Tunable laser techniques for improving the precision of observational astronomy

Claire E. Cramer; Steven W. Brown; Keith R. Lykke; John T. Woodward; Stephen Bailey; David J. Schlegel; Adam S. Bolton; Joel Brownstein; Peter E. Doherty; Christopher W. Stubbs; Amali Vaz; Andrew Szentgyorgyi

doi:10.1117/12.925198

13 September 2012 Tunable laser techniques for improving the precision of observational astronomy

Claire E. Cramer, Steven W. Brown, Keith R. Lykke, John T. Woodward, Stephen Bailey, David J. Schlegel, Adam S. Bolton, Joel Brownstein, Peter E. Doherty, Christopher W. Stubbs, Amali Vaz, Andrew Szentgyorgyi

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 8450, Modern Technologies in Space- and Ground-based Telescopes and Instrumentation II; 84500S (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925198
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2012, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

Improving the precision of observational astronomy requires not only new telescopes and instrumentation, but also advances in observing protocols, calibrations and data analysis. The Laser Applications Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Maryland has been applying advances in detector metrology and tunable laser calibrations to problems in astronomy since 2007. Using similar measurement techniques, we have addressed a number of seemingly disparate issues: precision flux calibration for broad-band imaging, precision wavelength calibration for high-resolution spectroscopy, and precision PSF mapping for fiber spectrographs of any resolution. In each case, we rely on robust, commercially-available laboratory technology that is readily adapted to use at an observatory. In this paper, we give an overview of these techniques.

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Claire E. Cramer, Steven W. Brown, Keith R. Lykke, John T. Woodward, Stephen Bailey, David J. Schlegel, Adam S. Bolton, Joel Brownstein, Peter E. Doherty, Christopher W. Stubbs, Amali Vaz, and Andrew Szentgyorgyi "Tunable laser techniques for improving the precision of observational astronomy", Proc. SPIE 8450, Modern Technologies in Space- and Ground-based Telescopes and Instrumentation II, 84500S (13 September 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.925198

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