Disclaimer: This material is being kept online for historical purposes. Though accurate at the time of publication, it is no longer being updated. The page may contain broken links or outdated information, and parts may not function in current web browsers. Visit https://espo.nasa.gov for information about our current projects.

 

Fibre-optic Fed Slit-Spectrograph (SLIT)

Status

Operated By: 
PI

SLIT is a high-resolution slit-spectrgraph which is fed by optical fiber attached to window assembly telescope. Its objective is to resolve shock emissions in the near-UV.

The instrument consists of a computer controlled slit-spectrograph which is fed by an optical fiber and a small telescope assembly at the window. A co-aligned camera provides pointing capability, detecting stars to magnitude +7. The camera is an EM CCD Andor DU97 IN, back illuminated UV enhanced CCD, with 1600x400 pixels (16x16 micron) and 25.6 x 6.4 mm image area. The Spectrometer is an Acton Sp300i imaging spectrometer with 300 mm focal length F/D 4.5. The telescope assembly focussing is performed with a 90 degree off-axis parabolic mirror of 50 mm diameter with a focal length of 100mm. The F/D~2 was chosen to meet the numerical aperture of the fibre optics yielding an angle of view of 0.45 degree. A bundle of 50 quartz fibres of 100 µm diameter are chosen. On the telescope side the fibres form a round cross section of 0.8 mm diameter, on the spectrometer side they are oriented in a row which can be used like a slit with a height of 5.6 mm and a width of 100 micron. If sufficient amounts of light are available, a slit can be used in addition to improve the spectral resolution.

Instrument Type: 
Measurements: 
Aircraft: 
Point(s) of Contact: 
Michael Winter (POC; PI)