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Infrared Techniques for Comet Observations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2016

Martha S. Hanner and
Alan T. Tokunaga
Martha S. Hanner
Affiliation:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory California, Institute of Technology 4800 Oak Grove Drive Pasadena, CA 91109
Alan T. Tokunaga
Affiliation:
Institute for Astronomy , University of Hawaii 2680 Woodlawn Drive Honolulu, HI 96822

Abstract

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The infrared spectral region (1–1000 μm) is important for studies of both molecules and solid grains in comets. Infrared astronomy is in the midst of a technological revolution, with the development of sensitive 2–dimensional arrays leading to infrared cameras and spectrometers with vastly improved sensitivity and resolution. The Halley campaign gave us tantalizing first glimpses of the comet science possible with this new technology, evidenced, for example, by the many new spectral features detected in the infrared. The techniques of photometry, imaging, and spectroscopy are reviewed in this chapter and their status at the time of the Halley observations is described.

Information

Type
Section I: Observing Techniques and Interpretation
Information
International Astronomical Union Colloquium , Volume 116 , Issue 1: Comets in the Post-Halley Era , 1989, pp. 67 - 91
Copyright
Copyright © Kluwer 1991

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