Collaborative Research: Massive Surveys for Pulsars and Radio Transients Using the Arecibo L-band Feed Array

合作研究：使用阿雷西博 L 波段馈电阵列对脉冲星和无线电瞬变进行大规模调查

• 批准号: 0807512
• 负责人: Geoffrey Bower
• 金额: $ 26.97万
• 依托单位: University of California-Berkeley
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-09-01 至 2013-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0807512&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Massive; Surveys; Pulsars

This collaborative project will discover and study a large sample of neutron stars and also search for a variety of radio transient sources using the Arecibo L-band Feed Array (ALFA) at the Arecibo telescope. The science return results from both the hundreds of expected new pulsars and from rare, individual objects that will serve as laboratories for probing fundamental areas in physics and astrophysics.The pulsar survey will complement and transcend previous surveys by reaching more than twice the distance of the very successful multibeam survey using the Parkes telescope. The work is expected to lead to discoveries of rare objects that will be used as laboratories for basic physics and astrophysics to probe the equation of state of nuclear matter, gravity in compact, high-mass binaries, and gravitational-wave backgrounds. Discoveries may include the first black-hole/neutron-star binary, which would allow unprecedented studies of gravity in the strong-field limit. The large sample of new pulsars, when combined with existing ones, will contribute to the understanding of neutron stars as end products of stellar evolution, and will enable state-of-the-art modeling of the Milky Way Galaxy with respect to its ionized components. Also, use of the large number of pulsars as tracers will allow delineation of some ambiguously defined spiral arms of the Galaxy. The ultimate goals of the project will be enabled by the availability in 2008 of a new spectrometer that utilizes the full capabilities of the 7-beam system at Arecibo, and the availability of computer and data storage systems that can process and archive the large volume of data generated. Specific tasks include developmental activities related to the commissioning at Arecibo of the large bandwidth spectrometer, the setting up of the infrastructure required to analyze the data, and the intensive data analysis required to find new pulsars, all of which will be conducted in collaboration with the Pulsar ALFA Consortium, an international group of about 30 researchers. Over the 3-year project, about 1000 Terabytes of data will be analyzed using several computer clusters. Post-discovery studies will include timing campaigns and multiwavelength observations. A web-based system will provide access to source catalogs, timing models, and intermediate data products that can be used as a resource for synergistic studies. Raw data will be archived for long-term data mining applications and use in multiwavelength campaigns, such as future gamma-ray space telescope observations that require radio counterpart observations.The large data volume requires development of data management for streamlined analysis, archival and retrieval. The project therefore serves as a prototype for future data-intensive surveys in astronomy, and will enable eventual connection to multi-user facilities such as national and international virtual observatories. The project will also contribute to the training of graduate students, and to the teaching of undergraduate students by their inclusion in certain aspects of data analysis.

这一合作项目将发现和研究大量的中子星样本，并使用阿雷西博望远镜的阿雷西博L波段馈源阵列（ALFA）搜索各种无线电瞬变源。科学回报来自数百个预期的新脉冲星和稀有的单个物体，这些物体将作为探索物理学和天体物理学基本领域的实验室，脉冲星调查将补充和超越以前的调查，达到使用帕克斯望远镜非常成功的多波束调查的两倍以上。这项工作预计将导致发现罕见的物体，这些物体将被用作基础物理学和天体物理学的实验室，以探测核物质的状态方程，紧凑，高质量双星的引力和引力波背景。这些发现可能包括第一个黑洞/中子星双星，这将允许在强场极限下对引力进行前所未有的研究。新中子星的大样本与现有的中子星相结合，将有助于理解中子星是恒星演化的最终产物，并将使银河系电离成分的最新建模成为可能。此外，使用大量的双星作为示踪剂将允许描绘银河系的一些模糊定义的旋臂。该项目的最终目标将在2008年实现，届时将有一台新的光谱仪，该光谱仪将利用阿雷西博7光束系统的全部能力，并有计算机和数据存储系统，可以处理和存档所产生的大量数据。具体任务包括与在阿雷西博调试大带宽光谱仪有关的开发活动，建立分析数据所需的基础设施，以及寻找新光谱仪所需的密集数据分析，所有这些都将与脉冲星ALFA联盟合作进行，该联盟是一个由约30名研究人员组成的国际组织。在为期3年的项目中，将使用多个计算机集群分析约1000 TB的数据。发现后研究将包括定时活动和多波长观测。一个基于网络的系统将提供访问源目录，定时模型，和中间数据产品，可以用作协同研究的资源。原始数据将存档，供长期数据挖掘应用和多波长活动使用，如未来需要无线电对应观测的伽马射线空间望远镜观测，大量数据需要开发数据管理，以简化分析、存档和检索。因此，该项目可作为未来天文学数据密集型调查的原型，并将最终实现与国家和国际虚拟天文台等多用户设施的连接。该项目还将有助于研究生的培训，并通过将本科生纳入数据分析的某些方面来促进本科生的教学。