A helium cooled michelson interferometer for far infrared astronomy on spacelab

Abstract

Spectroscopy of astronomical objects in the mid- and far-infrared region will contribute substantially to our understanding of basic astrophysical processes (e.g. formation of stars and galaxies). Today, a number of intense lines have been detected in the brightest sources (mainly HII regions) using airborne and balloon-borne telescopes with equipments at ambient temperatures.