The United States of America As Represented by the United States

The United States of America As Represented by the Administrator of the

Robert R Shannon

Steve A Johnson

James B Breckinridge

Roland V Shack

Norman Alan Page

Diagnostic apparatus for use in determining the proper alignment of a plurality of laser beams onto a fiber optics interface is disclosed. The apparatus includes a lens assembly which serves two functions, first to focus a plurality of laser beams onto the fiber optics interface, and secondly to reflect and image the interface using scattered light to a monitor means. The monitor means permits indirect observation of the alignment or focusing of the laser beams onto the fiber optics interface.

Diagnostic apparatus and method for use in the alignment of one or more

Disclosed is an optical system used in a spacecraft to observe a remote surface and provide a spatial and spectral image of this surface. The optical system includes aspheric and spherical mirrors aligned to focus at a first focal plane an image of the surface, and a mirror at this first focal plane which reflects light back on to the spherical mirror. This spherical mirror collimates the light and directs it through a prism which disperses it. The dispersed light is then focused on an array of light responsive elements disposed at a second focal plane. The prism is designed such that it disperses light into components of different wavelengths, with the components of shorter wavelengths being dispersed more than the components of longer wavelengths to present at the second focal plane a distribution pattern in which preselected groupings of the components are dispersed over essentially equal spacing intervals.

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Tucson, AZ, United States of America

Robert R Shannon