AAVSO How-to Hour: Spectrography on a Budget

In our free 3 April "How-to Hour" from 18:00-19:00 UT, Lauren Herrington will reveal how you can use the "drift scanning method" to record scientifically useful spectra of tens of thousands of stars using nothing but a camera, diffraction grating, and an untracked telescope. She will discuss how to optimize your resolution, so that you can use your slitless grating to record fine details, such as the blueshifted absorption lines originating in the torrential stellar wind of P Cygni. She will demonstrate how to process and calibrate your spectra, and how to submit your processed spectra to the AAVSO's database.

No prior knowledge is necessary, but attendees will likely find it beneficial to know ahead of time what the terms "spectrum," "absorption," and "emission" mean as they relate to astronomy, and how to operate a simple telescope. 

Questions? Please email [email protected]