The Radio Sky
Amateur Radio Astronomy and Spectroscopy
The Radio Sky is a term used by radio astronomers to describe the emissions at radio frequencies that emenate from celestial bodies across the Universe. You may associate radio astronomy with huge dishes and therefore difficult for amateurs to get involved with, and although professional radio astronomers do use large dishes to gather photon energy from space, there are a number of projects that amateur astronomers can get involved in. You can do real science, providing valuable data, and contribute to the body of knowledge about our Universe.
Spectroscopy is the science of studying materials by investigating how they emit or absorb electromagnetic waves at certain frequencies. These give rise to tell tale signatures, like a fingerprint, that tell us what a star, a comet, a planetary atmosphere or a nebula is made of. Some spectroscopy is done at radio frequencies and in this website I will also be looking at amateur optical spectroscopy using a Star Analyser and RSpec software.
In the pages of this website I provide some instruction on how to construct several projects that anyone with an interest in astronomy and a little electronics experience can get involved in. I also provide some background theory to help you understand some of the phenomena that you might measure.
There are useful web resources, links, literature and information about how to acquire the equipment required to complete these projects. I only give an overview of the projects. For more detail check the links associated with each project in the right hand column.
I have included my contact details in case anyone wants to get in touch, you may want advice or may be able to offer advice to share.
I hope you enjoy using this site.
