Solar Eclipse 2023 - Kite borne spectrometer

As part of the Solar Wind Sherpas expedition to the 2023 solar eclipse in Exmouth, Australia, a platform was developed that is carried by a Cody kite and automatically directs the image of the Sun into a spectrometer housed within the system.

Following the analysis of previous expeditions, a concept was sought to capture images of solar eclipses from above the clouds, which often obstruct usable recordings. The image-based spectrometer developed by Adalbert Ding (Institute for Technical Physics e.V.) allows for the analysis of the solar corona’s spectrum at different positions.

The developed system uses a first pointing camera to orient the platform’s rotating dome toward the Sun, directing the light via two tiltable mirrors and a second camera into the spectrometer inside. The system can be monitored and adjusted remotely from the ground via radio communication. As a proof of concept, the platform was suspended approximately 50 meters below the kite during the 2023 eclipse and flown at an altitude of about 500 meters over Cape Range National Park.

The project was funded by NASA and consisted of an interdisciplinary team: Shadia Habbal (Institute for Astronomy - University of Hawai'i), Benedikt Justen (Justen Engineering), Matthias Justen, Adalbert Ding (Intitut für Technische Physik e.V.), Clemens Brumann, Herbert Stehr, Oliver Mayer.