# SOWAT: Speckle Observations With Alleviated Turbulence

## TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that combining adaptive optics with holographic image reconstruction enables diffraction-limited imaging using low-order AO systems, extending sky coverage and allowing fainter reference stars.

## Contribution

It introduces a novel approach of applying holographic reconstruction to partially AO corrected speckle observations, improving image quality and sky coverage.

## Key findings

- Residual wavefronts decorrelate slower with AO
- Better reconstruction with the same reference stars using AO
- Achieves diffraction-limited imaging with fainter stars

## Abstract

Adaptive optics (AO) systems and image reconstruction algorithms are indispensable tools when it comes to high-precision astrometry. In this paper, we analyze the potential of combining both techniques, i.e. by applying image reconstruction on partially AO corrected short exposures. Therefore we simulate speckle clouds with and without AO corrections and create synthetic observations. We apply holographic image reconstruction to the obtained observations and find that (i) the residual wavefronts decorrelate slowlier and to a lower limit when AO systems are used, (ii) the same reference stars yield a better reconstruction, and (iii) using fainter reference stars we achieve a similar image quality. These results suggest that holographic imaging of speckle observations is feasible with 2-3 times longer integration times and 3mag fainter reference stars, to obtain diffraction-limited imaging from low-order AO systems that are less restricted in sky-coverage than typical high-order AO systems.