An atmospheric radiation model for Cerro Paranal. I. The optical spectral range

Understand

The Earth's atmosphere affects ground-based astronomical observations.

• Scattering, absorption, and radiation processes deteriorate the signal-to-noise ratio of the data received.
• For scheduling astronomical observations it is, therefore, important to accurately estimate the wavelength-dependent effect of the Earth's atmosphere on the observed flux.
• In order to increase the accuracy of the exposure time calculator of the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT) at Cerro Paranal, an atmospheric model was developed as part of the Austrian ESO In-Kind contribution.