Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences

The Korean Space Science Society (한국우주과학회)
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Short Wave Infrared Imaging for Auroral Physics and Aeronomy Studies

  • Trond S. Trondsen (Keo Scientific Ltd.) ;
  • John Meriwether (Center for Solar-Terrestrial Research, New Jersey Institute of Technology) ;
  • Craig Unick (Keo Scientific Ltd.) ;
  • Andrew Gerrard (Center for Solar-Terrestrial Research, New Jersey Institute of Technology) ;
  • Matthew Cooper (Center for Solar-Terrestrial Research, New Jersey Institute of Technology) ;
  • Devin Wyatt (Keo Scientific Ltd.)
  • Received : 2024.03.06
  • Accepted : 2024.05.10
  • Published : 2024.06.15
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Abstract

Advances in solar-terrestrial physics are generally linked to the development of innovative new sensor technologies, affording us ever better sensitivity, higher resolution, and broader spectral response. Recent advances in low-noise InGaAs sensor technology have enabled the realization of low-light-level scientific imaging within the short-wave infrared (SWIR) region of the electromagnetic spectrum. This paper describes a new and highly sensitive ultra-wide angle imager that offers an expansion of auroral and airglow imaging capabilities into the SWIR spectral range of 900-1,700 nm. The imager has already proven successful in large-area remote sensing of mesospheric temperatures and in providing intensity maps showing the propagation and dissipation of atmospheric gravity waves and ripples. The addition of an automated filter wheel expands the range of applications of an already versatile SWIR detector. Several potential applications are proposed herein, with an emphasis on auroral science. The combined data from this type of instrument and other existing instrumentation holds a strong potential to further enhance our understanding of the geospace environment.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

Trond S. Trondsen wishes to thank Stephen Mende for valuable discussions, going back to 2011, on the topic of determining the source of electron aurora precipitation by optical techniques. John Meriwether wishes to acknowledge the 2023 Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) for funding support (FA9550-23-1-0412) of the acquisition of the Keo Sentry-SWIR imager to the Center for Solar-Terrestrial Research at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. We thank Charles Mutiso and Matthew Zettergren (Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University) for their helpful comments on the application of SWIR imaging to the study of auroral physics.

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