Heterodyne spectroscopy of planetary and stellar atmospheres at a wavelength of 11 micrometers
Abstract
A heterodyne spectrometer for the 10 micron wavelength range was used for the investigation of absorption lines in planetary and stellar atmospheres with very high resolution. The atmosphere of Mars and the circumstellar envelopes of bright IR stars were investigated using IR telescopes. The Mars observations provide the isotope ratios C-12/C-13 and O-16/O-18, the large scale temperature distribution of the upper atmosphere (which shows a substantially higher temperature above the Mars North Pole than above the subsolar point) and emission structures in the absorption lines of C13O2 which indicate very cold atmospheric layers. In the envelope of the carbon star IRC+10216 absorption lines of SiH4 were measured; the envelope of R Leonis shows MH3 absorption lines. The results demonstrate the realizability of an imaging heterodyne system.
- Publication:
-
NASA STI/Recon Technical Report N
- Pub Date:
- July 1986
- Bibcode:
- 1986STIN...8715040S
- Keywords:
-
- Heterodyning;
- Infrared Spectroscopy;
- Planetary Atmospheres;
- Stellar Atmospheres;
- Absorption Spectra;
- Infrared Spectrometers;
- Infrared Stars;
- Infrared Telescopes;
- Stellar Envelopes;
- Astronomy