An Introduction to Observational Astrophysics

✍ Scribed by Mark Gallaway (auth.)

• Publisher: Springer International Publishing
• Year: 2016
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 208
• Series: Undergraduate Lecture Notes in Physics
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Observational Astrophysics follows the general outline of an astrophysics undergraduate curriculum targeting practical observing information to what will be covered at the university level. This includes the basics of optics and coordinate systems to the technical details of CCD imaging, photometry, spectography and radio astronomy. General enough to be used by students at a variety of institutions and advanced enough to be far more useful than observing guides targeted at amateurs, the author provides a comprehensive and up-to-date treatment of observational astrophysics at undergraduate level to be used with a university’s teaching telescope. The practical approach takes the reader from basic first year techniques to those required for a final year project. Using this textbook as a resource, students can easily become conversant in the practical aspects of astrophysics in the field as opposed to the classroom.

✦ Table of Contents

Front Matter....Pages i-xv
Introduction....Pages 1-6
The Nature of Light....Pages 7-19
The Telescope....Pages 21-33
Time....Pages 35-41
Spheres and Coordinates....Pages 43-51
Catalogues and Constellations....Pages 53-65
The Astronomical Detector....Pages 67-89
Imaging....Pages 91-118
Image Reduction and Processing....Pages 119-128
Photometry....Pages 129-143
Errors....Pages 145-151
Solar Astronomy....Pages 153-162
Spectrography....Pages 163-169
Radio Astronomy....Pages 171-182
Astrometry....Pages 183-187
Back Matter....Pages 189-204

✦ Subjects

Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology;Optics, Lasers, Photonics, Optical Devices