Adaptive optics drive ground-based space discoveries
Keely Portway looks at how adaptive optics have allowed ground-based telescopes to observe new phenomena, including finer details of the Sun
Keely Portway looks at how adaptive optics have allowed ground-based telescopes to observe new phenomena, including finer details of the Sun
Researchers have developed an ultra-sensitive light-detecting system that could enable astronomers to view galaxies, stars and planetary systems in unprecedented detail
Measurement of large optics require metrology systems that can function despite vibration, turbulence and other challenges.Laser interferometry is used throughout the manufacturing of large optics to ensure conformance to demanding design specifications. More recently, “dynamic interferometry” has been implemented for vibration-insensitive measurement of large optics.
Jessica Rowbury looks at the latest research in the hunt for dark matter, one of the biggest mysteries in physics
Humberto Michinel and Ángel Paredes at the Optics Laboratory of the University of Vigo in Ourense, Spain, discuss optical approaches to studying ‘hidden’ energy
The Hawaii Supreme Court has ruled that construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) will be permitted to continue on Mauna Kea
The laser ranging interferometer (LRI) instrument has been successfully switched on aboard the recently launched twin US/German Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) satellites
Professor Dr Martin Roth, at research centre Innofspec Potsdam, discusses the role that fibre Bragg gratings and other photonics components could play in transforming astronomy
The stringent requirements for ground and space-based telescopes are driving the development of innovative materials and optical systems, Matthew Dale reports
The UK Space Agency is working with Glyndŵr University’s OpTIC Technology Centre and the SETsquared Partnership to launch an entrepreneurial programme to get more entrepreneurs into space