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Atmospheric Intensity Scintillation of Stars on Milli- and Microsecond Time Scales

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2016

D. Dravins ,
L. Lindegren  and
E. Mezey
D. Dravins
Affiliation:
Lund Observatory, Box 43, S-22100 Lund, Sweden
L. Lindegren
Affiliation:
Lund Observatory, Box 43, S-22100 Lund, Sweden
E. Mezey
Affiliation:
Lund Observatory, Box 43, S-22100 Lund, Sweden

Abstract

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Stellar intensity scintillation on short and very short time scales (≃ 100 ms - 100 ns) was studied using an optical telescope on La Palma (Canary Islands). Photon counting detectors and real-time signal processing equipment were used to study atmospheric scintillation as function of telescope aperture size, degree of apodization, for single and double apertures, in different optical colors, at different zenith distances, times of night, and seasons of year. The statistics of temporal intensity variations can be adequately described by log-normal distributions, varying with time. The scintillation timescale (≃10 ms) decreases for smaller telescope apertures until ≃5 cm, where the atmospheric ‘shadow bands’ apparently are resolved. Some astrophysical sources may undergo very rapid intrinsic fluctuations. To detect such phenomena through the turbulent atmosphere requires optimized observing strategies.

Type
Session 2 High Precision Photometry
Information
International Astronomical Union Colloquium , Volume 136: Stellar Photometry – Current Techniques and Future Developments , 1993 , pp. 113 - 119
Copyright
Copyright © C.J. Butler and I. Elliottt 1993

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