Carina was born and raised in Ko Olina on the island of O’ahu and attended Punahou School. She is currently pursuing an Aerospace Engineering degree at the University of Colorado Boulder. Her goals are to lead space exploratory projects and to work on projects for companies here in Hawai’i, such as PISCES and Lockheed. Carina enjoys playing volleyball, surfing at White Plains, and eating at Fukuya. Her and her siblings are all named after astronomical objects!
Home Island: Oahu
High School: Punahou School
Institution when accepted: University of Colorado Boulder
Project Site: W. M. Keck Observatory: Keck, Waimea, Big Island HI
Mentor: Jason Worden
Project Title: Designing Optical Component Mounting Solutions for W. M. Keck’s Lens Alignment Station
Abstract:
The W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) aspires to have an optical metrology center of excellence located in their headquarters in Waimea. This center will be used to support instrumentation being built internally by WMKO and by WMKO partners. An optical metrology device was needed to augment the current set of metrology equipment already used to inspect and align mirrors, lenses, and other optical instruments. The aim of this project was to develop a new lens alignment station for WMKO to use when developing these optical instruments, specifically lens barrels. This will be used for upcoming projects, such as the High Order Advanced Keck Adaptive Optics (HAKA) project, and will reduce budget costs and risk as WMKO will no longer have to rely on outside vendors. This station consists of equipment that had been assembled to maximize rigidity and be compatible with the optical laboratory’s space constraints. A mounting structure and boom arm was designed and analyzed using CAD and Finite Element Analysis using off the shelf parts and readily available material. Evaluation of these materials was first analyzed in the concept design phase by testing various load cases for iterations of designs. Following, the detailed design phase ensured that the design met all requirements and could be fabricated and assembled. Once the design and drawings are complete, the components will be machined and welded, and the station can then be assembled and tested.