  VERITAS is an atmospheric Cherenkov telescope array designed to study
astrophysi cal sources of very-high-energy gamma radiation. Located in southern
Arizona, USA, the array consists of four 12m-diameter imaging Cherenkov
telescopes. All four telescopes have been deployed at the basecamp of the
Whipple Observatory and began full operation in early 2007. This paper
describes the operational status of VERITAS, outlines the initial performance
parameters of the instrument, and presents the latest results that have been
obtained.
