in astronomy, what does integration time mean?
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Integration time is effectively the duration of an exposure: like the inverse of shutter speed in a normal camera.
However note that the integration time of one observation might come from more than one exposure of the physical sensor in the instrument. An hour’s integration time might be 10 6 minute exposures one after the other.
Imagine you have a really big jar of fireflies, and you want to count how many fireflies are inside. But here’s the tricky part: fireflies only light up for a short moment before they go dark again.
Integration time in astronomy is a bit like waiting and watching those fireflies. Astronomers use big telescopes to look at the stars and galaxies, but some objects in space are really faint, like very dim fireflies. To see them clearly, astronomers need to gather their light for a longer time.
So, integration time means astronomers wait and watch the stars and galaxies for a while, collecting their light little by little, just like patiently watching those fireflies light up. The longer they wait and collect light, the better they can see and understand what’s happening far away in space!
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