ULTRACAM: an ultrafast, triple-beam CCD camera for high-speed astrophysics |
| |
| Authors: | V S Dhillon T R Marsh M J Stevenson D C Atkinson P Kerry P T Peacocke A J A Vick S M Beard D J Ives D W Lunney S A McLay C J Tierney J Kelly S P Littlefair R Nicholson R Pashley E T Harlaftis K O'Brien |
| |
| Institution: | Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S3 7RH;Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL;UK Astronomy Technology Centre, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Blackford Hill, Edinburgh EH9 3HJ;Institute of Space Applications and Remote Sensing, National Observatory of Athens, I. Metaxa and B. Paulou, Lofos Koufou, Palaia Penteli, Athens 152 36, Greece;European Southern Observatory, Alonso de Cordova 3107, Vitacura, Casilla 19001, Santiago 19, Chile |
| |
| Abstract: | ULTRACAM is a portable, high-speed imaging photometer designed to study faint astronomical objects at high temporal resolutions. ULTRACAM employs two dichroic beamsplitters and three frame-transfer CCD cameras to provide three-colour optical imaging at frame rates of up to 500 Hz. The instrument has been mounted on both the 4.2-m William Herschel Telescope on La Palma and the 8.2-m Very Large Telescope in Chile, and has been used to study white dwarfs, brown dwarfs, pulsars, black hole/neutron star X-ray binaries, gamma-ray bursts, cataclysmic variables, eclipsing binary stars, extrasolar planets, flare stars, ultracompact binaries, active galactic nuclei, asteroseismology and occultations by Solar System objects (Titan, Pluto and Kuiper Belt objects). In this paper we describe the scientific motivation behind ULTRACAM, present an outline of its design and report on its measured performance. |
| |
| Keywords: | instrumentation: detectors instrumentation: photometers techniques: photometric |
|
|
