The role of instruments and simulation in contemporary astronomical observation: an epistemological approach

This work revolves around philosophical reflection on the concept of observation in contemporary astronomy. It analyzes the technological development of the most important instruments of recent decades in this scientific discipline and attempts to answer the following questions: What is currently considered an astronomical observation? How is it carried out? And what are its epistemological “faces”? Specifically, it addresses the links between the most recent observational practices and the current observational instruments that contribute to them. As these practices have become more sophisticated, the traditional concept of observation has lost its ability to reflect subtle nuances of epistemological relevance. The techno-scientific components associated with the activity in the fields of observation and simulation have been investigated. Computing plays a central role in astronomical laboratories, and simulations establish key links in the processing of available information. Here we analyze how observations can be carried out through computational simulations, showing how these practices allow not only the development of heuristic guides in the resolution of specific observational problems, but also the generation of new knowledge in this discipline.

The metamorphosis undergone by the classical notion of observation has also been reflected in its very reflection. Through the morphological method, a meta-analysis is established that allows astronomical observations to be identified and classified.