Abstract

The main demand for high quality spectral data in the VUV region comes from astrophysicists working on spectra produced by high resolution satellite-borne spectrometers - notably the GHRS on Hubble Space Telescope. The existing laboratory data base has proved both inaccurate and inadequate for the analysis of these spectra - e.g. ref.¹. Requirements for wavelengths and energy levels accurate to about 1 part in 10⁶ (0.3 km/sec) and for isotope splittings comparable with Doppler widths can be met only by the high resolution offered by FTS. There is also a demand from atmospheric physicists for fully resolved molecular absorption spectra yielding accurate wavelengths and cross-sections that can be used in line-by-line modelling of the penetration of VUV radiation into the upper atmosphere.

© 1995 Optical Society of America