Development of High Stability Fiber Optic Spectrophotometric Systems for Study of Solar/Stellar Magnetic Activity

摘要

An observational program to study magnetic activity cycles in solar-type stars, including the Sun. The goal of is proposed is to establish the relationships between a star's magnetic cycle morphology (i.e., amplitude, period, shape, regularity, etc.) and its age, rotation rate, and if possible, differential rotation rate, for a variety of solar like stars. Basic empirical input will be provided into the construction of a viable dynamical dynamo theory for the Sun and the stars, leading to a deeper understanding of the ultimate origins of solar and stellar magnetism. Only when a realistic theory of magnetic field generation is available can one understand fully the physics of magnetic activity, which manifests itself on all temporal and spatial scales, from transients such as flares to long-lived structures such as quiescent prominences, from flux-tubes at the limit of resolution to complex groups of sunspots. A critical first step in this effort was the development of an appropriate instrument. What follows describes an advanced-design, special-purpose, fiber fed spectrograph carefully optimized to make the required observations with maximum efficiency. This contract designed and fabricated and breadboards instrument, and tested it both in the laboratory and with telescopic observations. The results of those tests and ancillary tests of the properties of optical fibers are discussed.