BLAST autonomous daytime star cameras

Marie Rex; Edward Chapin; Mark J. Devlin; Joshua Gundersen; Jeff Klein; Enzo Pascale; Donald Wiebe

doi:10.1117/12.671965

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29 June 2006 BLAST autonomous daytime star cameras

Marie Rex, Edward Chapin, Mark J. Devlin, Joshua Gundersen, Jeff Klein, Enzo Pascale, Donald Wiebe

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Proceedings Volume 6269, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy; 62693H (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.671965
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2006, Orlando, Florida , United States

Abstract

We have developed two redundant daytime star cameras to provide the fine pointing solution for the balloon-borne submillimeter telescope, BLAST. The cameras are capable of providing a reconstructed pointing solution with an absolute accuracy < 5". They are sensitive to stars down to magnitudes ~ 9 in daytime float conditions. Each camera combines a 1 megapixel CCD with a 200mm f/2 lens to image a 2° × 2.5° field of the sky. The instruments are autonomous. An internal computer controls the temperature, adjusts the focus, and determines a real-time pointing solution at 1 Hz. The mechanical details and flight performance of these instruments are presented.

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Marie Rex, Edward Chapin, Mark J. Devlin, Joshua Gundersen, Jeff Klein, Enzo Pascale, and Donald Wiebe "BLAST autonomous daytime star cameras", Proc. SPIE 6269, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy, 62693H (29 June 2006); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.671965

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