A 1.4 Meter Fourier Transform Spectrometer For Astronomical Observations

The observational capability and instrumental details of a Fourier spectrometer intended for moderate to very high resolution (20 cm-1 to 0.005 cm-1) observations of astronomical sources in the visible and infrared (700-2800 cm-1 i.e., 0.36μm to l4μm) are described and a few initial spectra are shown to illustrate performance achieved to date. The instrument is unusual in that it can be maintained by a moderate level of non-specialist technical support and does not require the observer to be an instrumentalist familiar with the details of the spectrometer.