FUNDAMENTAL AND APPLIED ASPECTS OF ASTRONOMICAL "SEEING"

1. PREFACE Despite recent advances in the use of spacecraft as observatory platforms, much astronomy is still conducted from the surface of the Earth, as the existence of an IAU Commission on Site Identification and Protection testifies. The literature on astronomical seeing and observatory site selection is widely scattered throughout journals and conference reports concerned with astronomy, pure and applied optics, radio science, and meteorology, with the occasional relevant chapter in astronomy textbooks; site surveys are often recorded in the internal reports of institutions. Although reviews of various aspects of the sub ject have appeared from time to time, it seems appropriate to provide an account of the subject with the particular needs of practicing astronomers in mind. This review aims to represent the state of the sub ject up to 1982, covering the pure and applied facets of both the optical and meteorological aspects. Each section has the same overall structure: a general description is accompanied by a more detailed, and in some cases mathematical, treatment of essential aspects of the matter under discussion. The extensive bibliography facilitates access to the literature for those seeking further specialized info rmation.