Optical Concepts For The Binary Star Explorer

Wesley A. Traub; Derck L. Massa; Andrew S. Endal; Jacques M. Beckers; David W. Latham; Harold A. McAlister; Sidney B. Parsons

doi:10.1117/12.939894

10 June 1987 Optical Concepts For The Binary Star Explorer

Wesley A. Traub, Derck L. Massa, Andrew S. Endal, Jacques M. Beckers, David W. Latham, Harold A. McAlister, Sidney B. Parsons

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 0751, Reflective Optics; (1987) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.939894
Event: OE LASE'87 and EO Imaging Symposium, 1987, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Abstract

We describe the conceptual design of a proposed first-generation optical in-terferometer in space, the Binary Star Explorer. The scientific objectives for this interferometer are to determine the fundamental astrophysical quantities of distance and mass for stars in binary systems. In particular, the interferometer will be able to make accurate distance measurements to an estimated 40 Cepheid binary systems in our Galaxy, and 28 supergiant binary systems in the LMC. The interferometer comprises two fixed telescopes on a 5 m baseline, beam-combining optics, and a visible/ultraviolet fringe detecting system. We determine the angular separation of binary systems made up of a cool giant star and hot dwarf companion by measuring the shift between the optical and ultraviolet fringes. In combination with knowledge of the physical size of the orbit (which must be obtained separately from radial velocity measurements on both stars), the distance to the binary is obtained as the ratio of the physical to angular sizes.

Citation Download Citation

Wesley A. Traub, Derck L. Massa, Andrew S. Endal, Jacques M. Beckers, David W. Latham, Harold A. McAlister, and Sidney B. Parsons "Optical Concepts For The Binary Star Explorer", Proc. SPIE 0751, Reflective Optics, (10 June 1987); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.939894

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