Designing a Spectroscopy Mission
As part of ground- and space-based missions, engineers design spectrographs and other amazing equipment to study our universe.Copyright SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, FermiLab, US Department of Energy http://www.fnal.gov/pub/diversity/women_in_physics/images.shtml
Students find and calculate the angle that light is transmitted through a holographic diffraction grating using trigonometry. After finding this angle, student teams design and build their own spectrographs, researching and designing a ground- or space-based mission using their creation. At project end, teams present their findings to the class, as if they were making an engineering conference presentation. Student must have completed the associated Building a Fancy Spectrograph activity before attempting this activity.
Engineers design spectrographs to study atmospheres and surfaces of stars, planets and even components of other galaxies, as part of ground- or space-based missions (depending on the desired wavelength of study). To make a spectrograph work correctly, engineers consider many factors. They carefully measure and compute all angles. They use combinations of ray-trace computer programs, test, and computational analysis to determine the path the light takes in the spectrograph. A slight miscalculation makes instrument useless, so it is crucial to compute these angles and test them to make sure they are accurate before building a protective case to enclose the spectrograph. Engineers also explore with other engineers and scientists possible improvements to the design to create an efficient and effective instrument.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Understand and explain that light seen through a diffraction grating shows all of the colors of that light.
- Create a spectrograph prototype.
- Design a ground- or space-based mission using the spectrograph prototype.