On March 10, 2026, Optical Surfaces Ltd highlighted its specialized production of Ritchey-Chrétien (RC) telescope optics, positioning the two-mirror design as a solution for high-precision military and aerospace surveillance.
The RC configuration, which utilizes primary and secondary hyperbolic mirrors, is specifically engineered to eliminate the spherical aberrations and comas that often degrade image quality in traditional reflecting telescopes.
By utilizing a hyperbolic design, RC optics offer a compact physical footprint and a wide field of view, making them suitable for integration into airborne pods, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and high-resolution satellite imaging systems. The mirrors provide achromatic performance from the ultraviolet (UV) to the far-infrared (IR) spectrum, ensuring consistent data collection across diverse environmental conditions.
Precision Manufacturing in Ultra-Stable Environments
The manufacturing of hyperbolic mirrors requires extremely tight tolerances, often exceeding the capabilities of standard optical workshops. Optical Surfaces Ltd leverages a unique production facility located deep underground in a series of tunnels excavated from solid chalk in Surrey, UK. This environment provides natural thermal stability and near-zero vibration, which are critical for the quantifiable testing of long-path-length optics.
The company has established itself as a lead supplier for mirrors up to 700mm in diameter. These components are essential for advanced military sensing applications, including long-range reconnaissance and targeting systems that require ultra-high resolution over vast distances.
Technical Specifications
- Configuration: Primary and secondary hyperbolic mirrors (Ritchey-Chrétien).
- Surface Accuracy: Up to $\lambda/20$ Peak-to-Valley (P-V).
- Surface Finish: 10/5 scratch-dig.
- Microroughness: Less than $1.0$nm RMS.
- Spectral Range: UV to Far-Infrared (Achromatic).
- Customization: Coatings optimized for specific wavebands (e.g., SWIR, MWIR, or LWIR) depending on the surveillance mission.
Executive Perspective
“Our experienced optical engineers routinely produce hyperbolic mirrors with surface accuracies up to $\lambda/20$ P-V and microroughness of less than 1.0nm RMS,” said Dr. Aris Kouris, Sales Director of Optical Surfaces Ltd. “These ultra-high precision hyperbolic mirrors can be supplied with a coating optimized for a specific military surveillance application, ensuring the highest possible contrast and resolution in contested or low-light environments.”
The Push for Sub-Meter Aerospace Resolution
As aerospace surveillance moves toward more compact, high-performance platforms, the demand for precision hyperbolic optics is expected to grow. Optical Surfaces Ltd is currently investing in new metrology tools, including a 600mm aperture Fizeau interferometer, to further certify the performance of its large-diameter optics for space-qualified hardware.
The company’s 60-year heritage in producing large optical flats and specialized aspherics places it at the center of the European supply chain for the next generation of Earth observation (EO) satellites. Future developments are expected to focus on lightweighting techniques for 700mm mirrors to reduce launch costs for proliferated LEO constellations.
