Proposer: B MacA Thomas
Note: this page is no longer current.
The 1 kT is the next-generation
centimetre-wave radio telescope, having a collecting area of 1 km2
(or 106 m2) - the equivalent of more than one hundred
dishes of 100 m diameter. In contrast, the largest and most sensitive existing
array has a physical area of 1.3 x 104 m2. The new
telescope project involves collaborative strategic research with partners
from The Netherlands, Canada, China, India and the USA; overall co-ordination
is provided by working groups within the International Astronomical Union
(IAU), the International Union of Radio Science (URSI), and the OECD Megascience
Forum. The detailed specifications of the instrument are currently being
established and, on present estimates, the 1 kT could be completed in the
decade 2010-2020.
The Australian contributory project is being supported by both the ATNF
and the MNRF International
Astronomy Collaboration. The International Astronomy Collaboration funding
is providing the salary (but not all overheads) for a Post-Doctoral Research
Fellow. The main thrust of the associated research is in the area of 1 kT
system studies, particularly the definition of an optimum antenna array
configuration and the study of dynamic range issues given strong man-made
and cosmic interference.
In work so far, predictions have been made of how the radio sky might appear
at flux density limits 100 times as faint as those of known surveys. In
addition, studies are under way of the response functions of large, many-element,
interferometers operating in a variety of configurations. By the end of
1998 these two research areas will be combined. Simulated observations of
the predicted radio sky will be made for various model telescope array configurations.
These studies will be important in determining an optimum telescope design.
A scientific workshop entitled "The Sub-MicroJansky Sky" was held
in June 1998 at the ATNF headquarters in Sydney. The scientific goals of
the 1 kT were discussed and a summary of how these goals might affect the
telescope design process were presented in July 1998 at two major forums:
the annual scientific meeting of the Astronomical Society of Australia (Adelaide)
and the International Scientific 1 kT Meeting (Calgary, Canada).
Further details on the 1kT telescope project are available from the 1kT
Web site.
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Collaboration Page
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This page is maintained by Michelle
Storey
Last update by Michelle Storey. 4/11/98