Related papers: AAO Starbugs: software control and associated algo…
The autonomous operation of flexible-wing aircraft is technically challenging and has never been presented within literature. The lack of an exact modeling framework is due to the complex nonlinear aerodynamic relationships governed by the…
We present a method to map the artificial sky brightness across large territories in astronomical photometric bands with a resolution of approximately 1 km. This is useful to quantify the situation of night sky pollution, to recognize…
A telescope specifically designed for the observation of the stellar aberration of light is proposed. It is distinctive in two main features: a lengthy collimated beam and an adjustable position of the photo-detector along the telescope…
The strength and vertical distribution of atmospheric turbulence is a key factor determining the performance of optical and infrared telescopes, with and without adaptive optics. Yet, this remains challenging to measure. We describe a new…
We discuss work by the eSTAR project which demonstrates a fully closed loop autonomous system for the follow up of possible micro-lensing anomalies. Not only are the initial micro-lensing detections followed up in real time, but ongoing…
A pointing accuracy better than 1"(3sigma) star tracker plays a significant role for the advanced scientific missions. This thesis makes a series of studies on the typical error sources associated with the positioning and calibration…
Optical trapping can be used to manipulate the three-dimensional (3-D) motion of spherical particles based on the simple prediction of optical forces and the responding motion of samples. However, controlling the 3-D behaviour of…
This paper investigates an autonomous navigation method for spacecraft operating in the outer solar system, up to 250 AU from the Sun, using the parallactic shifts of nearby stars. These measurements enable estimation of the spacecraft…
As the dependence on satellite imaging continues to grow, modern satellites have become increasingly agile, with the new generation, namely super-agile Earth observation satellites (SAEOS), providing unprecedented imaging flexibility. The…
High altitude balloons (HABs) are typically tracked via GPS data sent via real-time radio-based communication systems such as the Automated Packet Reporting System (APRS). Prefabricated APRS-compatible tracker modules have made it trivial…
The PHOT (Portable High-Speed Occultation Telescope) systems were developed for the specific purpose of observing stellar occultations by solar system objects. Stellar occultations have unique observing constraints: they may only be…
The detection and accurate astrometry of fast-moving near-Earth objects (NEOs) has been a challenge for the follow-up community. Their fast apparent motion results in streaks in sidereal images, thus affecting the telescope's limiting…
We summarize methods and plans to monitor and calibrate photometric observations with our autonomous, robotic network of 2m, 1m and 40cm telescopes. These are sited globally to optimize our ability to observe time-variable sources. Wide…
A novel method capable of delivering relative optical path length metrology with nanometer precision is demonstrated. Unlike conventional dual-wavelength metrology which employs heterodyne detection, the method developed in this work…
Space debris is a major threat to the satellite infrastructure. A collision with even small particle, e.g. 1 cm of size, can cause a catastrophic event when the parent body, spacecraft or upper stage, will break up into hundreds of…
We installed two sets of Astronomical Site Monitoring System(ASMS) at Lijiang Observatory(GMG), for the running of the 2.4-meter Lijiang optical telescope(LJT) and the 1.6-meter Multi-channel Photometric Survey Telescope (Mephisto). The…
In this contribution we present the FAST, which is a comprehensive software suite that aims to streamline and automatically manage the forecast of atmospheric and astroclimatic parameters (provided respectively by Meso-Nh and Astro-Meso-Nh…
The Star Watch extreme-precision astrometry mission (0.1 - 1.0 uas) builds on technology developed, and validated, during the SIM (Space Interferometry Mission) project. The sole science instrument is an optical interferometer with 50-cm…
The Taiwanese-American Occultation Survey (TAOS) project has collected more than a billion photometric measurements since 2005 January. These sky survey data-covering timescales from a fraction of a second to a few hundred days-are a useful…
The study explored the usage of astronomical observations for the identification and tracking of artificial satellites. Spacecraft streaks on astronomical images are a growing issue for the astronomical community. The increasing number of…