[1] The telescope was modernised in 2000 and 2001[2] to include the experimental use of Charge-coupled devices (CCDs) which are 40 times more sensitive than standard photography.

[citation needed] The Uppsala Schmidt telescope was the instrument used by the Siding Spring Survey to conduct the only professional search for dangerous asteroids being made in the Southern Hemisphere.

[3] The telescope was decommissioned by the ANU late in 2013 and the Siding Spring Survey near-Earth object search program closed down after funding dried up.

[4] The telescope was used by Robert H. McNaught to discover 400 potentially hazardous near-Earth asteroids which have a diameter greater than 100 metres (330 ft).

Other notable discoveries made by the telescope include finding 7604 Kridsadaporn, C/2007 Q3, C/2009 R1, C/2013 A1 ("Siding Spring Comet"), 2012 LZ1, (242450) 2004 QY2 and (308242) 2005 GO21.