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The LASP* at RIT’s Center for Imaging Science

Explore the roots of infrared astronomy, advantages of higher altitudes, and advanced telescopes like the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. Discover the significance of infrared in studying galaxy luminosity, star formation, and more!

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The LASP* at RIT’s Center for Imaging Science

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  1. The LASP* at RIT’s Center for Imaging Science *Laboratory for Astronomy in Strange Places

  2. Telescopes on Mauna Kea Altitude circa 14,000 ft.

  3. The Kuiper Airborne Observatory Altitudes up to 45,000 ft.

  4. Higher is Better: Roots of the LASP CIS’s Director (as grad student!) in action on the Kuiper Airborne Observatory (1970-something)

  5. Why is higher better?

  6. Why Do Astronomy in the Infrared? • Most of the luminosity of our galaxy and in other galaxies emerges in this wavelength region • Low dust extinction at these wavelengths permits unbiased and potentially complete observations of statistically large samples of objects • Formation of galaxies in the early universe and the crucial stages of formation and evolution of stars and planets can be best studied in this range of wavelengths • Most of the fundamental absorption and emission lines and bands of astrophysically and astrochemically significant molecules occur in the far infrared

  7. M17: Optical Photograph + Far Infrared

  8. That was then... Kuiper Airborne Observatory maps of far-IR emissionfrom the W3 star formation region, 1970-something

  9. This is now... The W3 star formation region as seen in the near-IR by a modern IR camera

  10. Youngest stars in M17 hidden by dust

  11. Near-Infrared Imaging:Uncovering the young stars in M17

  12. Constructing a Spatial Mosaic

  13. Mosaics obtained at three infrared wavelengths 1.65 microns 1.25 microns 2.2 microns

  14. Result of combining...

  15. Visible Infrared

  16. Big targets need big detector arrays The galactic center region in the near-IR

  17. This image took a long time to make... …because this image of M17 (from late 1980’s) consists of a mosaic of several dozen individual 58x62 frames

  18. But this one was a snap! Image of M17 taken in mid-1990’s with a 256x256 near-infrared detector array

  19. The advantages of color

  20. Using a bigger telescope to see detail

  21. Image Processing: Separating Stars from Nebula

  22. Narrow-band IR imaging:Distinguishing the dust from the gas Dust emission from M17at 3.3microns Emission from ionized gas at 2.16 microns and 4.05 microns

  23. Colder is also better

  24. Why is colder better?

  25. Sky gets darker as temperature drops

  26. Construction at the Pole

  27. The SPIREX Telescope

  28. The SPIREX Telescope

  29. Data Pipelining at RIT • Data from the South Pole • National request for proposals • 45 proposals received; 13 carried out • Data reduced at RIT and distributed worldwide

  30. The Galactic Center viewed from the Pole

  31. Star formation regions from the Pole The advantage of infrared imaging from a cold environment

  32. Star formation regions from the Pole The advantage of infrared imaging with a wide field

  33. A very wide field 3-color IR image Image mosaic of the NGC 6334 star formation region obtained with SPIREX/Abu at the South Pole

  34. Site monitoring for the entire season The advantage of relentless observing & data pipelining

  35. How to tell when it’s cloudy

  36. How to tell the good times from the bad

  37. How to squeeze blood from a rock(Or, how to make the bad times look like the good)

  38. The SOFIA Concept

  39. Test flights

  40. Telescope specifications • Nominal Operational Wavelength Range: 0.3 to 1600 um • prime wavelengths 15-300 microns • Primary Mirror Diameter = 2.7 meters • System Clear Aperture Diameter = 2.5 meters • Nominal System f-ratio = 19.6 • Primary Mirror f-ratio = 1.28 • Telescope's Unvignetted Elevation Range: 20-60 degrees

  41. The mirror blank

  42. SOFIA Key Science • Interstellar cloud physics and star formation in our galaxy • Proto-planetary disks and planet formation in nearby star systems • Origin and evolution of biogenic atoms, molecules, and solids • Composition and structure of planetary atmospheres and rings, and comets • Star formation, dynamics, and chemical content of other galaxies • The dynamic activity in the center of the Milky Way.

  43. SOFIA Data Pipelining at RIT • Under construction: a data cycle system for SOFIA • Our data cycle system will be modular, extensible, and continuously improving • These 3 attributes are the promise of SOFIA

  44. In the works: telescopes on the Atacama Plateau, Chile • Altitude: circa 19000 ft. • Rainfall: almost never Talk about astronomy in strange places…!

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