Littrow spectrometer on the first floor of the Nielsen Physics Building. A relay mirror at the top of the optical chase in Nielsen will be used to send the radiation down to the spectrometer. This 5-meter Littrow spectrometer in Nielsen will then be used for graduate student research to study the chemistry of the lower atmosphere over the Great Smoky Mountains and the forests therein. Using the sun as a radiation source during sunrise will allow graduate students to use the spectrometer to investigate variations in aerosol concentrations, trace gases, and pollution which tend to accumulate over and near the Smoky Mountains. A relay mirror at the top of the optical chase will send the radiation down to the 5-meter Littrow spectrometer on the first floor.
Funding is needed in order to complete construction of the platform and the heliostat.
Steel or aluminum grating will be installed over the trusses on which the heliostat will be mounted and people will stand. Grating will be installed on top of the trusses to support the heliostat and optical elements. Its primary mirror will send the solar radiation to an adjustable secondary mirror which will send the radiation to either the relay mirror to the Nielsen Physics Building or the relay mirror above the optical chase in SERF, which will be used for future projects. This drawing shows the proposed heliostat design. Funding is needed for the purchase of metal grating, the heliostat components, relay mirrors and mounts, and computer interface cards.