Michelle

Michelle (Mid-Infrared Echelle Spectrograph) is a long slit spectrometer/imager designed to work in the mid-infrared.

Michelle is a versatile mid-infrared instrument capable of observing between 8 and 25 microns. It offers both imaging and spectroscopy modes, both with a polarimetric capability which allows it to trace the magnetic field direction across dusty regions, including the central parsec of our Galaxy. Spectral resolutions between 200 and 30,000 are provided by 5 selectable gratings, enabling observations of a variety of spectral features from fine structure lines to velocity broadened emission lines in stellar winds and active galactic nuclei.

The UK ATC designed and built Michelle as the UK’s first long-slit mid-infrared spectrometer, capable of measuring the spectrum at dozens of locations across an extended target (planetary nebula or galaxy for example) in a single exposure. It was the first major project delivered by UK ATC, building on the work of the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council.

It was designed to be capable for use at two of Mauna Kea’s largest telescopes in Hawai’i: the 3.8m UK Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) and 8m Gemini North. It was commissioned at UKIRT in 2001 and was shared between the two telescopes until 2004, when it became a dedicated Gemini instrument before returning to UKIRT in 2013.

Major science results made by Michelle include: discovery of dust from colliding planetary embryos in the Pleiades; discovery of disrupted asteroids around a white dwarf; discovery of a free-floating brown dwarf; observing the outburst of a young erupting pre-main sequence star; and studying the morphology of active galactic nuclei. or visit

Find out more about Michelle at UKIRT or visit Michelle at the Gemini North Observatory ​