OSIRIS (Optical System for Imaging and low Resolution Integrated Spectroscopy)is designed to obtain direct images of the sky and to carry out spectroscopy of a number of different objects simultaneously. It will work in the visible range – that is, with the light from the sky that can be seen by the naked eye. It will meet a number of needs, including providing scientists with new data for a wide range of research areas in astrophysics: the atmospheres of the planets in the Solar System; compact X-ray sources (possible black holes); very distant supernovae, which serve as a reference for calculating the age of the Universe; gamma ray bursts (massive energy releases, whose origins are unknown but important to discover); and the formation and evolution of galaxies and clusters of galaxies.
OSIRIS will also have tuneable filters, which will allow precise observation of any specified line in the light spectrum, wherever it is located in the spectrum of visible light. OSIRIS is being designed and built by the IAC, with the collaboration of IA-UNAM.