Low-Temperature Blackbodies for IR Calibrations in a Medium-Background Environment

Utilization of Earth remote-sensing data to solve scientific and engineering problems within such fields as meteorology and climatology requires precise radiometric calibration of space-borne instruments. High-accuracy calibration equipment in the thermal-IR wavelength range ought to be combined during calibration procedures with the simulation of environmental conditions for space orbit (high vacuum, medium background). For more than 35 years, VNIIOFI has developed and manufactured standard radiation sources in the form of precision blackbodies (BB) functioning within wide ranges of wavelengths and working temperatures. These BBs are the spectral radiance and irradiance calibration devices in the world’s leading space research institutions, such as SDL (USA), DLR (Germany), Keldysh Space Center (Russia), RNIIKP/RISDE (Russia), NEC Toshiba Space Systems (Japan), etc. The paper contains a detailed description of low-temperature precision BBs developed at VNIIOFI. The characteristics of variable-temperature (100 K to 400 K) research-grade extended-area (up to 350 mm) BB models BB100-V1 and BB-80/350 are described (they are intended for radiometric calibrations by comparison with a primary standard source), as well as those that can be used as sources for high-accuracy IR calibration of space-borne and other systems not requiring a vacuum environment. The temperature nonuniformity and stability of these BBs are (0.05 to 0.1) K (cavity-type BB100-V1), and 0.1 % for the (1.5 to 15) μm wavelength region under cryo-vacuum conditions of a medium-background environment.