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Planetary Searches Using Optical Astrometric Interferometers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 August 2017

D. H. Staelin
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
M. M. Colavita
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
M. Shao
Affiliation:
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

Abstract

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Detection of planets by virtue of their gravitational perturbations of nearby visible stars generally requires relative astrometric accuracies of ~ 3 × 10−4 arc sec for Jovian planets and ~ 3 × 10−7 arc sec for terrestrial planets. Two-color optical astrometric interferometers on earth should be capable of ~ 10−4 arc sec rms accuracy for stars brighter than magnitude 7–10, while small one-color space systems should achieve at least ~ 10−5 arc sec. Two-color systems permit correction every few milliseconds for the random wavefront tilt due to atmospheric turbulence; the correction is based on the observed offset between the red and blue fringes, and the known atmospheric dispersion. A 3.4-meter baseline interferometer on Mount Wilson has demonstrated ~ 0.02 arc sec rms fluctuations for 1-second samples.

Type
Section II. The Search for Other Planetary Systems
Copyright
Copyright © Reidel 1985 

References

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