ASTRONOMY COLLOQUIUM

The Quest for Coherence: Astrophysical Imaging from Interferometry to Photonics

Peter Tuthill, Professor, Astronomy Department, The University of Sydney,

The runaway success of a startlingly simple experiment in interferometric imaging of stars, started 30 years ago at the (then) shiny new Keck telescopes, opened a new window for high fidelity imaging at the finest angular scales. Through it a bizarre and unexpected menagerie of systems spanning the HR diagram was imaged, revealing the high resolution universe to be a wildly dynamic theatre far removed from the still-frame pictures in astronomy textbooks. Inheriting this legacy, today new instruments and programs have built upon these ideas with innovative architectures for space borne and photonic platforms. This talk follows the thread of these ideas and the science that motivates them, eventually leading to instruments such as the JWST interferometer, the GLINT nulling interferometer and the TOLIMAN space telescope.

Event Sponsors:

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For more information, please contact Jim Fuller by email at [email protected] or visit https://www.astro.caltech.edu.