Steele, IA, Marchant, JM, Jermak, HE, Barnsley, RM, Bates, SD, Clay, NR, Fitzsimmons, A, Jehin, E, Jones, G, Mottram, CJ, Smith, RJ, Snodgrass, C and Val-Borro, MD (2016) LOTUS: A low cost, ultraviolet spectrograph. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. ISSN 0035-8711

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Abstract

We describe the design, construction and commissioning of LOTUS; a simple, low-cost long-slit spectrograph for the Liverpool Telescope. The design is optimized for near-UV and visible wavelengths and uses all transmitting optics. It exploits the instrument focal plane field curvature to partially correct axial chromatic aberration. A stepped slit provides narrow (2.5x95 arcsec) and wide (5x25 arcsec) options that are optimized for spectral resolution and flux calibration respectively. On sky testing shows a wavelength range of 3200-6300 Angstroms with a peak system throughput (including detector quantum efficiency) of 15 per cent and wavelength dependant spectral resolution of R=225-430. By repeated observations of the symbiotic emission line star AG Peg we demonstrate the wavelength stability of the system is less than 2 Angstroms rms and is limited by the positioning of the object in the slit. The spectrograph is now in routine operation monitoring the activity of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko during its current post-perihelion apparition.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society following peer review. The version of record "LOTUS: A low cost, ultraviolet spectrograph" is available online at http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stw1287
Uncontrolled Keywords:	astro-ph.IM; astro-ph.IM; astro-ph.EP
Subjects:	Q Science > QB Astronomy
Divisions:	Astrophysics Research Institute
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Related URLs:	http://arxiv.org/abs/1605.08238v1
Date Deposited:	02 Jun 2016 13:10
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 12:51
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/3702

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