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Observing Photons in Space

A Guide to Experimental Space Astronomy

  • Book
  • © 2013

Overview

Editors:
  1. Martin C. E. Huber

    1. Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen PSI, Switzerland

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  2. Anuschka Pauluhn

    1. Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen PSI, Switzerland

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  3. J. Len Culhane

    1. Mullard Space Science Lab, University College London, Dorking, Surrey, UK

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  4. J. Gethyn Timothy

    1. Nightsen, Inc., Tiverton, USA

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  5. Klaus Wilhelm

    1. Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany

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  6. Alex Zehnder

    1. Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen PSI, Switzerland

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  • Covers all spectral domains used for observing astrophysical objects and phenomena in space
  • Presents extensive details on general techniques used in space astronomy, such as calibration, cryogenics in space and laser aligned structures
  • Discusses practical precautions to be used for astronomical space instrumentation as it relates to the launch and other implications of the space environment
  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Part of the book series: ISSI Scientific Report Series (ISSI, volume 9)

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Table of contents (41 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xvi
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  2. Observing photons in space

    • Martin C. E. Huber, Anuschka Pauluhn, J. Gethyn Timothy
    Pages 1-19

  3. Photons — from source to detector

    • Klaus Wilhelm, Claus Fröhlich
    Pages 21-53

  4. High-energy astrophysics — energies above 100 keV

    • Gottfried Kanbach, Volker Schönfelder, Alex Zehnder
    Pages 55-72

  5. X-ray astronomy: energies from 0.1 keV to 100 keV

    • J. Len Culhane
    Pages 73-91

  6. The extra-terrestrial vacuum-ultraviolet wavelength range

    • J. Gethyn Timothy, Klaus Wilhelm, Lidong Xia
    Pages 93-120

  7. The visible and near-infrared domain

    • Steven V. W. Beckwith
    Pages 121-137

  8. The mid- and far-infrared range: radiation emission processes from interstellar dust and gas

    • A. G. G. M. Tielens
    Pages 139-163

  9. The Cosmic Microwave Background

    • Jean-Michel Lamarre, Hervé Dole
    Pages 165-182

  10. Space telescopes

    • Philippe Lemaire, Bernd Aschenbach, John F. Seely
    Pages 183-210

  11. Normal- and grazing-incidence gratings and mountings used in space

    • Philippe Lemaire
    Pages 211-223

  12. Imaging through Compton scattering and pair creation

    • Volker Schönfelder, Gottfried Kanbach
    Pages 225-242

  13. X-ray imaging with collimators, masks and grids

    • Gordon J. Hurford
    Pages 243-254

  14. All-sky monitoring of high-energy transients

    • Kevin Hurley
    Pages 255-260

  15. Far-infrared imaging and spectroscopic instrumentation

    • Bruce Swinyard, Wolfgang Wild
    Pages 261-281

  16. Goniopolarimetric techniques for low-frequency radio astronomy in space

    • Baptiste Cecconi
    Pages 283-298

  17. High-accuracy positioning: astrometry

    • Lennart Lindegren
    Pages 299-311

  18. Interferometric imaging from space

    • Andreas Quirrenbach
    Pages 313-332

  19. Narrow-band imaging by use of interferometers

    • Matt J. Griffin, Peter A. R. Ade
    Pages 333-347

  20. Imaging Michelson interferometers

    • Alan M. Title
    Pages 349-361
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Keywords

About this book

An ideal resource for lecturers, this book provides a comprehensive review of experimental space astronomy. The number of astronomers whose knowledge and interest is concentrated on interpreting observations has grown substantially in the past decades; yet, the number of scientists who are familiar with and capable of dealing with instrumentation has dwindled.  All of the authors of this work are leading and experienced experts and practitioners who have designed, built, tested, calibrated, launched and operated advanced observing equipment for space astronomy. This book also contains concise information on the history of the field, supported by appropriate references. Moreover, scientists working in other fields will be able to get a quick overview of the salient issues of observing photons in any one of the various energy, wavelength and frequency ranges accessible in space. This book was written with the intention to make it accessible to advanced undergraduate and graduate students.

Editors and Affiliations

  • Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen PSI, Switzerland

    Martin C. E. Huber, Anuschka Pauluhn, Alex Zehnder

  • Mullard Space Science Lab, University College London, Dorking, Surrey, UK

    J. Len Culhane

  • Nightsen, Inc., Tiverton, USA

    J. Gethyn Timothy

  • Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany

    Klaus Wilhelm

About the editors

Prof. Huber obtained his Ph.D. in 1963 under Prof. Ernst Miescher at the University of Basel with a dissertation on molecular spectroscopy. He was employed at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts where he worked in laboratory astrophysics and was responsible for the instrumentation and calibration of the Harvard instruments flown on the Orbiting Solar Observatory (OSO-6) and later on the Skylab space station (1973-74). After his return in 1973 to ETH Zurich he expanded his work in laboratory astrophysics to cover laser-excited plasmas, developed astronomical optics and participated in the SOHO mission as co-investigator on three experiments. Here, his interest lies in the radiometric inter-calibration of all the remote sensing-instruments on the spacecraft as well as in the measurement of the physical properties and chemical composition of the Solar Corona.
 
He headed ESA's Space Science Department from mid-1987 until mid-2000 and was ESA Science Advisor until 2001. He is an Associate of Harvard College Observatory, a member of the International Academy of Astronautics and of the Academia Europaea, and Honorary Member of the Swiss Physical Society. From 2003-2005 he was President of the European Physical Society. Currently he chairs the Swiss Commission for the Jungfraujoch Research Station of the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT), and is a member of the editorial board of the European journal "Astronomy and Astrophysics Review" and of the Board of Directors of the Europhysics Letters (EPL) Association.

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