Lick Observatory Archives

Raw B band polarization measurements of HD 189733 obtained at Gemini North on UT 1 to 7 Aug 2018, which are dominated by observations on the last night (gold points). Top left: Stokes q (linear polarization) modulation as a function of parallactic angle. Telescope linear polarization is modulated by parallactic angle with amplitude ∆(qTP, uTP) = 0.2620±0.0034% (Wiktorowicz et al. 2023), where the best fit curve from Equation 2a is shown in black. Uncertainties in most data points are smaller than the size of the data points. Top right: Same as at top left but for Stokes u (linear polarization, Equation 2b). Bottom left: Same as at top left but for Stokes v (circular polarization, Equation 2c). Bottom right: Temporal variation of parallactic angle, which rotates rapidly as the target crosses the meridian (black dashed lines) around 20:00 LST. This rapid meridian crossing provides the bulk of the telescope polarization modulation necessary for accurate calibration. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

A Scatter of Light from a Polarized World

by Keith CowingSeptember 25, 2025

Many known exoplanets harbor clouds, which lead to degeneracies in spectroscopic models between particle composition and size. Polarimetry, however, provides independent assessment.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, SETI & Technosignatures

PANOSETI Expansion At Lick Observatory

by Keith CowingNovember 16, 2023November 16, 2023

PANOSETI, or “Panoramic SETI or Pulse All-sky Near Infrared Optical SETI ” is an exciting and innovative project in the field of astronomy and the search for extraterrestrial life. It […]