Measuring stellar optical energy

• Published in: Optics and laser technology 1972, Vol.4 (4), p.173-174
• Main Author: Garforth, P.J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0030-3992; 1879-2545
• DOI: 10.1016/0030-3992(72)90005-9

In many areas of science and engineering, it is desirable or necessary to compare one thing with another. This leads one to look for a means of establishing a measure of the similarity between two quantities. Correlation is such a technique. It may be defined as a method of timedomain analysis that is useful for detecting periodic signals buried in noise; establishing coherence between random signals; and for establishing the sources of signals and their transmission times. The correlation technique has been well documented and its use in research has been established for more than a decade. Until recently, however, correlation in practice has been a complex and time-consuming operation, involving, in most cases, two separate processes — data recording and computer analysis. For this reason, correlation techniques could hardly be considered for routine use. Today, correlation in real time is entirely practicable, and there is little doubt that the technique is taking its place in many fields of engineering and science. Here, experiments to determine stellar optical energy, using a Hewlett-Packard 3721A correlator, are described.