Speaker
Description
Atmospheric turbulence (seeing) degrades the quality of ground based astronomical observations by blurring stellar images. This study presents the first measurement of astronomical seeing at the Ileret observatory in Kenya to assess its suitability for optical observations. R-band observations of variable stars BV Aqr and RX Eri taken at Ileret during September 2024 and January 2025 were used. Images were calibrated using standard methods (bias subtraction, flat-field correction) and the calibrated images were analyzed by fitting 2D Gaussian Point Source Function (PSF) to extract full width at half maximum (FWHM) values as the seeing in arcseconds. Results show a median seeing of 2.66”, with 75% of observations being below 2.66” and 10% above 3.0”. These measurements show that Ileret is a site with consistent moderate seeing conditions suitable for optical observations. This is part of a larger site testing project of which the next stage is using meteorological data to add to these findings
| Stream | Science or Engineering |
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