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Books > Science & Mathematics > Astronomy, space & time > Observatories, equipment & methods
Radio astronomers have developed techniques of calibration of large reflector antennas with radio astronomical methods, but these have not been comprehensively described. This text aims to fill this gap, taking a practical approach to the characterisation of antennas. All calculations and results in the form of tables and figures have been made with Mathematica by Wolfram Research. The reader can use the procedures for the implementation of his own input data.
When this highly illustrated work first appeared in 1900, the day-to-day business of an astronomer was prone to misapprehension; the reality tended to be clouded by the temptation to imagine observatories as preoccupied with making awe-inspiring discoveries and glimpsing distant worlds. Describing himself as a hybrid between an engineer and an accountant, astronomer Edward Walter Maunder (1851 1928) explodes the romantic myths and takes the reader on an entertaining tour of the history and real purposes of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. Founded with the sole aim of advancing navigation at sea, the observatory originally confined its activities to the accurate compilation of celestial charts. In exploring the observatory's various departments and the lives of its Astronomers Royal, Maunder shows how its remit slowly expanded into heliography, meteorology, spectroscopy and the study of magnetism, which transformed it from a tool of the Navy to a major institution in contemporary astronomy.
This Ph.D. thesis from the University of Birmingham UK opens new research avenues in the use of Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTAs) to study populations of super-massive black hole binaries through gravitational-wave observations. Chiara Mingarelli's work has shown for the first time that PTAs can yield information about the non-linear dynamics of the gravitational field. This is possible because PTAs capture, at the same time, radiation from the same source emitted at stages of its binary evolution that are separated by thousands of years. Dr. Mingarelli, who is the recipient of a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship, has also been amongst the pioneers of the technique that will allow us to probe the level of anisotropy of the diffuse gravitational-wave background radiation from the whole population of super-massive black hole binaries in the Universe. Indeed, future observations will provide us with hints about the distribution of galaxies harboring massive black holes and insights into end products of hierarchical mergers of galaxies.
Since its foundation in 1904, the Mount Wilson Observatory has been at the centre of the development of astrophysics. Perched atop a mountain wilderness, two mammoth solar tower telescopes and the 60- and 100-inch behemoth night-time reflectors were all the largest in the world. Research has centred around two main themes - the evolution of stars and the development of the universe. This first volume in a series of five histories of the Carnegie Institution describes the people and events, the challenges and successes that the Observatory has witnessed. It includes biographical sketches of forty of the most famous Mount Wilson pioneer astronomers working during the first half of the twentieth century. Contemporary photographs illustrate the development and use of some of the innovative instruments that filled the observatory during this time. This story brings together the elements that formed modern theories of stellar evolution and cosmology.
Spectroscopy is the principal tool used in astronomy to investigate the Universe beyond Earth's atmosphere. Through the analysis of electromagnetic radiation, spectrographs enable observers to assess the chemical composition, kinematics, and local physical properties of distant stars, nebulae, and galaxies. Thoroughly illustrated and clearly written, this handbook offers a practical and comprehensive guide to the different spectroscopic methods used in all branches of astronomy, at all wavelengths from radio to gamma-ray, and from ground and space-borne instruments. After a historical overview of the field, the central chapters navigate the various types of hardware used in spectroscopy. In-depth descriptions of modern techniques and their benefits and drawbacks help you choose the most promising observation strategy. The handbook finishes by assessing new technologies and future prospects for deep-sky observation. This text is an ideal reference for today's graduate students and active researchers, as well as those designing or operating spectroscopic instruments.
This translation of"A Brief History of Radio Astronomy in the USSR"makes descriptions of the antennas and instrumentation used in the USSR, the astronomical discoveries, as well as interesting personal backgrounds of many of the early key players in Soviet radio astronomy available in the English language for the first time. This book is a collection of memoirs recounting an interesting but largely still dark era of Soviet astronomy. The arrangement of the essays is determined primarily by the time when radio astronomy studies began at the institutions involved. These include the Lebedev Physical Institute (FIAN), Gorkii State University and the affiliated Physical-Technical Institute (GIFTI), Moscow State University Sternberg Astronomical institute (GAISH) and Space Research Institute (IKI), the Department of Radio Astronomy of the Main Astronomical Observatory in Pulkovo (GAO), Special Astrophysical Observatory (SAO), Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO), Crimean Astrophysical Observatory, Academy of Sciences of the Ukraine (SSR), Institute of Radio Physics and Electronics of the USSR Academy of Sciences (IRE), Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism, the Ionosphere and Radio-Wave Propagation Institute (IZMIRAN), Siberian Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism, the Ionosphere and Radio-Wave Propagation (SibIZMIRAN), the Radio Astrophysical Observatory of the Latvian Academy of Sciences and Leningrad State University. "A Brief History of Radio Astronomy in the USSR"is a fascinating source of information on a past era of scientific culture and fields of research including the Soviet SETI activities. Anyone interested in the recent history of science will enjoy reading this volume. "
Constituting the first holistic overview including practical remedies, this handbook provides the background needed by anyone grappling with the complex issue of outdoor lighting and its effects. It describes not only the problems that astronomers and other night sky observers face in reducing the problems of information loss due to light pollution, as well as the problems lighting technologists face in optimising outdoor lighting installations that cause little or no light pollution. The first part is directed to decision makers and managers of outdoor space and covers the areas of general interest, culminating in recommendations to reduce the impact of light pollution. The second part is directed primarily to scientists and engineers, as a support to the design and maintenance of outdoor lighting installations, with special reference to astronomical observations. Elaborating issues from the first part, these contributions include examples that refer to specific outdoor lighting projects and to more general policy and educational measures. Written for designers of lighting equipment and managers of astronomical observatories, but also aimed at the authorities and decision makers responsible for the organization and maintenance of the public space, it will serve a good purpose in graduate or postgraduate curricula for scientists, engineers, economists and law students. This handbook fills the gap that exists between astronomical textbooks, engineering texts and popular brochures about light pollution.
The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will provide more than one
order of magnitude improvement in sensitivity compared with any
existing radio telescope over a wavelength range of several hundred
to one, from decametric to microwave wavelengths. It will
revolutionize the study of the most abundant element in the
Universe, hydrogen, from the epoch of reionisation to the
present-day, probing the onset formation period of the very first
stars, will closely scan proto-planets and, through the precision
timing of pulsars, will detect the distortions of space-time due to
gravitational radiation. The SKA is a sensing network spanning 3000
km from its centre and with a collecting area of more than 1 square
kilometre, using technologies of the 21st century. The SKA will
make the study of a wide range of phenomena initially studied at
other wavelengths possible at radio wavelengths, as well as opening
a new discovery window on new phenomena at radio wavelengths.
IAU Symposium 285 addresses studies of variability among the whole gamut of cosmic objects. While new fields involving transients, blazars, gamma-ray bursts, active galactic nuclei and quasars are still emerging, the puzzles posed by longer-term sources of variability still remain. This volume adopts an interdisciplinary theme, examining different manifestations of variability to gain new scientific insights that may be missed when one type of object or variability is studied in isolation. By integrating discussions from participants across the breadth of astronomical science, it addresses the core question: 'How can technology and collaboration be better harnessed to enhance the science requirements and outcomes?' With major new transient surveys coming online soon to lay the groundwork for LSST, the results, research tools and visions presented here will help both researchers and database managers collaborate in the exciting challenges of time-domain astronomy.
Masers are observed at a range of scales - from comets, through star-forming clouds, to galactic nuclei - and have many astrophysical applications, for example measuring cosmological distances. Written for postgraduate students and professional researchers in molecular astrophysics, this volume is an up-to-date survey of the theory and observations of astrophysical maser sources and their use as astronomical tools. The book summarizes the history of the discovery of various maser molecules and lines, and discusses maser observations on various scales. The theory is discussed in detail, including the quantum-mechanical response of the molecules, before being linked to more general radiation transfer. A discussion of spectral-line radio astronomy techniques shows how maser observations can be applied more generally to radio astronomy. The book introduces new and projected instruments, including ALMA and SKA. Additional topics address the radiation statistics of astrophysical masers, and numerical methods of analysis.
Hidden from human view, accessible only to sensitive receivers attached to huge radio telescopes, the invisible universe beyond our senses continues to fascinate and intrigue our imaginations. Closer to home, in the Milky Way galaxy, radio astronomers listen patiently to the ticking of pulsars that tell of star death and states of matter of awesome densities. All of this happens out there in the universe hidden from our eyes, even when aided by the Hubble Space Telescope. This is the story of radio astronomy, of how radio waves are generated by stars, supernova, quasars, colliding galaxies and by the very beginnings of the universe itself. The author discusses what radio astronomers are doing in the New Mexico desert, in a remote valley in Puerto Rico, and in the green Pocahontas Valley in West Virginia, as well as dozens of other remote sites around the world. With each of these observatories, the scientists collect and analyze their data, "listening" to the radio signals from space in order to learn what, or perhaps who, is out there as well. The author specifically highlights enormous changes that have occurred in the field over the past 50 years, including the political reality of radio astronomy and what that could mean for the future.
The authors measured atomic hydrogen, the principal component of the interstellar medium in the Milky Way, over a five-year period using the 25-meter radio telescope of the Netherlands Foundation for Research in Astronomy. Displayed in several projections, each map corresponds to a particular velocity interval; separation by velocity roughly corresponds to separation by distance, or by energetics. The Leiden/Dwingeloo survey covers the entire sky above declination -300, on a half-degree grid, over a velocity range of 1000 km/s at 1 km/s resolution. The limiting brightness temperature sensitivity is 0.07 K. A CD-ROM also accompanies the Atlas, and contains the entire dataset of the Leiden/Dwingeloo survey in computer-readable form. The CD-ROM also contains color images in GIF format, as well as animations displaying the 3-dimensional data cube.
IAU Symposium 97, Extragalactic Radio Sources, was held at Albuquerque, New Mexico August 3-7, 1981. It was co-sponsored by IAU Commissions 28, 40, 47 and 48 and by URSI Commission J. Financial and organizational support were provided by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, the University of New Mexico, and the National Science Foundation. A wide variety of interesting objects and phenomena can be covered under the heading "Extragalactic Radio Sources," and a diverse set of topics was in fact discussed at the symposium. Radio galaxies, quasars, Seyfert galaxies and BL Lacertids received the most attention, but normal galaxies, the galactic center, and even SS433 were also discussed. While the unifying theme of the symposium was radio emission, studies at all wave1engths--X-ray, UV, optical, IR, and radio--were included. In general, the emphasis was on individual objects and the physical processes associated with them, but there were also papers on statistical studies and cosmology. The symposium was attended by 209 scientists from 18 countries.
Astrometry encompasses all that is necessary to provide the positions and motions of celestial bodies. This includes observational techniques, instrumentation, processing and analysis of observational data, reference systems and frames, and the resulting astronomical phenomena. Astrometry is fundamental to all other fields of astronomy, from the pointing of telescopes, to navigation and guidance systems, to distance and motion determinations for astrophysics. In the last few decades, new observational techniques have enabled improvements in accuracy by orders of magnitude. Starting from basic principles, this book provides the fundamentals for this new astrometry at milli- and micro-arcsecond accuracies. Topics include: basics of general relativity; co-ordinate systems; vectors, tensors, quaternions, and observational uncertainties; determination and use of the celestial and terrestrial reference systems and frames; applications of new observational techniques; present and future star catalogues and double star astrometry. This comprehensive reference will be invaluable for graduate students and research astronomers.
Reflectance and emittance spectroscopy are increasingly important tools in remote sensing and have been employed in most recent planetary spacecraft missions. They are primarily used to measure properties of disordered materials, especially in the interpretation of remote observations of the surfaces of the Earth and other terrestrial planets. This book gives a quantitative treatment of the physics of the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with particulate media, such as powders and soils. Subjects covered include electromagnetic wave propagation, single particle scattering, diffuse reflectance, thermal emittance and polarisation. This new edition has been updated to include a quantitative treatment of the effects of porosity, a detailed discussion of the coherent backscatter opposition effect, a quantitative treatment of simultaneous transport of energy within the medium by conduction and radiation, and lists of relevant databases and software. This is an essential reference for research scientists, engineers and advanced students of planetary remote sensing.
TheideaforthisbookoriginatedintheLaSillaobservatorywheretwoofthe editorsweredoingphase-resolvedspectroscopyofsomecataclysmicvariable starsusingtheNTT. Werealizedthatalthoughindirectimagingtechniques suchaseclipsemappingandDopplertomographyhadbeenaroundformore thanadecadeandhadprovidedsomeofthemostinterestingdiscoveries,no bookexistedwhichcoveredthesetechniques. Moreover,nocolloquiumhadever beenorganizedspeci?callyonthesetopics. Theimplementationoftomographic methodsinastrophysics,inordertoprobestructuresonangularscalesofmic- arcseconds,startedabout15yearsagowiththedevelopmentoftheeclipsem- pingmethod. Thismethodisabletoreconstructlightdistributionsineclipsing binariesbyexploitingtheregularobscurationofthelightsourcebyoneofthe binarycomponents. Asimilarapproachtoregulariseddata?ttingleadtoa- rietyofrelatedmethodsinordertoresolvelightdistributionsoftheaccretion ?owsinbinaries,thesurfacestructuresofstarsandtheinnerregionsofactive galaxies. Thescienti?coutputofthesemethodsisconsiderableandtheyare increasinglybecomingversatiletoolsforawidecommunityofresearchers. Aspecialisedworkshopseemedhighlydesirable,sowedecidedtoorganise the?rstinternationalworkshoponastrotomography. Theideaofthemeeting, whichtookplaceinBrusselsinearlyJuly2000,wastobringtogetherresearchers sharinganinterestinapplyingindirectimagingmethodsinastronomy,andto comparethemethodsusedindi?erent?elds. Duringthemeeting,alargeamount oftimewasdevotedtoextensivereviewsofthevariousreconstructiontechniques. Inconjunctionwiththereviews,shortcontributedtalkshighlightedrecent- sultsanddevelopments. Duetothesmallnumberofparticipants,60,therewas plentyofopportunityfordiscussionandinteraction. Moreover,wewantedthat theproceedingsofthismeetingcouldbeusedasahandbookonthesemethods. Thereviewerswerethereforeaskedtoprovideextensiveaccountsoftheir?eld. Theproceedingsthusconsistof13reviewsofabout25pageseachaswellas 15contributedtalksof6?8pages. Awiderangeoftopicsarediscussed,mostly onthepropertiesofaccretion?owsinsemi-detachedbinarysystemsconta- ingacompactstellarremnant. Othertopicsincludethesurfaceandmagnetic ?eldstructureofsinglestars,theshockwavesofMirastars,theaccretion?ows aroundblackholesinbinariesandactivegalacticnucleiandthestructureof Algolsystems. Thelargevarietyofsubjectscoveredisaclearillustrationofthe importancethatindirectimagingtechniqueshavegainedinastrophysics. Anew VI generationofopticaltelescopesandspectrographsiscomingon-linewhichwill pushthepossibilitiesofindirectimagingevenfurther. Inconjunctionwiththat, specialisedinstrumentsandprojectsonexistingtelescopeswilldeliverdatasets withhightimeandwavelengthresolutionstailoredforaccuratemapping- periments. Wehopethattheseproceedingswillprovideahelpfuloverviewfor anyresearcherinterestedinsuchtechniques. Withthesamespiritofproducing morethanjustproceedings,wealsoincludealistofsomeusefulresourceson theInternet. Wealsohopethatthewebpageoftheworkshopwillbekeptalive andbecomeausefulreferenceonastrotomography. Wewouldliketothankalltheparticipantsformakingthisworkshopas- cess,andinparticularallthecontributingreviewauthorsforhavinggenerously agreedtocometothemeetingattheirownexpense,andfortheire?ortsin providingabalancedsetofreviewpapers. Manythankstoallthemembersof thelocalorganisingcommitteeforthehardworkbefore,duringandafterthe workshop. TheBrusselsPlanetariumisthankedforprovidinguswithameeting venueandexcellentsupport. WealsowishtothanktheDirectoroftheRoyal ObservatoryofBelgium,Prof. PaulPaquet,forhise?orts. RobHynesprovided uswithasuperb'scienti?cimpression'ofaninteractingbinarythatfeaturedon theworkshopposterandvariousotherlocations. Finally,wearegratefulfo- nancialsupportfromprojectG. 0265. 97oftheResearchProgrammeoftheFund forScienti?cResearch-Flanders(F. W. O. -Vlaanderen). Brussels,Southampton, HenriBo?n, November2000 DannySteeghs, JanCuypers Workshopwebpage:http://www. astro. oma. be/DopplerWorkshop/ Contents DopplerTomography T. R. Marsh...1 MappingthePeculiarBinaryGPCom L. Morales-Rueda,T. R. Marsh,R. C. North...27 H?-EmissionDopplerTomography ofLong-PeriodCataclysmicVariableStars R. C. North,T. R. Marsh,C. K. J. Moran,U. Kolb,R. C. Smith,R. Stehle. . 33 DopplerTomographyoftheDwarfNovaIYUMa duringQuiescence D. J. Rolfe,T. M. C. Abbott,C. A. Haswell...39 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-Observations D. Steeghs...45 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-Vlaanderen). Brussels,Southampton, HenriBo?n, November2000 DannySteeghs, JanCuypers Workshopwebpage:http://www. astro. oma. be/DopplerWorkshop/ Contents DopplerTomography T. R. Marsh...1 MappingthePeculiarBinaryGPCom L. Morales-Rueda,T. R. Marsh,R. C. North...27 H?-EmissionDopplerTomography ofLong-PeriodCataclysmicVariableStars R. C. North,T. R. Marsh,C. K. J. Moran,U. Kolb,R. C. Smith,R. Stehle. . 33 DopplerTomographyoftheDwarfNovaIYUMa duringQuiescence D. J. Rolfe,T. M. C. Abbott,C. A. Haswell...39 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-Observations D. Steeghs...45 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-TheideaforthisbookoriginatedintheLaSillaobservatorywheretwoofthe editorsweredoingphase-resolvedspectroscopyofsomecataclysmicvariable starsusingtheNTT. Werealizedthatalthoughindirectimagingtechniques suchaseclipsemappingandDopplertomographyhadbeenaroundformore thanadecadeandhadprovidedsomeofthemostinterestingdiscoveries,no bookexistedwhichcoveredthesetechniques. Moreover,nocolloquiumhadever beenorganizedspeci?callyonthesetopics. Theimplementationoftomographic methodsinastrophysics,inordertoprobestructuresonangularscalesofmic- arcseconds,startedabout15yearsagowiththedevelopmentoftheeclipsem- pingmethod. Thismethodisabletoreconstructlightdistributionsineclipsing binariesbyexploitingtheregularobscurationofthelightsourcebyoneofthe binarycomponents. Asimilarapproachtoregulariseddata?ttingleadtoa- rietyofrelatedmethodsinordertoresolvelightdistributionsoftheaccretion ?owsinbinaries,thesurfacestructuresofstarsandtheinnerregionsofactive galaxies. Thescienti?coutputofthesemethodsisconsiderableandtheyare increasinglybecomingversatiletoolsforawidecommunityofresearchers. Aspecialisedworkshopseemedhighlydesirable,sowedecidedtoorganise the?rstinternationalworkshoponastrotomography. Theideaofthemeeting, whichtookplaceinBrusselsinearlyJuly2000,wastobringtogetherresearchers sharinganinterestinapplyingindirectimagingmethodsinastronomy,andto comparethemethodsusedindi?erent?elds. Duringthemeeting,alargeamount oftimewasdevotedtoextensivereviewsofthevariousreconstructiontechniques. Inconjunctionwiththereviews,shortcontributedtalkshighlightedrecent- sultsanddevelopments. Duetothesmallnumberofparticipants,60,therewas plentyofopportunityfordiscussionandinteraction. Moreover,wewantedthat theproceedingsofthismeetingcouldbeusedasahandbookonthesemethods. Thereviewerswerethereforeaskedtoprovideextensiveaccountsoftheir?eld. Theproceedingsthusconsistof13reviewsofabout25pageseachaswellas 15contributedtalksof6?8pages. Awiderangeoftopicsarediscussed,mostly onthepropertiesofaccretion?owsinsemi-detachedbinarysystemsconta- ingacompactstellarremnant. Othertopicsincludethesurfaceandmagnetic ?eldstructureofsinglestars,theshockwavesofMirastars,theaccretion?ows aroundblackholesinbinariesandactivegalacticnucleiandthestructureof Algolsystems. Thelargevarietyofsubjectscoveredisaclearillustrationofthe importancethatindirectimagingtechniqueshavegainedinastrophysics. Anew VI generationofopticaltelescopesandspectrographsiscomingon-linewhichwill pushthepossibilitiesofindirectimagingevenfurther. Inconjunctionwiththat, specialisedinstrumentsandprojectsonexistingtelescopeswilldeliverdatasets withhightimeandwavelengthresolutionstailoredforaccuratemapping- periments. Wehopethattheseproceedingswillprovideahelpfuloverviewfor anyresearcherinterestedinsuchtechniques. Withthesamespiritofproducing morethanjustproceedings,wealsoincludealistofsomeusefulresourceson theInternet. Wealsohopethatthewebpageoftheworkshopwillbekeptalive andbecomeausefulreferenceonastrotomography. Wewouldliketothankalltheparticipantsformakingthisworkshopas- cess,andinparticularallthecontributingreviewauthorsforhavinggenerously agreedtocometothemeetingattheirownexpense,andfortheire?ortsin providingabalancedsetofreviewpapers. Manythankstoallthemembersof thelocalorganisingcommitteeforthehardworkbefore,duringandafterthe workshop. TheBrusselsPlanetariumisthankedforprovidinguswithameeting venueandexcellentsupport. WealsowishtothanktheDirectoroftheRoyal ObservatoryofBelgium,Prof. PaulPaquet,forhise?orts. RobHynesprovided uswithasuperb'scienti?cimpression'ofaninteractingbinarythatfeaturedon theworkshopposterandvariousotherlocations. Finally,wearegratefulfo- nancialsupportfromprojectG. 0265. 97oftheResearchProgrammeoftheFund forScienti?cResearch-Flanders(F. W. O. -Vlaanderen). Brussels,Southampton, HenriBo?n, November2000 DannySteeghs, JanCuypers Workshopwebpage:http://www. astro. oma. be/DopplerWorkshop/ Contents DopplerTomography T. R. Marsh...1 MappingthePeculiarBinaryGPCom L. Morales-Rueda,T. R. Marsh,R. C. North...27 H?-EmissionDopplerTomography ofLong-PeriodCataclysmicVariableStars R. C. North,T. R. Marsh,C. K. J. Moran,U. Kolb,R. C. Smith,R. Stehle. . 33 DopplerTomographyoftheDwarfNovaIYUMa duringQuiescence D. J. Rolfe,T. M. C. Abbott,C. A. Haswell...39 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-Observations D. Steeghs...45 SpiralWavesinAccretionDiscs-Theory H. M. J. Bo?n...69 SpiralShocksinanInviscidSimulationofAccretionFlow inaCloseBinarySystem M. Makita,H. Fujiwara,T. Matsuda,H. M. J. Bo?n...88 ImagingtheSecondaryStarsinCataclysmicVariables V. S. Dhillon,C. A. Watson...9 4 StatisticsofIsolatedEmissionSourcesinCataclysmicVariables C. Tappert,R. Hanuschik...119 TomographyofPolars A. Schwope...127 TomographyofMagneticAccretionFlows G. Wynn...155 VIII Contents TheGeometricalCon?gurationofPolars andPossibleReconstructionArtefacts ofEclipseMappingMethods J. Kube...175 SpotMappinginCoolStars A. CollierCameron...183 ImagingtheMagneticTopologiesofCoolActiveStars J. -F. Donati...207 Di?erentialRotationofCloseBinaryStars: ApplicationtoHR1099 P. Petit, J. -F. Donati, G. A. Wade, J. D. Landstreet, J. M. Oliveira, S. L. S. Shorlin,T. A. A. Sigut,A. C. Cameron...232 MagneticDopplerImagingofChemicallyPeculiarStars N. Piskunov,O. Kochukhov...238 StokesImagingoftheAccretionRegion inMagneticCataclysmicVariables S. Potter,E. Romero-Colmenero,D. A. H. Buckley,M. Cropper, P. Hakala...244 DopplerImagesoftheMDwarfRE1816+541 J. R. Barnes,A. CollierCameron...252 TheMethodofSpectraDisentangling andItsLinkstoDopplerTomography P. Hadrava...
Astronomy is fundamentally an observational science and as such it is important for astronomers and astrophysicists to understand how their data are collected and analyzed. This book is a comprehensive review of current observational techniques and instruments. Featuring instruments such as Spitzer, Herschel, Fermi, ALMA, Super-Kamiokande, SNO, IceCube, the Auger Observatory, LIGO and LISA, the book discusses the capabilities and limitations of different types of instruments. It explores the sources and types of noise and provides statistical tools necessary for interpreting observational data. Due to the increasingly important role of statistical analysis, the techniques of Bayesian analysis are discussed, along with sampling techniques and model comparison. With topics ranging from fundamental subjects such as optics, photometry and spectroscopy, to neutrinos, cosmic rays and gravitational waves, this book is essential for graduate students in astronomy and physics. Electronic and colour versions of selected figures are available online at www. cambridge.org/9781107010468.
Simultaneously storing both spectral and spatial information, 3D spectroscopy offers a new way to tackle astrophysical problems, and opens up new lines of research. Since its inception in the eighties and early nineties, research in this field has grown enormously. Large telescopes all around the world are now equipped with integral field units, and two instruments of the James Webb Space Telescope will have integral field spectroscopic capabilities. Nowadays, more effort is dedicated to refining techniques for reducing, analysing and interpreting the data obtained with 3D spectrographs. Containing lectures from the seventeenth Winter School of the Canary Islands Astrophysics Institute, this book explores 3D spectroscopy techniques and data. A broad and balanced presentation of research in this field, it introduces astronomers to a new generation of instruments, widening the appeal of integral field spectroscopy and helping it become a powerful tool in tackling astrophysical problems.
William Parsons (1800 67), third earl of Rosse, was responsible for building the largest telescope of his time, nicknamed the 'Leviathan'. It enabled the earl to describe the spiral structure of galaxies. This volume reissues two contemporary accounts of the telescope. The first, published anonymously in 1844 and later revealed to be by Thomas Woods, provides a comprehensive description of the workings of both the 'Leviathan' and the smaller telescope which preceded it, with detailed accounts of the construction of both telescopes. The second, by another anonymous author, first appeared in the Dublin Review in March 1845, and outlines the history and problems of telescope manufacture from Galileo onwards. Together with a short account from 1842 of the Armagh observatory by its director, these works situate the telescopes, and the difficulties the earl faced during the eighteen years he took to build the 'Leviathan', in their wider context.
Observational cosmology, with the help of large telescopes, combined with the capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope and other space missions, allow astronomers to directly observe galaxy assembly over cosmic time. These developments demand that scientists are trained in the methods suited to the study of distant galaxies. This volume contains the lectures delivered at the XI Canary Islands Winter School of Astrophysics, reviewing both scientific results and the main questions in the field. It covers the study of normal galaxies, distant galaxies, and studies based on far-infrared diagnostics, it reviews quasar absorption lines, and the properties of nearby galaxies. Each chapter is written by a world expert in the field, making the book an essential reference for all astronomers working in the field of high-redshift galaxies.
The first three billion years of cosmic time were the prime epoch of galaxy formation. Characterising galaxies at this epoch is therefore crucial to achieving a major goal of modern astrophysics: to understand how galaxies such as our Milky Way emerged from the primordial density fluctuations in the early Universe and how they evolved through cosmic time. Recent major international investments in observing facilities such as the Atacama Large Millimetre Array (ALMA) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) promise to provide the next leap in our understanding of this topic. This volume gathers the scientific contributions to the International Astronomical Union Symposium 352, which was devoted to this topic. The community of theoretical and observational experts discuss how we can make the most of ALMA and JWST synergies in advancing our understanding of galaxy evolution in the young Universe.
This book covers the use and development of software for astronomy. It describes the control systems used to point the telescope and operate its cameras and spectrographs, as well as the web-based tools used to plan those observations. In addition, the book also covers the analysis and archiving of astronomical data once it has been acquired. Readers will learn about existing software tools and packages, develop their own software tools, and analyze real data sets.
With the advent of CCDs and webcams, the focus of amateur astronomy has to some extent shifted from science to art. Visual work in astronomy has a rich history. Today, imaging is now more prominent. However there is still much for the visual amateur astronomer to do, and visual work is still a valid component of amateur astronomy. Paul Abel has been addressing this issue by promoting visual astronomy wherever possible - at talks to astronomical societies, in articles for popular science magazines, and on BBC TV's The Sky at Night. Visual Lunar and Planetary Astronomy is a comprehensive modern treatment of visual lunar and planetary astronomy, showing that even in the age of space telescopes and interplanetary probes it is still possible to contribute scientifically with no more than a moderately-priced commercially made astronomical telescope. It is believed that imaging and photography is somehow more objective and more accurate than the eye, and this has led to a peculiar "crisis of faith" in the human visual system and its amazing processing power. But by analyzing observations from the past, we can see how accurate visual astronomy really is! Measuring the rotational period of Mars and making accurate lunar charts for American astronauts were all done by eye. The book includes sections on how the human visual system works, how to view an object through an eyepiece, and how to record observations and keep a scientific notebook. The book also looks at how to make an astronomical, rather than an artistic, drawing. Finally, everything here will also be of interest to those imagers who wish to make their images more scientifically applicable by combining the methods and practices of visual astronomy with imaging. Riccardo Giacconi Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics The meeting of the High Energy Astrophysics Division of the American Astronomical Society, held in Cambridge, Massachusetts on January 28- 30, 1980, marks the coming of age of X-ray astronomy. In the 18 years since the discovery of the first extrasolar X-ray source, Sco X-l, the field has experienced an extremely rapid instrumentation development culminating with the launch on November 13, 1978 of the Einstein Ob servatory (HEAO-2) which first introduced the use of high resolution imaging telescopes to the study of galactic and extragalactic X-ray sources. The Einstein Observatory instruments can detect sources as faint as 10-7 Sco X-lor about 17 magnitudes fainter. The technological developments in the field have been paralleled by a host of new discoveries: in the early 1960's the detection of 9 "X-ray stars," objects 10 times more luminous in X-rays than the Sun and among the brightest stellar objects at all wavelengths; in the late 1960's and early 1970's the discovery of the nature of such systems which were identified as collapsed stars (neutron stars and black holes) in mass exchange binary systems, and the detection of the first few extragalactic sources." |
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