Wavefront error of PHI/HRT on Solar Orbiter at various heliocentric distances

Aims. We use wavefront sensing to characterise the image quality of the High Resolution Telescope (HRT) of the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (SO /PHI) data products during the second remote sensing window of the Solar Orbiter (SO) nominal mission phase. Our ultimate aims are to reconstruct the HRT data by deconvolving with the HRT point spread function (PSF) and to correct for the e ffects of optical aberrations on the data. Methods. We use a pair of focused-defocused images to compute the wavefront error and derive the PSF of HRT by means of a phase diversity (PD) analysis. Results. The wavefront error of HRT depends on the orbital distance of SO to the Sun. At distances >0:5 au, the wavefront error is small, and stems dominantly from the inherent optical properties of HRT. At distances <0:5 au, the thermo-optical e ffect of the Heat Rejection Entrance Window (HREW) becomes noticeable. We develop an interpolation scheme for the wavefront error that depends on the thermal variation of the HREW with the distance of SO to the Sun. We also introduce a new level of image reconstruction, termed 'aberration correction', which is designed to reduce the noise caused by image deconvolution while removing the aberrations caused by the HREW. Conclusions. The computed PSF via phase diversity significantly reduces the degradation caused by the HREW in the near-perihelion HRT data. In addition, the aberration correction increases the noise by a factor of only 1.45 compared to the factor of 3 increase that results from the usual PD reconstructions.

Automated summary

In this study, wavefront sensing is used to characterize the image quality of the High Resolution Telescope (HRT) of the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (SO/PHI) during the Solar Orbiter (SO) mission. The wavefront error of HRT is determined using a pair of focused-defocused images and the point spread function (PSF) is derived through phase diversity analysis. The results show that the wavefront error of HRT is influenced by the distance of SO to the Sun, with the thermo-optical effect of the Heat Rejection Entrance Window (HREW) becoming noticeable at distances <0.5 au. An interpolation scheme is developed to account for the thermal variation of HREW with distance. Additionally, an aberration correction method is introduced to reduce noise caused by image deconvolution while removing aberrations caused by HREW.