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A rotating direct vision prism, chromotomosynthetic imaging (CTI) system operating in the visible creates hyperspectral
imagery by collecting a set of 2D images with each spectrally projected at a different rotation angle of the prism.
Mathematical reconstruction techniques that have been well tested in the field of medical physics are used to reconstruct
the data to produce the 3D hyperspectral image. The instrument operates with a 100 mm focusing lens in the spectral
range of 400-900 nm with a field of view of 71.6 mrad and angular resolution of 0.8-1.6 μrad. The spectral resolution is
0.6 nm at the shortest wavelengths, degrading to over 10 nm at the longest wavelengths. Measurements using a pointlike
target show that performance is limited by chromatic aberration. The accuracy and utility of the instrument is
assessed by comparing the CTI results to spatial data collected by a wideband image and hyperspectral data collected
using a liquid crystal tunable filter (LCTF). The wide-band spatial content of the scene reconstructed from the CTI data
is of same or better quality as a single frame collected by the undispersed imaging system with projections taken at every
1°. Performance is dependent on the number of projections used, with projections at 5° producing adequate results in
terms of target characterization. The data collected by the CTI system can provide spatial information of equal quality as
a comparable imaging system, provide high-frame rate slitless 1-D spectra, and generate 3-D hyperspectral imagery
which can be exploited to provide the same results as a traditional multi-band spectral imaging system. While this
prototype does not operate at high speeds, components exist which will allow for CTI systems to generate hyperspectral
video imagery at rates greater than 100 Hz. The instrument has considerable potential for characterizing bomb
detonations, muzzle flashes, and other battlefield combustion events.
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