Bright-Moon sky as a wide-field linear Polarimetric flat source for calibration
Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2023
Context. Next-generation wide-field optical polarimeters such as Wide-Area Linear Optical Polarimeters (WALOPs) have a field of view (FoV) of tens of arcminutes. Wide-field polarimetric flat sources are essential to the efficient and accurate calibration of these instruments. However, no established wide-field polarimetric standard or flat sources exist at present. Aims. This study tests the feasibility of using the polarized sky patches of the size of around 10 × 10 arcminutes2, at a distance of up to 20 from the Moon, on bright-Moon nights as a wide-field linear polarimetric flat source. Methods. We observed 19 patches of the sky adjacent to the bright-Moon with the RoboPol instrument in the SDSS-r broadband filter. These patches were observed on five nights within two days of the full-Moon across two RoboPol observing seasons. Results. We find that for 18 of the 19 patches, the uniformity in the measured normalized Stokes parameters q and u is within 0.2%, with 12 patches exhibiting uniformity within 0.07% or better for both q and u simultaneously, making them reliable and stable wide-field linear polarization flats. Conclusions. We demonstrate that the sky on bright-Moon nights is an excellent wide-field linear polarization flat source. Various combinations of the normalized Stokes parameters q and u can be obtained by choosing suitable locations of the sky patch with respect to the Moon.
Moon
Techniques: polarimetric
Atmospheric effects
Instrumentation: polarimeters
Författare
S. Maharana
South African Astronomical Observatory
Panepistimio Kritis
Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
S. Kiehlmann
Panepistimio Kritis
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
D. Blinov
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Panepistimio Kritis
V. Pelgrims
Panepistimio Kritis
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
V. Pavlidou
Panepistimio Kritis
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Konstantinos Tassis
Panepistimio Kritis
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
J. A. Kypriotakis
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Panepistimio Kritis
A. N. Ramaprakash
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics
R. M. Anche
University of Arizona
A. Basyrov
Universitetet i Oslo
K. Deka
Narodowe Centrum Badan Jadrowych
Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI)
H. K. Eriksen
Universitetet i Oslo
T. Ghosh
Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI)
E. Gjerløw
Universitetet i Oslo
N. Mandarakas
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Panepistimio Kritis
E. Ntormousi
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Panepistimio Kritis
Georgia Panopoulou
Chalmers, Rymd-, geo- och miljövetenskap, Astronomi och plasmafysik
A. Papadaki
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
Institute of Computer Science Crete
Panepistimio Kritis
T. J. Pearson
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
S. B. Potter
University of Johannesburg
South African Astronomical Observatory
A. C.S. Readhead
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
Idryma Technologias kai Erevnas (FORTH)
R. Skalidis
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
I. K. Wehus
Universitetet i Oslo
Astronomy and Astrophysics
0004-6361 (ISSN) 1432-0746 (eISSN)
Vol. 679 A68Ämneskategorier
Astronomi, astrofysik och kosmologi
DOI
10.1051/0004-6361/202346830