Nulling at the Keck interferometer
Abstract
The nulling mode of the Keck Interferometer is being commissioned at the Mauna Kea summit. The nuller combines the two Keck telescope apertures in a split-pupil mode to cancel the on-axis starlight and coherently detect the residual signal. The nuller, working at 10 um, is tightly integrated with the other interferometer subsystems including the fringe and angle trackers, the delay lines and laser metrology, and the real-time control system. Since first 10 um light in August 2004, the system integration is proceeding with increasing functionality and performance, leading to demonstration of a 100:1 on-sky null in 2005. That level of performance has now been extended to observations with longer coherent integration times. An overview of the overall system is presented, with emphasis on the observing sequence, phasing system, and differences with respect to the V² system, along with a presentation of some recent engineering data.
Additional Information
© 2006 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). The Keck Interferometer is funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Observations presented were obtained at the W. M. Keck Observatory, which is operated as a scientific partnership among the California Institute of Technology, the University of California, and NASA. The Observatory was made possible by the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation. Part of this work was performed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, and at the Michelson Science Center, California Institute of Technology, under contract with NASA.Attached Files
Published - 626803.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 99654
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20191104-130057026
- NASA/JPL/Caltech
- W. M. Keck Foundation
- Created
-
2019-11-04Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-16Created from EPrint's last_modified field
- Caltech groups
- Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC)
- Series Name
- Proceedings of SPIE
- Series Volume or Issue Number
- 6268