The monolithic SHS is potentially a competitor to the FTIR or echelle-class spectrometers now used for environmental chemical detection and sensing. It also can bring the advantages of interferometry (in terms of improved throughput and compactness) to realms such as computer-card-based spectroscopy, where grating spectrometers are now used. These computer cards, featuring miniature spectrometers built directly onto their surface, are used in tasks ranging from diagnostic testing to portable spectroscopy to educational demonstrations and labs. A small monolithic SHS would make this device significantly faster and more efficient. The SHS is far more robust than conventional interferometers, making it the ideal interferometer for space-based applications. The missions of the Mars Exploration and New Frontiers Programs ? particularly the latter's Venus In Situ Explorer and Jupiter Polar Orbiter ? would be fertile ground for the monolithic SHS. A SHS monolith would also mesh strongly with the Comet Surface Sample Return mission. As the Solar System is explored, remote sensing of planetary, satellite, and cometary atmospheres and ionospheres will become very important. The SHS is extremely well-suited to these missions of the coming decades.
More »