Exoplanets

Status

Past

About the mission

The Keck Interferometer was a ground-based instrument that combined the light from the twin Keck telescopes to create an instrument equal in power to an 85-meter telescope that could detect and study stars and planets beyond our solar system.

Astronomers used the interferometer, which provided vital information about exoplanets and planetary formation, to measure the diameters of stars, disks orbiting nearby stars and the orbital characteristics of binary systems.

Instruments

  • Keck Telescopes (2)
  • Adaptive optics system
  • Dual-star module (DSM)
  • Coude Train
  • Beam transport system
  • Delay Lines & Metrology
  • Fringe Tracker
  • Angle Tracker
  • Nulling Combiner
  • Control System

More about Stars and Galaxies and Exoplanets

Video .

What's Up - February 2023

News .

NASA’s TESS Discovers Planetary System’s Second Earth-Size World

News .

NASA Wants You to Help Study Planets Around Other Stars

Video .

What's Up - January 2023

News .

Assembly Begins on NASA’s Next Tool to Study Exoplanets

News .

NASA Gets Unusually Close Glimpse of Black Hole Snacking on Star

News .

Two Exoplanets May Be Mostly Water, NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Find

Video .

What's Up - December 2022

News .

VP Harris, French President Get First Look at Galactic Get-Together

News .

Baby Star ‘Burps’ Tell Tales of Frantic Feeding, NASA Data Shows

› Mission Website

Explore Other Missions

FINESSE

Kepler Exoplanet Mission

Galaxy Evolution Explorer

Euclid

Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer

Disturbance Reduction System

ASTHROS

Infrared Astronomical Satellite

Cold Atom Laboratory

Herschel Space Observatory

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018