Ground-layer turbulence profiling using a lunar SHABAR

• Published in: SPIE Proceedings, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy
• Main Authors: Moore, Anna, Aristidi, Eric, Ashley, Michael, Busso, Maurizio, Candidi, Maurizio, Everett, Jon, Kenyon, Suzanne, Lawrence, Jon, Luong-Van, D., Phillips, Andre, Le Roux, Brice, Ragazzoni, Roberto, Salinari, Piero, Storey, John, Taylor, Melinda, Tosti, Gino, Travouillon, Tony
• Other Authors: University of New South Wales Sydney (UNSW), Laboratoire Universitaire d'Astrophysique de Nice (LUAN), Université Nice Sophia Antipolis (1965 - 2019) (UNS)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Dipartimento di Fisica e Geologia Perugia, Università degli Studi di Perugia = University of Perugia (UNIPG), INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova (OAPD), Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF), INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri (OAA), TMT project, California Institute of Technology (CALTECH)
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2006
• Subjects: [PHYS.ASTR]Physics [physics]/Astrophysics [astro-ph]; Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-02480373; https://doi.org/10.1117/12.672640

International audience Profiling the ground layer turbulence for daytime seeing applications using an array of photodiodes has been documented in literature, in particular by Beckers who coined the term "SHABAR" for the instrument, short for Shadow Band Ranger. In this case the photodiodes measure the variation of solar intensity as a function of time and the correlation of scintillation between spatially separated scintillometers can be used to derive structure constant values for the lower 100m or so. More recently SHABARs have been applied to night time atmospheric profiling using the moon as the extended source, such as the Pan-STARRS lunar SHABAR, a more challenging venture given the lower structure constant values and therefore higher sensitivity required. We present a summary of the lunar SHABAR currently operating at the Antarctic site of Dome C, one of the three Gattini site testing instruments for the Italian-led IRAIT project. The SHABAR was designed with low noise performance in mind and for low temperature operation. Ground layer profiling is of particular importance at the Dome C site during winter-time as it is known the majority of the integrated seeing measured at ground level is created in a turbulent layer very close to the ground.