Abstract

PUCHEROS is a high resolution optical Echelle spectrograph designed for the 50 cm telescope located at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (PUC) observatory of Santa Martina. With a resolution about 20,000, PUCHEROS is an ideal instrument to study bright and variable objects, our driving science case is the study of bright early type stars. Using a fiber optic to bring the light from the telescope to the instrument, it can be located in a gravity invariant, temperature stabilized location, allowing precise long-term stability. PUCHEROS will be a valuable tool both for research and didactics at the graduate and undergraduate level. In this work we present the optical and mechanical design of the spectrograph as well as the first laboratory tests. © 2010 Copyright SPIE - The International Society for Optical Engineering.