Polarimetry of Stars and Planetary Systems

Description

Summarising the striking advances of the last two decades, this reliable introduction to modern astronomical polarimetry provides a comprehensive review of state-of-the-art techniques, models and research methods. Focusing on optical and near-infrared wavelengths, each detailed, up-to-date chapter addresses a different facet of recent innovations, including new instrumentation, techniques and theories; new methods based on laboratory studies, enabling the modelling of polarimetric characteristics for a wide variety of astronomical objects; emerging fields of polarimetric exploration, including proto-planetary and debris discs, icy satellites, transneptunian objects, exoplanets, and the search for extraterrestrial life; and unique results produced by space telescopes, and polarimeters aboard exploratory spacecraft. With contributions from an international team of accomplished researchers, this is an ideal resource for astronomers and researchers working in astrophysics, earth sciences, and remote sensing keen to learn more about this valuable diagnostic tool. The book is dedicated to the memory of renowned polarimetrist Tom Gehrels.

Ludmilla Kolokolova is a Senior Research Scientist at the University of Maryland, focusing on polarimetric remote sensing of comets, asteroids and cosmic dust and polarimetric techniques in astrobiology. James Hough is a Research Professor at the University of Hertfordshire. He led the astronomy research programme for over thirty years with polarimetry as his main research interest. He has been awarded the Herschel Medal of the Royal Astronomical Society (2010). Anny-Chantal Levasseur-Regourd is a Professor at the Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris, where her research activities focus on the physics of small bodies in the Solar System. She has been Principal Investigator for light scattering experiments on rockets, satellites and space probes, and an Officer of the French Legion d'Honneur since 2013.