Abstract:
The infrared astronomy group of the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at Tata
Institute of Fundamental Research has been pursuing astronomical instrumentation activities since its
inception. The group has been routinely involved in a balloon-borne astronomy program from field station at
Hyderabad with indigenously developed payloads. Ground-based astronomical activities began with a single
element infrared detector. Later, over time, larger format array detectors are being used in the cameras. These
astronomy cameras have been routinely used at observatories across India. Recently, the group has also
developed a laboratory model of the infrared spectroscopic imaging survey payload, targeted for the small
satellite mission of the Indian Space Research Organisation, which will carry out spectroscopic measure ments in the wavelength range 1.7–6.4 lm seamlessly
