Towards observational MHD. Advances in spectropolarimetry and the prospects for the E-ELT
Abstract
Polarization and wavelength are the bits of information attached to every photon that reveal the most about its formation and subsequent history. The E-ELT will, for the foreseeable future, be the most powerful optical light-collecting machine ever built. The strength of its combination, spectropolarimetry with the E-ELT, is the anchorage in physics of astronomical observations. I present a strawman design of a spectropolarimeter for its intermediate focus.
- Publication:
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Advances in Plasma Astrophysics
- Pub Date:
- June 2011
- DOI:
- Bibcode:
- 2011IAUS..274..274S
- Keywords:
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- Magnetic fields;
- stars: magnetic fields;
- instrumentation: polarimeters;
- techniques: polarimetric;
- techniques: spectroscopic