Astronomische Waarneemtechnieken - 2010

(Astronomical Observing Techniques)

Practical matters

The lectures take place in the Huygens building #427 on Wednesdays from 9:00 - 10:45hr. The exercises are held in the same room on Mondays from 13:45 - 15:30hr. For exceptions see detailed schedule below.

The teaching period is from 8 September through 8 December, 2010. The course language is English.

The lecturer is Dr. Bernhard Brandl, office: #535 (Oort building), phone (071) 527-5830, email. The teaching assistant is Nienke van der Marel, office: #508, email.

Content of the course

Nowadays, astronomical observations are increasingly demanding in terms of sensitivity, image contrast, field of view, stability and calibrations, pushing telescopes and instrumentation closer and closer to their limits. Meaningful results require a careful understanding of the technologies and equipment that is being used. This course provides a general overview of most aspects that are relevant to observational astronomy, covering both the underlying physical principles and the technical concepts. In addition, the theoretical concepts of image signal processing are being discussed and practical exercises will be held. The lectures are structured as follows:

1. Basics of Observational Astronomy:
• Coordinate systems and time (proper motion, parallax, observing systems)
• Atmospheric properties (transmission, seeing, speckles, refraction, scattering and dispersion)
• Properties of radiation (radiance, units and calibration, polarization)
• Telescopes (types, mounts, wavelength characteristics, space telescopes and orbits)
2. Measurement and Signal Processing:
• Fourier transform (general principle, power spectrum, FFT)
• Image formation (optical systems, aberrations)
• Signal and noise properties (signal processing, sampling theorem, noise, S/N estimates)
3. Specific Tools and Techniques:
   • Detectors (physical principles, types of detectors)
   • Spectrometers (spectral information, dispersing elements, FTS, FPI)
   • Adaptive optics (principle, components, types of AO systems, LGS)
   • Interferometry (principle, visibility, interferometers)
   • Miscellaneous aspects of instrument design (cryogenics, materials, ...)

Literature

The lectures will produce detailed handout notes. However, it is strongly recommended that students get a copy of the book To Measure the Sky: An Introduction to Observational Astronomy by Frederick R. Chromey (Cambridge University Press, 2010, ISBN: 978-0-521-74768-4). Although it does not entirely contain all course topics, it provides a useful overview and excellent descriptions for self study. The price of the book is around 50€.

For further reading on the various topics it is recommended to have a look at the following books in the library:

• Observational Astrophysics by P. Lena, F. Lebrun & F. Mignard, Springer, 2nd revised and enlarged edition, 1998, ISBN: 978-3-540-63482-9
• Astronomical Optics by Daniel J. Schroeder, Academic Press, ISBN-13: 978-0-12-629810-9
• Introduction to Radiometry by William L. Wolfe, Tutorial Texts in Optical Engineering, Vol. TT29, SPIE Optical Engineering Press, ISBN: 0-8194-2758-6
• Electronic Imaging in Astronomy by Ian S. McLean, Springer, 2nd ed. 2008, ISBN: 978-3-540-76582-0
• Detection of Light - from the Ultraviolet to the Submillimeter, by George Rieke, 2nd Edition, 2003, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 0-521-01710-6.
• The Fourier Transform & Its Applications by Ronald N. Bracewell, McGraw-Hill, ISBN: 9780073039381
• Adaptive Optics in Astronomy by Francois Roddier, Cambridge UP, ISBN-13: 9780521612142
• The Design and Construction of Large Optical Telescopes by Pierre Y. Bely (ed.), Springer, ISBN: 978-0-387-95512-4
  

Requirements

The course is intended for 3rd year Bachelor students, and assumes two years of successful studies in Astronomy. Credits: 6 EC points.

The grades will be determined from a written exam in January 2011. The exam will consist of three parts: I. Calculations, II. Qualitative explanations, and III. Multiple choice questions. The content of the exam will be largely based on the topics of the weekly exercises. It is therefore highly recommended to attend the weekly exercises.

Course Schedule (preliminary)

Grades