Which Detection Method Can Be Used With a Backyard Telescope?
Amateur astronomers can detect exoplanets from their back yards! While finding new planets is probably non possible from a backyard telescope, the professionals have a listing of known planets for us to examine.
This is important for two reasons:
- Professionals can discover new planets to add to a target list
- Amateurs can follow-upwards the target list with desired information for the professional person since the professional will have difficulty securing telescope time for continual ascertainment
Organized searches like Transitsearch.org can provide interested amateurs with a listing of targets for continual study. Best of all, this data is used by professional groups!
The most successful type of data collection by the amateur is through the photometric change in stellar effulgence - or the transit method. Just a handful of stars volition have a planet cross of the surface of the star, none-the-less continual data of these sources are needed - this frees upward the professionals fourth dimension to focus on the more obscure methods of detection.
As a planet passes over the portion of the star facing usa, the light curve of the star drops for a time. As the planet passes through, the light curve returns to normal. The image below shows a typical setup for an amateur to capture images of the transit:
That is an eight inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a 765x510 pixel CCD camera - total cost is nigh $4000.00 - dandy! The light curve from this telescope is below:
Compare that to a professional calorie-free curve:
In other words, the curve is identical.
A group from Spectrashift.com has taken the apprentice detection to the next level. Using professional specifications for a home-built spectrometer fastened to a 16 inch telescope, this group was able to find the radial velocity from Tau Boo Two, a star with a known planetary organization.
The epitome above shows their 16 inch telescope with custom-made cobweb optic cablevision (running forth the basis to the left of the prototype). This fiber is connected to a big, tabular array mounted spectrometer using this blueprint:
A more detailed look at this spectrometer is bachelor in Stephen F. Tonkin's book Practical Amateur Spectroscopy.
Back to Top
Source: http://astronomyonline.org/Exoplanets/AmateurDetection.asp
0 Response to "Which Detection Method Can Be Used With a Backyard Telescope?"
Postar um comentário