Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTS) is one of the premier ways to collect source information through emitted radiation. It is so named because the principal measurement technique involves the analysis of spectra determined from the Fourier transform of a time-domain interference pattern. Given options in the field, many space- and ground-based instruments have selected Fourier transform spectrometers for their measurements. The Herschel Space Observatory, launched on May 14, 2009, has three on-board instruments. One, SPIRE, comprises a FTS paired with bolometer detector arrays. SCUBA-2 (Submillimetre Common User Bolometer Array) and FTS-2 have recently been commissioned and will be mounted within the collecting dish of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope by Fall, 2010. The use of FTS in these two observatories will be examined. While work towards each project is independently useful, the thesis is bound by the commonality between the two, as each seeks similar answers from vastly different viewpoints. / xvii, 123 leaves : ill. (some col.) ; 29 cm