spectro-aras.com

People might be interested in having a look at PyLongslit reduction software. It is not very automated and, while certainly a pretty powerful real world reduction tool, I suspect is intended more for teaching university students how to reduce spectra. It is very interactive at every stage, and ...

That's right - the Alpy runs at native f/4 with a larger slit. I think it might be the LISA that is optimised for f/5.5.

I'm also adapting my Lhires to run from the f/4 telescope on a fibre, which requires some messing about with a macro lens in front of the spectrograph and removing the slit ...

This has been a long time coming. I have been constructing a 50cm telescope in a dome, and tonight I managed my first spectrum.

The telescope is a 50cm f/4 prime focus design - the simplest possible telescope - using a lightweight mirror from Teleskop Express. Prime focus means no secondary, so it ...

This is fascinating work. Quite an achievement. It's a significant addition to the WR catalogue. Congratulations to all, and especially to Lionel.

This may be behind a paywall for some. It summarises recent findings that reduced cloud cover is contributing to accelerated climate warming (since clouds reflect sunlight back upwards). I am, to say the least, surprised to hear that there is a trend towards reduced cloud cover around the world. It ...

SN2024ggi is fading, and exposure times are getting shorter due to later sunset and earlier setting. So I suspect that this will be my last observation of this one, though there is still detail to be made out in the spectrum. The nominal exposure time is 2 hours but the reality, partly due to a ...

This work was received so well that it attracted a spontaneous round of applause in the discussion following the presentation at the Prague meeting...

Back home after several weeks away, and SN2024ggi still seems pretty bright, though I haven't seen any recent photometry. It's getting low in the sky, though, and I suspect I won't be able to follow it much longer.

I think we're getting decent coverage from Australasia, though I hope we can keep it up long enough as it fades.

Hamish also found this quite useful paper, with lots of comparisons of a a Type IIP with other examples and models. It's helpful for understanding the variety of features in both spectra ...

Hamish Barker, Peter Velez and I are continuing to monitor SN2024ggi - it's coming along nicely.

The filled in bit where you would expect a P Cygni style absorption to the left of the H Alpha line is interesting. I'm going to try to get a spectrum with higher S/N to see if I can bring out a little ...