Method for obtaining diffraction-limited incoherent images of objects observed through a turbulent atmosphere

A new approach is developed for obtaining diffraction-quality incoherent images of objects observed through a distorting optical medium. In particular, a method is proposed for achieving the diffraction limit for resolving power, including the case of objects observed through a turbulent atmosphere, using comparatively cheap aberrational optical systems (including systems with composite apertures) without using any auxiliary adaptive devices. It is shown that the instrumental function of the atmosphere+telescope system can be reconstructed with the help of the radiation intensity distribution in an auxiliary plane, and then used for obtaining a diffraction-limited image of the observed remote object. Numerical simulation demonstrates the application of this method for identifying various objects by observing them through a turbulent atmosphere.