9 units (3-0-6); Prerequisite: Ph 106 or equivalent. Telescopes, optics, detectors, photometry, spectroscopy. Active/adaptive optics. Interferometers. Imaging devices and image processing. Space telescopes. Signal analysis techniques and probability and statistics as relevant to astronomical measurement. Some lab work and observatory field trips. Ay122a concentrates on infrared, optical, and ultraviolet techniques.
Instructors: Andrew Howard [AH, 208 Cahill, x8747], Chris Martin [CM, 274 Cahill, 4243]
Teaching assistant: Ryan Rubenzahl [RR, 259 Cahill, x5728]
Class schedule: 2 times 90 minutes, 10-11:30am, Mondays and Wednesdays in Cahill 304
Office Hours: by appointment - just email to make sure we are in the office
Homework, field trips, and labs 70%: Standard Caltech collaboration policy, you may discuss the problems with your classmates but you must write your own solutions independently.
Paper+talk (due last week of classes) 30%: more details and subjects below. 15 min total per presentation: 10-12 min presentation + time for questions
Week 1 - Sept. 30 - Oct 4 [CM out of town]
[AH] Units, backgrounds, zero points, observing considerations, review statistics relevant to detection of sources, estimating S/N, integration times. Slides: intro, measurements. Notes
Week 2 - Oct 7-11
[CM] Telescopes and Telescope Optics I - intro optics, configurations, design issues. Slides. CM - hand notes (week 2)
[CM] Telescopes II - Aberrations, diffractive optics, coatings, emissivity, seeing and site selection, space telescopes. Slides.
Week 3 - Oct 14-18
[Roger Smith] Detectors: CCDs, CMOS, MCPs, photon counting, IR MCT detectors - slides
[CM] Introduction to turbulence and image formation, adaptive optics. CM - hand notes (week 3) Mawet Slides [atmosphere, AO1]
Week 4 - Oct 21-25 [CM out of town, AH out of town Wed]
[AH, RR] Adaptive optics lab - instructions and assignment; notes part 1, notes part 2
Week 5 - Oct 28 - Nov 1 [CM out of town]
[AH] Photometry - slides
[AH] Introduction to interferometry - slides
Week 6 - Nov 4-8 [CM out of town]
[AH] Spectroscopy I: spectrographs, diffraction theory, design of spectrometers, spectral resolving power, echelles, Fourier-transform, fibers, slicers, IFUs. Slides, Handwritten notes.
[AH] Spectroscopy II: Multi-object spectroscopy, echelle spectroscopy, integral field unit. Slides
Week 7 - Nov 11-15
[CM] Introduction to high contrast imaging and coronagraphy notes (handwritten), Mawet slides hci1, hci2
[CM, RR] High Contrast Imaging lab - instructions and assignment; notes
Week 8 - Nov 18-22
[AH, CM, RR] Palomar trip
Host program using Cosmic Web Imager
Logistics: leaving on Wed 12:30pm, back following day by ~3pm. Click here for details.
Week 9 - Nov 25-27 (Thanksgiving week)
[RR] Interactive session on data reduction/model fitting
[Rana Adhikari] LIGO lab visit (Nov. 27). Meet at point on this map at 10am.
Week 10 - Dec 2-6
[AH, RR] Mt. Wilson trip to visit CHARA Interferometer (Dec. 2)
[AH, CM, class] Final project presentations (Dec. 4)
Assignment #1 (homework) - 15% S/N problem + ETC problem + LST problem + telescope design. Due 10/16 at 4pm in RR’s mailbox.
Assignment #2 (lab report) - 15% Laboratory report on adaptive optics. Due 10/30 at 4pm in RR's mailbox:
Assignment #3 (lab report) - 15% Laboratory report on high contrast imaging. Due 11/22 at 4pm in RR’s mailbox.
Assignment #4 (homework) - 25% Observing run report and data reduction. Due 12/2 at 4pm in RR’s mailbox:
Assignment #5 (final) - 30% Final report and presentations (15 min total/presentation: 10-12 min presentation + questions).
A+ = 95-100%; A = 85-95%; A- = 80-85%
B+ = 75-80%; B = 70-75%; B- = 65-70%
C+ = 60-65%; C = 55-60%; C- = 50-55%
F = < 50%
All books are available from Caltech as ebooks:
Observational Astrophysics (2012). Ebook
Handbook of infrared Astronomy / I.S. Glass (1999). Ebook
Handbook of CCD Astronomy / S. B. Howell (2nd, 2006). Ebook
Introduction to Astronomical Spectroscopy / Appenzeller (2012). Ebook
Introduction to Astronomical Photometry / Budding (2nd, 2007). Ebook
Astronomical Optics / D. J. Schroeder Ebook