Astronomical Spectroscopy - Physics - University of Cincinnati
Astronomical Spectroscopy - Physics - University of Cincinnati
Astronomical Spectroscopy - Physics - University of Cincinnati
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3.3. Observing Techniques: What Happens at Night<br />
One <strong>of</strong> the goals <strong>of</strong> this chapter has been to provide observing tips, and possibly the<br />
best way <strong>of</strong> doing this is provide some examples <strong>of</strong> what some typical nights are actually like.<br />
Included here are examples <strong>of</strong> observing with a long-slit spectrograph, observing with a fiber<br />
spectrograph, and some advice on what to do when observing with a NIR spectrometer.<br />
A common theme that emerges from these (mostly true) stories is that the observers<br />
spend a lot <strong>of</strong> time thinking through the calibration needs <strong>of</strong> their programs. For the optical<br />
this is mainly an issue <strong>of</strong> getting the flat-fields “right” (or at least good enough), while there<br />
are more subtle issues involved in NIR spectroscopy. Throughout these the same philosophy<br />
holds: obtaining useful spectra involves a lot more than just gathering photons at the right<br />
wavelength.<br />
3.3.1. Observing with a long-slit spectrograph<br />
The GoldCam spectrometer on the Kitt Peak 2.1-meter provides an interesting example<br />
<strong>of</strong> a classical long-slit instrument. The observing program described here was aimed at<br />
obtaining good (