A Catalog of Stellar Targets and Calibrators for Next Generation Optical Interferometers
Abstract
The Visible Imaging System for Interferometric Observations at the Navy Precision Optical Interferometer (VISION) outside Flagstaff, Arizona is a high-resolution, six-telescope beam combiner. VISION is capable of sub-milliarcsecond resolution in visible wavelengths allowing for images of stellar surface features, such as spots and granulation. Here we present a list of the first potential science targets as well as their respective calibrators. Approximately 2900 potential science target stars in the northern hemisphere fit the criteria of being ideal for VISION having angular sizes between 2 and 4 milliarcseconds and brighter than V=6. In order to obtain good interferometric data on these targets, it is vital to establish the system response of the instrument. This is done by observing unresolved calibrator stars with visibilities near unity. The angular sizes of these calibrators must be very accurate to obtain good visibility contrast. We used a spectral energy distribution fitting code, SEDfit, which modeled each star’s angular size based on a template of the spectral type of the star obtained from the Skiff Catalogue of Stellar Spectral Classification (2009-2013). Of the nearly 2000 possible calibrators, 1485 stars have relative errors of their angular sizes less than 10%, 664 have errors less than 5%, and 37 stars have relative errors less than 2%. With this precision, our catalog will be a valuable resource for the interferometric imaging community leading to great opportunities for imaging the surface of a star other than the Sun. We acknowledge the Vanderbilt Physics and Astronomy NSF REU Program.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #223
- Pub Date:
- January 2014
- Bibcode:
- 2014AAS...22325605S