Abstract

A Michelson interferometer has been built for use with the 91-cm telescope on NASA’s Gerard P. Kuiper Airborne Observatory primarily to measure ir line emission from H ii regions. Operation is in the rapid scan mode, and the achievable resolution is 0.02 cm⁻¹ in the wavelength range from 10 μm to around 300 μm. A minicomputer is used to provide on-line spectrum displays and to control and monitor the instrument performance. The design and use of the instrument is discussed, and a comparison is made between the theoretical performance and that actually achieved on the first flights when measurements of line emission from the Orion nebula and from the atmosphere were made.

© 1977 Optical Society of America

High resolution Michelson interferometer for airborne infrared astronomical observations. 2: System design

A. Langlet, C. Delage, D. Stefanovitch, B. Talureau, J. Tualy, J. Verveer, W. P. Fischer, J. M. Gilles, R. Scheper, J. Leblanc, and G. Dambier
Appl. Opt. 16(7) 1841-1848 (1977)

Spherical lamellar grating interferometer for airborne astronomical observations of far infrared objects

J. L. Pipher, M. P. Savedoff, and J. G. Duthie
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Airborne infrared astronomical observations by Fourier transform spectroscopy

Harold P. Larson
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Infrared Fourier spectrometer for airborne and ground-based astronomy

D. Scott Davis, Harold P. Larson, Michael Williams, Guy Michel, and Pierre Connes
Appl. Opt. 19(24) 4138-4155 (1980)

Monochromator–interferometer combination for submillimeter astronomical spectrometry from aircraft

Martin Harwit, Noel T. Kurtz, Ray W. Russell, and Scott Smyers
Appl. Opt. 20(21) 3792-3796 (1981)