Narrabri Stellar Intensity Interferometer

Narrabri Stellar Intensity Interferometer
Alternative names NSII Edit this at Wikidata
Location(s) New South Wales, Australia Edit this at Wikidata
Coordinates 30°12′33″S 149°45′04″E / 30.2092°S 149.751°E / -30.2092; 149.751Coordinates: 30°12′33″S 149°45′04″E / 30.2092°S 149.751°E / -30.2092; 149.751 Edit this at Wikidata
First light 1963 Edit this on Wikidata
Decommissioned 1974 Edit this on Wikidata
Telescope style Astronomical interferometer
Optical telescope Edit this on Wikidata
Location of Narrabri Stellar Intensity Interferometer

The Narrabri Stellar Intensity Interferometer (NSII) was the first astronomical instrument to measure the diameters of a large number of stars at visible wavelengths. It was designed by (amongst others) Robert Hanbury Brown, who received the Hughes Medal in 1971 for this work. It was built by University of Sydney School of Physics and was located near the town of Narrabri in north-central New South Wales, Australia. Many of the components were constructed in the UK.[1] The design was based on an earlier optical intensity interferometer built by Hanbury Brown and Richard Q. Twiss at Jodrell Bank in the UK.[2] Whilst the original device had a maximum baseline of 10m, the NSII device consisted of a large circular track that allowed the detectors to be separated from 10 to 188m. The NSII operated from 1963 until 1974, and was used to measure the angular diameters of 32 stars.[3]

References

  1. ↑ Hanbury), Brown, R. Hanbury (Robert (1991). Boffin : a personal story of the early days of radar, radio astronomy, and quantum optics. Bristol: Adam Hilger. ISBN 0750301309. OCLC 23357612.
  2. ↑ HANBURY BROWN, R.; TWISS, R. Q. (November 1956). "A Test of a New Type of Stellar Interferometer on Sirius". Nature. 178 (4541): 1046–1048. doi:10.1038/1781046a0. ISSN 0028-0836.
  3. ↑ Hanbury Brown, R.; Davis, J.; Allen, L. R. (1974-04-01). "The Angular Diameters of 32 Stars". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 167 (1): 121–136. doi:10.1093/mnras/167.1.121. ISSN 0035-8711.
  • The angular diameters of 32 stars, Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. Volume 167 pp 121–136 (1974)
  • Hanbury Brown R, The intensity interferometer – its application to astronomy, Taylor & Francis, 1974


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