3.

2 Optical Telescopes
63
Fig. 3.18u-c. Sonc ncw largc tclcscopcs. (u) Thc 8.1 m
Gemini North telescopc on Mauna Kca, Hlawaii, was set in
opcration in 1999. Iis twin, Gcmini South, was dcdicated in
2000. (b) The Europcan Southcrn Observatory (ESO) was
founded by Bclgium, Francc, thc Nctherlands, Sweden and
West Gernmany in 1962. Other Europcan countries have joined
them latcr. The VLT (Very Largc Telescopc) on Cerro Paranal
in Northcm Chilc, was inauguratcd in 1998-2000. (c) The
first big Japancsc telescope, thc 8.3 m Subaru on Mauna Kea,
Hawai, started observaions in 1999. (Photos National Optical
Astronomy Obscrvatorics, Europcan Southern Obscrvatory
and Subaru Obscrvatory)

The mirrors of large telescopes necd not be mono

lithic, but can be made of smaller pieces that are, e.g.
hexagonal. These mosaic mirrors are very light and can
be used to build up mirrors with diameters of several tens
of metres (Fig. 3.19). Using active optics, the hexagons
can be accurately focussed. The California Association
for Research in Astronomy has constructed the Williarm
M. Keck telescope with a 10m mosaic mirror. It is
located on Mauna Kea, and the last segment was in
stalled in 1992. Asecond, similar telescope Keck II was
completed in 1996, the pair forming a huge binocular
telescope.
The reflecting surface does not have to be continu
ous, but can consist of several separate mirTors. Such

Fig. 3.19. The miror of

a telescope can be made
up of several smaller seg
ments, which are much
casier to manufacture, as
in the Hobby-Eberle Tele
Scope on Mount Fowlkes,
Texas, Thc clfcctivc diam
cter of the mirror is 9.1 m.
A similar telescope is being
built in South Africa. (Photo
MucDonald Observatory)
 3.Observations and Instruments
64
a telescope was
in opcrating on Mount Hopkins, Arizona,
1979-1999. Itwas the
Multiple-Mirror Telescope
(MMT) with six 1.8 mmirors together correspond
ing to a single miror having a diameter of 4.5 m.
In 2000 the six mirors were
InirOr. replaced by one 6.5 m
The European Southern Observatory has
its own multi-miror telescopc. constructed
ESO's Very Largc Telc
scope (VLT) has four closcly located
The diameter of each mirror is eight mirrors (Fig. 3.18).
metres, and the
tal arca corresponds to one telescope with a 16 m to
mirror.
The resolution is even better, since the
"aperture", i.e.
the maximum distance between the mirors, is
several
Lens of melers.
An important astronomical insirunents of the 20th
century is the Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990
(Fig.3.20). It has a miror with a diameter of 2.4 m. The
resolution of the telescope (after the faulty optics was
corrected) is near the theoretical diffraction limit, since
there is no disturbing atmosphere. A second generation
Space Telescopc, now callcd the James Webb Space
Telescope, with a mirror of about 6.5 m is plannedto be
launched in about 2011.
The Hubble Space Tclescopc was the first large opti
cal telescope in Earth orbit. In the future, satellites will
continue to be mainly uscd for thosc wavelength rcgions
where the radiation is absorbed by the at1mosphere. Duc
lo budgetary reasons, thc inajority of astronon1ical ob
Fig, 3.20. The Hubble
Space Telescope after the
latcst scrvice light in 2002
The tclcscopc got new so
lar pancls and scveral
othcr
upgradcs. (Photo NASA)
servations will still be carried out on the Earth, and
great attention will be given to improving
ground-based
observatories and detectors.
3.3 Detectors and Instruments
Only a limited amount of information can bc obtaincd
by looking through a tclcscope with the unaidcd eye.
Until the end of the 19th century this was the only way
to make observations. The
invention of
the middle of the 19th century brought photography
in
a revolution in
astronomy. The nex imporlant step lorward in optical
astronomny was the development of photoelecuric pho
tometry in the 1940's and 1950's. A new revolution,
comparable to that caused by the invention of photog
raphy, took place in the middle of the 1970's with the
introduction of different semiconductor detectors. The
sensitivity of detectors has grown so much that today,
a 60 cm telescope can be used for
to those made with thc Palomar 5 m
observations similar
telescopc when it
was set in operation in the 1940's.
The Photographic Plate. Photography has long been
one of the most common methods of observation in
astronomny. In astronomical photograpl1y glass platcs
were used, rather than film, sincc they kecp their shape
bettcr, but nowadays thcy are no nore manulactured.

than a ison The dipersion can be
inveasel by in
(rasing the density of the groNves of tbe grating ln slit
ywahn the rrfleion grating is ost ommonty
Intefenetes. The oion of a bip tcleoq is
in uatr limited by sceing. and thus incteasing the
nerne ds not ncvssanly npve the resoution
To get nearet io the theoretcal
esolonom linit sct by
dion ( 0), diflercnt nterfenmeters can Ie
here are two types ol opucal ine1teroncles Onc
And usea an e\isting lanye telesope, the otlher a
of two oN more separate tclescoes ln both systenn
cases the
light rays are allowed to interlere. ly Analyzing the
uteoming interderence patte1n, the stiuctues of close
hinanes can be studied, apparent angular darcteIs of
the star Can
be ncasured, ctc.
One of the carlicst interferometers was the
Michelson
interfemmeter that was buil shortly beforr 1920 for the
latpest telescope of that timc. In lront ot tlhe
at the cnds of a six mette long beann, there telescope,
were tlat
minors reflecting le lipht into the telescope. Mie fom
of the interlerence pattemchangcd when the
of the ioN was varied. In practice, the separation
interlercnce
paltcrn was disturbed by sccing. and only a few positive
results were obtained with this instrument.
The diamcters of over 30 of hc brightest slars have
been nncasurcd using intensity interfenometers. Such
a device consIsts of Iwo separate tclescopes (hat can be
movcd in elation to cach otlicr. This mcthod is suitable
for the brightest objccts only.
In 1970 the Frenchman Antoine ibeyrie introduced
the principle of speckle interfeometry. In traditional
Inapng the picturcs from long exposures consist of
alarpc muunber of instantancous images, "speckles", that
together lorm the sccing disc. In speckle interferometry
very short cxposures and largc magnilications ate uscd
and hundreds of pictures are taken. When thesc pictures
unC combincd and analyzed (usually in digital (om),
the actual resolution of the telescoe can nearly be
rcachcd.
The accuracy of interleromctric techniques was n
proved at the Icpinninp of 00's The firs Cxperinents
o usc the two 10 m Keck tclescopeN s onc interleo
mclet, wcre made in 2001 Sinilarly, thc ESO VIT will
be uscd as an unterferonmctc.
4adtn felesenpes
3,4 Radio Telescopes
Rado astnmy rpresents a telatively nrw
ofastronomy Icoves AfrcqucKy tange frnhraeh
a few
imepahet (lI)op to frequencics of att 00GL
(Im), theey etendinp the uervabte letomag
neti rtn by many odes of
ow Irequc ylnit of the talo bndismagtuls The
deterininel hy
te opc ily ol lle lonosphere, while the high
limi is due to the strong atsorptn lom oxygenIrequey
waler bands in ie1ower aliosplcte Ncithet of these and
linits is very slrict, and under lavurable ondtions fa
dio astronomers can work into the subnillmctre tegion
or throuph ionospheric holes dur1ng sunspt
nunima
Ahe beginning of the 201h ccntury attenpts were
made to observe radio eunission (ron the Sun, These
experncnts, howeves, ailcd because of the lowscnsi
(fvily of he antenna-tcceiver syssems, and bec ause ol
ifie opaguCncss_of tthe ionospherc at the low frequen
cies at which most of the expenments were carricd out
The irst observations of cosmic radio cm1ssion
were
later made by the Anierican cng1ncer Karl G Jansky in
1932, while studying thunderstonn tadio disturbances
nt a trequency of 20.5 MIHz (14.6m). He discovcred
radio cmission of unknown ongin, which varicdwithin
n 24 hour peiod. SoIcwhat latcr he identificd the source
of this radiation to be in the direction of the centre of
our Galaxy.
The real birth of radio astronomy nnay erhaps he
lated to the latc 1930'%, when Grote Reber startcd
systematic observations with his hamcadc 95u
paraboloid antenni, Thercallcr radio0 astronony de
velopcd quitc rapidly und has greatly improved our
kuowledgc of the Universe.
Observations are unade both in the continuum (broad
bund) uñd mspectral lines (radio spccioscopy). Much
of ourknowledge about the struwture of our Milky Vay
COmes frOMradio observations of the 21 cm line of neu
Iral hydrogen and, more recently, fronm tbe 2mmlne
oThe carbon monoxide moleeule Radio astronomy has
rCSuled in many important discoveries, Cg both pul
sars and quasars were first found by rado astronomical
observations The inportanee of the ticld can also e
NeCn from the fact that the Nobel prize in physiCs has
IcCently been warded twice oradio astononçrs,
A tadio telescopc collccts rudtation in an apeture
o antenna, om which it is transformcd to nelectnc
 3.Ohservations and Instrumenls
70
signal hy a rccciver, called a radiomcter This signal is
lhen anplied. dciectd and intcgrated, and the ouiput
is registcred onsomc rcconding device, nowadays usu
ally hy acomputer Becausc the reccived signal is very
weak, onc has to us sensiive eecivers. These are of
tencuolod to minimizcthe noisc, which could otherwisc
mask the signal fronn thc source. Bccause rad1o waves
arc clectromagncic rad1ation, they arce reflccted and re
Iracted ike ondinary light waves. In radio astronomy,
howcver, mosly rcllaing tclescopcs arc uscu
Alow froquencics the antcnnas are usually dipoles
(similar lo thosc uscd for adio or TV), but in order to
ITeasT the coitcctung arca and imprave the reseltien,-
onc uscs dipole arrays. wbee alldipcBe-cteets are
connectcd to cachother.
(ypc, howcvcr, is
The most common antenna
reflcctor, which works Cxactly as an opti
a parabolic
cal miror tclescope. At long wavelengths thc rcflccting
surfacc docs not nced to be solid. bccausc thc long
wavclength photons cannot sec the holes in the reflcc
tor, and the antenna IS (herclorc usually made in the
Fig 3.24. The largest radio lelescopc in the world is the
Arecibu dish in Pueno Rico. It has been constructed over
form of a nctal mesh At high frequencie the ufare
has to be smooth, and in the millimetre-usbnsll1nere
ránge, radio astronomers cven use large
rptical tele
thcir SNn rarlrrcters
scopes, which they cråuip with signal. the s
To cnsure a coherent amplification of the
ene-tcnth of the
facc iregularitices should he less than
wavelength used.
Thc main di•fcrcncc betwccn a rad1o telecrT and
signal
an optical sclescopc is in thc recording of the
tecpt
Radio tclcscopcs aic not imaging telc«opes
Tor synthesis tclescopcs, which will he descrifeaTater).
inslcad, a fccd horn, which is locatcd al the antcnna
focus, Lransfers the signalto aceceiver-Thewetength
and phase information is hawcscr.prcscrvcu
Thc resolving powcr of a radio tclcscopc. . can
be deduccd from the sarnc formula (34) as fur opti
cal tclcscopcs, C.À/D. wherc i. is the a i
uscd and D is the diamcicr of thc apcrture Since the
wavelengh rat:r inin radio and visible light Is of
the order of 10,COO, radio antenltas ..th hathcis of
several kilomctres arc nccdcd in ordcr to
achicve the
a natural bowl and is 300 m in diame!er. 'hotu Arccib
Observatory)

Fig. 3.25. The largest fully steerable radio telescope is in Green
same resolution as for optical telescopes. In the early
days of rad1o astronomy poor resolution was thc biggcst
drawback for the devclopment and recognition of radio
astronomy. For example, the antenna used by Jansky
had a fan bcam with a resolution of about 30° in the
narrower direction. Therefore radio observations could
not be comparcd with optical observations. Neither was
it possible to identify the radio sources with optical
counterparts.
The world's biggest radio telescope is the Arecibo an
tenna in Puerto RIco, whose main reflector is fixed and
built into a 305 m diameter, natural round valley cov
ercd by a metal mesh (Fig. 3.24). In the late 1970's the
antenna surface and receivers were upgraded, enabling
the antenna to bc used down to wavelengths of 5 cin.
The mirTor of the Arecibo telescope is not parabolic but
spherical, and the antenna is equippcd with a movable
fecd system, which makes observations possible within
a 20° radius around the zcnith.
The biggest completely stcerablc radio telescopc is
the Grcen Bank telescope in Virginia, .S.A.. dedicatcd
at the end of 2000. It is slightly asymmetric with a di
3.4 Radio Telescopes
71
Bank, Virginia. Its diameter is 100 x 110 m. (Photo NRAO)
ameter of 100x |10m (Fig. 3.25). Before the Green
Bank tclcscopc, for ovcr two dccades the largcst tclc
scopc was the Effclsberg tclcscope in Germany. This
antenna has a parabolic main reflector with a diameter
of 100 m. The inner 80 m of the dish is made of
solid
aluminium panels, while the outmost portion of the disk
is a metal mesh structure. By using only the inner por
tion of he telescope, it has becn possible to observe
down lo wavelengths of 4 mm. The oldest and perhaps
best-known big radio telescope is the 76 mn antenna at
Jodrcll Bank in Britain, which was completcd in the end
of the 1950's.
The biggest telescopes arc usually incapablc of op
erating bclow wavelengths of I cm, because the surface
cannot be made accurate enough. However, the millimc
tre range has become morc and more important. In this
wavelength range there are many transitions of interstel
lar molecules, and one can achieve quite high
angular
resolution even with a single dish telescope. At present,
the typical size ofa miror of a millimetre tclcscope is
about 15 m. The development of this field is rapid, and
at prescnt several big millimctrc telcscopes are in opera
 3. Observations and lnstruments

72
Fig. 3.26. The 1S mctn
Mavwell subnillimete
tclescope on Mauna Kea,
Hawaii, is located in a dry
climate at an altitude
of 4100 m. Obscrvations
can be made down lo
wavelengths of 0.5 nm.
(Photo Royal Obscrvalory.
Elinburgh)

thc 40 m Nobeyama
tion (Table C.24). Among hen arc down to 3 mm,
tclescopc in Japan, which can be used
Veleta in Spain, which
the 30 m IRAM telescope at Pico Jamcs Clerk
usablc down to 1mm, and the 15 m UK
operating
Maxwell Telescopc on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, projcct in the
down to 0.5 mm (Fig. 3.26). The largcst
ALMA (Atacama
first decade of the 21st century is
compriscs of 50 tcle
Largc Millimctrc Array), which 3.27). It will be
(Fig.
scopes with a diamcter of 12 m
by thc United Statcs,
buil1 as an international project
Europc and Japan.
power of a radio
As already mentioned, the resolving
elcscope.
tclcscope is lar poorer than that of an opticalrcach areso
at present
The biggcst radio tclescopes canonly
that at( the very highcst
lution of5 arc seconds, and
incrcasing
Irequcncies. To improve the resolution by
the size is difticult, because the prescnt
tclescopes arc
already close to the practical upper limit. However,
by combining radio telescopcs and
interferomclers, it
is possible to achieve cven
better resolution than with
optical tclescopes.
As carly as 1891 Michelson used an
interferometcr
for astronomical purposes. While the usc
of interfer
ometers has proved to be quile difficult in the optical
wavclength regimc, interferomctcrs are cxtremcly usc
ful the radio region. To form an interferomcter,
one
spac
nccds at lcast two antennas couplcd togcthcr. Thc Let
ing betwcen the antennas, D, is callcd
the basclinc.
us first assume that the bascline is perpendicular to the
3.28). Then the radiation aurrives at
linc of sight (Fig.
 3.Observations and Instruments
76
catcd on mountain tops, like optical telescopcs. All parts
of the minor are activcly controllcd in order to accu
rately maintain the propcr fom like in the new optical Complon Gamma Ray Observatory. The most cffccive
telescopcs. Several ncw submillimetre tclescopcs are
undcr construction.
3.5 Other Wavelength Regions
All wavelengths of the clcctromagnetic spcclrum en
ter the Earth from the sky. However, as mentioned
in Sect. 3.1, not all radiation reaches the ground. The
wavelength regions absorbed by the atmosphere have
been studied more extensively since the 1970's, using
Earth-orbiting satellites. Besides the optical and radio
regions, there are only some narrow wavelength ranges
in the infrared that can be observed from high mountain
tops.
The first observations in each new wavelength region
were usually carried out from balloons, but not until
rockets came into use could observations be made from
outside the atmosphere. The first actual observations of.. X"rays. The observational domain of X-ray aaivilJmy
an X-ray source, for instance, were made on a rocket
flight in June 1962, when the detector rose above the
atmosphere for about 6 minutes. Satellites have made it
possible to map the whole sky in the wavelength regions
invisible from the ground.
Gamma Radiation. Gamma ray astronomy stud
ies radiation quanta with energies of 10-10!4 eV.
The boundary between gamma and X-ray astron
omy, 10 eV, corresponds to a wavelength of 10- m.
The boundary is not fixed; the regions of hard
(=high-energy) X-rays and soft gamma rays partly
overlap.
While ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation are
all produced by changes in the energy states of the
electron envelopes of atoms, gamma and hard X-rays
are produced by transitions in alomic nuclei or in
Inutual interactions of elementary particles. Thus ob
servations of the shortest wavelengths give information
on processes different from those giving rise to longer
wavelengths.
The first observations of gamma sources were ob
taíned at the end of the 1960's, when a device in
the OSO 3 salelite (Orbiting Solar Observatory) de bcen several satellites observing the X-ray radiation of
tected gamma rays from the Milky Way. Later on, some
satcllitcs wcrc cspccially dcsigncd for gammna astron
omy, notably SAS 2, COS B, HEAO Iand 3, and the
salcllite at prcscnt is thc Europcan Intcgral, launchcd in
2002.
Thc quanta of gamma radiation havc cncrgics a mil
lion timcs grcater than thosc of visiblc light, but they
cannot bc obscrved with thc same dctcctors. These
observations arc made with various scintillation de
tectors, usually composed of scveral layers of detcctor
plates, where gamma radiation is transformcd by the
photoelecic cílect inlo visible light, detcctable by
photomultiplicrs.
The energy of agamma quantum can be determincd
from the depth to which it penctrates the detcctor. An
alyzing the trails left by the quanta gives information
on their approximate direction. The field of vicw is lim
ited by the grating. The directional accuracy is low, and
in gamma astronomy the resolution is far below that in
other wavelength regions.
includes the cnergies between 10 and 10 eV, or the
wavelengths 10-0.01 nm. The regions 10-0.1 nm and
0.1-0.01 nm are called soft and hard X-rays, respec
tively. X-rays were discovered in the late 19th century.
Systematic studics of the sky at X-ray wavclcngths only
became possible in thc 1970's with the advent of satcllite
technology.
The first all-sky mapping was made in the carly
1970's by SAS I(Small Astronomical Satellite), also
called Uhuru. At the end of the 1970's, two High
Energy Astronomy Observatories, HEAO 1 and 2 (the
latler called Einstein), mapped the sky with much highcr
sensitivity than Uhuru.
The Einstein Obscrvatory was able to detect sources
about a thousand times fainter than earlier X-ray tele
scopes. In optical astronomy, this would correspond to
a jump from a 15 cm reflector to aS m tclescope. Thus
X-ray astronomy has developed in 20 ycars as much as
optical astronomy in 300 years.
The latest X-ray satellites have been the Ameri
can Chandra and the Europcan XMM-Newton, both
launched in 1999.
Besides satellites mapping the whole sky, therc have
the Sun. The first effcctive tclescopes were instaled in
 3.5 Other Wavelength Regions

Hyperbolokd
Parnbolojd

Focal plane
b)
Fig. 331. (a) X-rays arc not
and the principle of grazing relccted by an ordinary miror, to a focalpoint. In practicc, scveral mirrors arc placcd onc in
reflection must be uscd col
lecting them.
snall angle, isRadiation mects the paraboloid miror atfora very side another, collecting radiation in a common focus (b)Thc
Europcan lnicgral gamma ray obscrvatory was launched in
renccted onto a hyperboloid miror and further 2002. (Picture ESA)
the Skylab space station, and
tde Gun in 1973-74. they were uscd to sludy Ültraviolet Radiation. Between X-rays and the opti
In the
starncd making rcgular X-ray1990's, the Europcan Soho cal region lics thc domain of ultraviolet radiation, with
tclcscopcs observations
The first X-ray of the Sun. wavclengths bctwcen 10and 400 nm. Most ultraviolet
thosc in gamma astronomy. uscd detectors similar to obscrvations have been carricd out in the soft UV re
was never bettcr than a Thcir directional accuracy gion, at wavclengths near those of optical light, since
cisc X-ray telescopes fcw arc minutes. The more pre most of the UV radiation is absorbed by the atmosphcre.
reflection (Fig. 3.31). Anutilize
X-ray
the principle of
hitting grazing The wavclengths below 300 nm arc complctely blocked
pendicularly is not
X-rays mcct thc miror
a surface
reflccted, but absorbed. If, however, per out. The short wavclength region from 10 to 91.2 nm is
grazing it, a high qualityncarly parallcl to its surfacc, just called the extreme ultraviolet (EUV, XUV).
Extreme uliraviolet was onc of the last
The miror of an X-raysurface can reflect the ray. the clectromagnetic radiation to be observedregions of
narrowingrcflcctor
lace ol a is on the inncr sur atically. The rcason for this is system
surfacc is slowly
a conc. The outer part of the interstellar that the absorption of
Thc rays areparaboloidbyand thc inner part a hydrogcn makcs the sky practically opaque
cal plane. Inrcflected both surfaces and hyperboloid.
mect a a fo
at these wavclengths. The
visibility in most directions
practice,
within another. For severalthetubes are installed onc of limited to some hundred light ycars in
the vicinity
stein Observatory had instance,
as inuch
four cones of
the Sun. In somc directions,
the Ein the interstellar gas is so low that however, the density of
as a normal polishcd even extragalactic ob
opical surface
tclescope witlha diameter of 2.5 jccts can be seen. The first
olution in X-ray telescopes of
is
m. The res the Extreme Ulraviolet dedicated EUV satellite was
scconds and the field of view aboutthe order
I deg.
of a few arc Explorer (EUVE), opcrating in
1992-2000. It observed about
The detectors in a thousand EUV
sources.
X-ray astronomy arc In EUV grazing relcction
Geiger-Müller counters,
illation detectors. proportionalandcounters orusually
scin
used in X-ray astronomy aretclescopes similar to those
In ncarly all branchcs of employed.
Geiger-Müller
counters are boxes fillcd with gas. The walls proporional
form cath
asronomy important in
formation is obtained by observations
odc, and an anode wire a of ultraviolet
box; in more accurate runs through the middle of the radiation. Many cnmission lincs from stellar
wires. An X-ray quantum counters, there are several anode spheres or Coronas, the Lyman lines of atomic chromo
gas, and the potential entering the hox ionizes the and most of the radiation fron hydrogen,
hot stars are found
difference UV domain. In thc in the
cathode gives rise to a current ofbetween the anodc and
clecirons and positive near-ultraviolet,tclescopes can be
made similar to optical telescopes and,
ions. aphotometer or cquipped with
orbiting the Earth. spectrometcr, installed in a satcllite
 3. Observations and Instruments

78

Fig. 3.32. (a) Thc Europcan

X-ray satellite XMM
Ncwton was launchcd in
1999. (Drawing D. Ducros,
XMM Team, ESA)
(b) FUSE satellile has
photographed far ulravi
olct objects from Earth
orbil sincc 1999. (Graph
ics NASAJHU Applicd
Physics Laboratory)

The most effecive satellites in the UV have been the

European TD-1, the American Orbiting Astronomical
Observatories OAO 2 and 3 (Copermicus), he rcuna
tional Ultraviolet Explorer IUE and the Soviet Astron.
The instruments of the TD-1 satellite included both
aphotomcter and a spectromcter. Thc satcllite mcasurcd
the magnitudes of over 30,000 stars in four different
spectral regions between 135 and 274 nm, and registered
UV spectra from over 1000 stars. The OAO satellites
werc also used to measure magnitudes and specctra, and
OAO 3 worked for over eight years.
The IUE satellite, launched in 1978, was one of
the most successful astronomical satelliles. IUE had
a 45 cm Ritchey-Chrétien telescope with an aperture
ratio of f/15 and a field of view of 16 arc minutes.
The satellite had two spectrographs to measure spec
tra of higher or lowcer resolution in wavelength intervals
of II5-200 nm or 190-320 nm. For registration of the
spectra, a Vidicon camera was used. IUE worked on the
orbit for 20 years.

Infrared Radiation. Radiation with longer wave

lengths than visible light is called infrared radiation.
This region extends from about I micrometre to
1millimctre, where the radio region begins. Some
times the near-infrared, at wavelengths below Sm.
 16 1her forrms of EnergY

ot Anble (or lnuel

Itated tudintlon cannot

encunls glasA. The
CaAACgrain reflecto u
lended Cspecially for
infred obscrvntlons
huve sccondary mirrors
nodding, rapidly back nnd
lort1 bctween tle ob
jcct and the backgound
ncar hc objcct. By sub
tracting the brightncss of
the background from thc
brightncss of thc ohjcct,
the background can bc
climinatcd

and thc submillimctrc domain, at wavelengths betwcen

0.1 and Imm, arc considercd separate wavclcngth
rcgions.
Ir infrarcd obscrvations radiation is collcctcd by
u lclescopc, as in thc optical region. The incoming
radiaion consists of radiation from the objcct, fron
the background and from the tclescopc itsclf. Both
the source and the background must be continually
mcasurcd, thc difercncc giving thc radiation from the
objcct. Thc background mcasuremcnts arc usually made
with a Casscgrain sccondary mirror oscillating be
(wcen thc sourcc and thc background at a ratc of, say,
I(00 oscillations pcr sccond, and thus thc changing back
round can bc cliinatcd. To registcr thc ncasurcmcnts,
semiconductor detectors arc uscd. The detcctor must al
ways be coolcd to minimizc its own thenal radiation.
Sometimes the wholc tclescope is cooled.
Infrarcd obscrvatories havc becn built on high moun
tain tops, wherc nost of thc atmospheric water vapour
remains below. Somc favourablc sitcs arc, c. g. Mauna
Kea on Ilawaii, Mount Lcnnon in Arizona and Pico del
Teide on Tenerifc. For obscrvations in the far-infrared
thesc mountains are not highenough; these obscrvations
best
arc carricd out, c.g. on acroplanes. Onc of the,
cquipped plancs is the Kuiper Airborne Obscrvatory,
Gerad
named after the well-known planelary scientist
Kuiper.
Fig, 3.34. The most effective infrared satellite al
present is the
American Spitzer, launched in 2003. (Drawing NASA)
Balloons and satcllites are also used for inlrared
obscrvations. Thc most successful infrared observalo
rics so far have been the InfraRed Astronomy Satellite
IRAS, hc European Infrared Space Observatory IS0,
and the present-day Spitzer (originally SIRTE, Space
InfraRed Telescope Faciliiy). Avery succesful satellite
was the 1989 launched COBE (Cosmic Background
Explorcr), which mapped the background radiation
in submillimetre and infrared wavelengths. The Mi
crowave Anisotropy Probe (MAP) has continucd the
work of COBE, starting in 2001.
26 Other Forms of Energy
encrgy arivces lron1
Besidcs electronmagnctic radiation, neutrinos)
in other foms: particles (cosmic rays,
space
and gravitationalradiation.
 3 Obsevallons and Insttuments
BO
Fig. 3.35. Tlc LlGO Livingston (Observatory secn Srom he
air, (hoto LIGOCaltccl)
Cosmic Rays. CoOsmic rays, consisting of clcctrons and
(otally ionizcd nuclei of atoms, arc rcccivcl in cqual
anounts from all dircctions. Thcir incoming dircctions
do not revcaltheir origin, sincc cosmie rays arc clcciri
cally charged; thus thcir paths are continually changed
when they move througlh the magnctic ficlds of the
Milky Wny. Thc high cnergics of cos1nic rays mcan
that they have to be produccd by high-cnergy phenom
cna likc supcrnova Cxplosions. The najority of cosmic
tays arc protons (ncarly 90%) and hcliunn nuclci (10%),
bul somc arc hcavicr nuclci; thcir encrgics lic betwccn
10 and 1(020 V.
The most cncrgctic cosmic rays givc risc o sec
ondury radiation when thcy hit molecules or the
atmosphere. This secondary rudiation can be observcd
fromthc ground, but primnary cosinic ruys can only bc
dircc1ly observcd outside the atmosphcrc. The dctcctors
Uscal to obscrvc coOsmic rays urc sinilar to thosc (uscd in
particle plhysics. Since Eurtl1-bascd accclerators rcach
cnergies of only about 102 cV, cosmic ruys offer an cx
cellent "alural" Jaboratory for particle plhysies. Many
satellites and spacccralt have deteciors for cos1nic rays.
NeutrinOS. Ncutrinos are clementary particles with no
clectric churge and amass cyual o zcro or, al uny ratc,
less tlhan 1/10,000 of' hc mus8 of the clectron. Most
ncutrinos are produccl in nuclcar renctions willhin stars;
s0nce they icnct very weakly witlh other matter, they
CACape directly from tlhc stellar interior.
NcutrinOs arc very difficult to obscrvc; the first
methoxd of detcction was thc radiochcmical 1ncthod, As
arcactive agent, c. g, tctrachlorocthenc (C,CI) can be
UNCd. When o ncutrino bits a chlorinc atom, thc chlorinc
is transformed into argon, and an clcctron is frecd:
"CHy’ "Ar4c.
The argon aton is radioactivc and can bc obscrvcd.
Instcad of chlorinc, liUhiunn and galliun1 might be uscd
to deicct ncutrinos. Thc first galliun deicctors havc bcen
running in Italy and Russia from the cnd of the 1980's.
Another obscrvation method is bascd on the
Cerenkov radiation produccd by ncutrinos in cxtremcly
purc water. The lashcs of light arc rcgislered wilh pho
tomultiplicrs, and thus it is pOssible to find out the
dircction of the radiation. This mcthod is uscd e.g. in
the Japancsc Kaniokandc detcclor.
Neutrino detectors must be located dcep under the
ground to protect them from the sccondary radiation
causcd by cosmic rays.
The detccIors have obscrvcd ncutrinos from the Sun,
and the Supcrnova 1987A in the Large Magellanic
Cloud was also obscrved in 1987.
Gravitational Radiation. Gravitational astronomy is
as young as ncutrino astronomy. The first altempts
to meusurc gravitational waves were made in thc
1960's, Gravitational radiation is cmittcd by accclerat
ing masses, just as clcctromagncticradiation is cmitted
by clcciric chargcs in ucccleratcd mnolion. Dctcction of
1gravitational wavcs is very difficult, and they havc yct
to be dircetly observed.
The lirst (ypc of gravitational wavc antcnna was the
Weber cylinder. It is an aluminiun cylinder which starts
vibrating at its propcr frcqucncy when hit by a gravi
tutional pulsc. Thc distancc bctwccn thc cnds of the
cylinder changes by albout 10-" m, and the changes in
thc lcngth arc sudicd by strain scnsors wcldcd to the
sidc of the cylindcr.
Another (ypc of modern gravity radiation detcctors
Incasurcs "spatial strain" induced by gravity waves und
Consists of two scts of mirrors in dircctions pcrpcndic
ular to cuclh other (Michclson interfcrometer), or onc
sct of purallel nirrors (abry-Perot interleromctcr).
The relativc distunces bctwecn tlhc mirrors arc moni
 3.6 Olher forms of Energy

lonnd by laser interfenmeters. Ifa gravity julsc

the deteor, the distanves change and the changes passes the centre of the hole be ddo drdyl. The amplitude
Ie mcasurcd. The longest can coming from the polnt (a, ) is then
bascline bctween the mir
in the Ancrican LIGO
(LAser Interferoncier da =dx dy (cos &l 4 ain &j).
Gravitational-wave Observatory) system, about 25 km
(Pig. 3.3S). LIGO made the first scicntific obscrvations
in 2002.

da
" DIfraction by a Circular
Aperture
Consider acircular hole of radius R in the xy planc. dao
Coherent light enters the hole from thc dircction of
the ncgative z axis (sce figurc). We consider light rays We sum up thc amplitudcs coming from differcnt
lcaving the hole parallcl to the xz plane foning an points of the holc:
angle @wiih the z axis. Thc light waves interferc on
a scrcen far away. The phasc di•ferencc bctwccna wave da
through a poin1 (*, ) and a wavc going through thc Aperlure
ccntre of he holc can bc calculated from thc diffcrcnt
path lcngths s = x sin 0: R

2 sin (cos kri+ sin kx j) dy d°

S=2= -* kx.

=2 VR-r(cos kri4+ sin kx j)dx.

-R
Sincc sinc is an odd function (sin(-kx) =- sin(kx)),
wc gct zcro whcn we intcgrate thc sccond tcrm. Cosinc
is an cvcn function, and so

rsin 0| aa VR-tcoskx da.

We sulbstitute x= Ri and dcfine p= kR =
(2rr sin 0)/A, thus gciting

a« i-aos pr dt.
The zcro points of the intensity obscrved on the
scrccn arc obtaincd Irom the zcro points of the
amplitude,
Thus, thc phusc di•fcrencc 8 depends on the x co
ordinatc only. The sun of the amplitudcs of the wavcs
from a smallsurfacc clemcnt is proportional to thc arca
of thc clement dx dy. Let the anplitudc coning through
 3. Observations and Instruments

82

Inspecting the function J(p), we scc that thc first zero Exanple 3.2 A tclescope has an objective with
is at p = 3.8317, or a diamctcr of 90 mm and focal length of 1200 mm.
2a Rsin 0 a) What is the focal length of an cycpicce, the cxit pupil
=3,8317.
of which is 6 mm (about the sizc of the pupil of the
cyc)?
The radius of the diffraction disc in angular units can b) What is the magnification of such an cycpicce?
be cstimated from the condition c) What is thc angular diamctcr of thc Moon sccn
3.8317 through this tclescopc and cycpiccc?
sin =
27R
a) From Fig. 3.7 wc gct
where D= 2R is the diamctcr of the holc.
In miror telcscopes diffraction is caused also by the
support structure of the secondary mirror. If the apcr
ture is more complex and only clementary mathematics whence
is uscd calculations may become rather cumbersome. L 6 mm
However, it can be shown that the diffraction pattern can f= f 1200 mm;90 mm
be obtained as the Fourier transform of the aperture.
= 80 mm

3.7 Examples b) The magnification is w = fIf'= 1200 mm/80 mm

= 15.
Example 3.1 The distance between the components c) Assuming the angular diameter of he Moon is
of the binary star Herculis is 1.38". What should a=31'=0.52°, its diameter through the telescope
the diameter of a telcscope be to resolve the binary? is wa =7.8°.
If the focal length of the objective is 80 cm, what
should the focal length of the eyepiece be to resolve 3.8 Exercises
the components, when the resolution of the eye is 2?
In the optical region, we can use the wavelength value Exercise 3.1 The Moon was photographed with a tele
of d 550 nm. The diameter of the objective is obtained
from the equation for the resolution (3.4), scope,the objective of which had a diameter of 20 cm
and focal length of 150cm. The exposure time was 0.1 s.
550 x 10-9
D m
a) What should the exposure time be, if the diameter of
(1.38/3600) x (x/180)
the objective were 15 cm and focal length 200 cm?
=0.08 m=8 cm. b) What is the size of the image of the Moon in both
cases?
The required magnification is c) Both telescopes are used to look at the Moon with an
2 eyepicce he focal lengh of which is 25 mm. What
= 87.
1.38" are the magnifications?
The magnification is given by
Exercise 3.2 The radio tclescopcs at Amherst, Mas
sachusetts, and Onsala, Sweden, are used as an
interferometer, the basclinc being 2900 km.
and, thus, the focal length of thc cyepicce should be a) What is the resolution at 22 GHz in the direction of
80 cm the baselinc?
f='= 87
=0.9 cm
b) What should be the sizc of an optical tclescupc wih
thc same resolution?

3
Observatories in India
As the country takes a step towards development
and leaves its mark in the field of science and
technology, the knack of Indians in this field is not
new and has been developing since a very long time.
The earliest observatory in India started with
measuring the time of the day to the exact second
and declination of sun and research on other
heavenly bodies. This trend continues till date and
the list of observatories below showcases the keen
interest on people in further study and have been a
stepping stone in India's quest for knowledge and
advancement in technology.
1. Astronomical Observatory, Nainital

Perched on top of the ManoraPeak in

Beluwakhan, Nainital, Astronomical
Observatory or Aryabhatta Research Institute
of ObservationalScience (ARIES) helps you
see the stars, celestial bodies, the mOon and
other heavenly bodies with the help of high
powered, imported telescopes. The centre
requires you to make prior appointment
before visiting the place.
2. Kodaikanal Solar Observatory,
Kodaikanal

3.7 15

View 6+
photos

Located at the southerntip of the beautiful

Palani Hills, the Kodaikanal Solar Observatory
was established in 1899 and is owned and
operated by the Indian Institute of
Astrophysics. Its longitudinal position makes it
aunique site for the study of solar behaviour.
The scientific abode also houses the most
extensive collection of solar data, dating way
back to the 19th century.
3. Telescope Observatory, Yelagiri

Vainu Bappu Observatory, also known as the

Telescope Observatory is located in Kavalur.,
very near to Yelagiri. Home to Asia's largest
telescope, it was established in 1970s and can
only be visited onprior permission. Besides
the celestial bodies and the fascinating stars,
youcan also spot the affluent wildlife- flora
and fauna, near the observatory.
4. Astronomical Observatory, Nainital

Perched on top of the Manora Peak in

Beluwakhan, Nainital, Astronomical
Observatory or Aryabhatta Research lInstitute
of Observational Science (ARIES) helps you
see the stars, celestial bodies, the moon and
other heavenly bodies with the help of high
powered, imported telescopes. The centre
requires you to make prior appointment
before visiting the place.
5. Udaipur Solar Observatory

This solar observatory in India is on an lsland

in Udaipur where a boat can be used to travel
to, favourable to record solar observations
because of the condition of the sky. The image
quality of these recordings is up to the mark
as the observatory is amidst a large mass of
water and the ground heating by sun's ray due
to the air turbulence. The infrastructure of the
observatory is according to the model of Solar
Observatory at Big Bear Lake in Southern
California and was built by Dr Arvind
Bhatnagar in 1976. It is considered as the best
solar observing site in Asia. The observatory
has a vast range of telescopes to provide
exceptional quality of astronomical
observations. The observatory has a new
instrument 'Solar Vector Magnetograph' that
plays a vital role in the future research
program by determining the magnetic field of
the active regions. Every one of these
facilities adds to the nature of extricated
6.Gauribidanur Radio Observatory

Gauribidanur is a rural area 100 km from

Bangalore and is free from urban electronic
noise, making it suitable radio observations. It
was built in the 1970s by Raman Research
Institute and Indian Institute of Astrophysics.
To study radio emission from the centre of our
galaxy and other radio sources, most
importantly the sun, Radio emission is
present. The purpose of these observations is
tostudy supernovaremnants, ionised
hydrogen regions in the outer space and
pulsars. Most of the time at this observatory is
dedicated to observing the sun, and the angle
is changed continuously through electronic
adjustment. Gauribidanur Radio Observatory
isthe only observatory in India that can record
observations at low frequencies and has a
unique role.
7. Madras Observatory, Chennai

South Asians first texts onastronomical

phenomenaate back to more than 3000years,
as the study of movement of stars and planets
was familiar in the ancient world, hence the
observatory was built andwas one of the first
modern observatories in Asia that was
equipped with impressive telescopes, some of
which are stillrare in the Indian subcontinent.
Madras is a vast astronomical observatory set
up by William Petrie in 1786 and later was
managed bythe British East India Company
that aims at assisting in the navigation and
mapping by recording latitude and maintaining
time standards. The recordings here are also
usedto study stars and geomagnetism and
production of a comprehensive catalogue of
stars.It isan amalgamation of scientific
knowledge and imperial power. The site was a
knowledge and imperial power. The site wasa
tool of colonial rule aimingat showing the
dominance of British power in South Asia as
astronomy was knownas the key to
'sovereignty of rick and extensive empire'.
Madras observatory held the torch for
establishing a global empire and was
Considered to be the rise of a new kind of
science.

8.High Altitude Gamma Ray

Observatory Ladakh

The intense study of Gamma rays provides an

insight into the study of what is known as the
non-thermal universe. Cosmic rays in the
galaxy are considered to be an essential
Component of the non-thermalworld. The
research revolves around the concept that
the remains of a supernovaexplosion
the remains of asupernova explosion
accelerate cosmic rays with energies at the
lower end of the ray spectrum on the other
handhigher energy cosmic rays could be
accelerated in active galactic nuclei.
Productionof Gammarays can also happen
when charged particles are accelerated to
high energies through different processes.
The location and atmosphere of Ladakh are
perfect for observing and understanding more
about these experiments. Gamma rays are
extremely harmful to life hence being located
at ahigher altitude the observatory is not a
threat to surroundings. Being situated in
Ladakh, it is considered to be one of the
world's highest sites for optical, infrared and
gamma-ray telescopes. The Indian
Astronomical Observatory is operated by
Indian Institute of Astrophysics in Bangalore
and is currently the ninth optical telescope in
the worldaccording to the list of highest
astronomical observatories. For excellent
visibility and most accurate reading of infrared
and submillimeter observations throughout
the year, Hanle site is a perfect place. The
concentration of atmosphericaerosols is low
along with atmospheric water vapour
Concentration, and the location has low
ambient temperatures, low humidity and least
amount of pollution in the surroundings
requirements for most accurate readings. This
observatory in India currently has two
powerful telesSCopes, and each one has seven
mirrors and occupies an area of 4.4 square
meters in total. The observatory is still
undergoing development for better results,
and the researchers are waiting for the worlds
second largest telescope to be installed at
this site.