Microwave Imaging Spectropolarimetry of the Sun and Solar Activity

欧文斯谷太阳能电池阵列（英语：Owens Valley Solar Array）是欧文斯谷射电天文台（英语：Owens Valley Radio Observatory）的一个射电干涉仪。它收集微波波段太阳和空间气象现象的微波成像分光偏振测量。提议者试图将EOVSA作为一种社区资源来运营，在收集后的几个小时内向所有用户公开数据。该阵列的主要科学目标是研究太阳耀斑、太阳活动区的磁场和等离子体结构以及空间天气的驱动因素。EOVSA为频率捷变太阳射电望远镜（FASR）的天线原型设计、馈源、模拟和数字系统、校准方法和数据管理提供了一个测试平台，FASR是一个拟议的下一代太阳射电天文台。提议者将操作扩展的欧文斯谷太阳能阵列，它使用无线电干涉测量法在1-18 GHz频率范围内的一系列波段中每秒收集太阳的全圆盘图像，不包括1.9-2.4 GHz的噪声。瞬时带宽为500 MHz;它在20 ms内切换每个频段，允许在1秒内完全覆盖整个频率范围。他们收集的数据将用于研究太阳耀斑，太阳活动区和空间天气来源。EOVSA由13个2.1米的射电天线组成，其中一个27米的天线用于高灵敏度校准。该阵列覆盖面积为1.1乘1.2公里，每周工作七天，从日出到日落。提议者寻求将阵列作为一个社区工具，不仅使数据可用于更大的太阳天文学和空间天气社区，而且还使用该系统作为原型系统的测试平台，用于未来可能的微波仪器。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

The Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array (EOVSA) is a radio interferometer dedicated to the study of the Sun located at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO). It collects microwave imaging spectropolarimetry measurements of the Sun and space weather phenomena in the microwave frequency band. The proposers seek to operate EOVSA as a community resource, making the data public to all users within hours of collection. The chief science aims of the array are the study of solar flares, the magnetic and plasma structure of solar active regions, and drivers of space weather. EOVSA provides a test bed for prototyping of antennas, feeds, analog and digital systems, calibration methods, and data management for the Frequency Agile Solar Radio Telescope (FASR), a proposed next-generation solar radio observatory.The proposers will operate the Expanded Owens Valley Solar Array, which uses radio interferometry to collect full-disk images of the Sun every second in a series of wavebands in the frequency range of 1-18 GHz, excluding 1.9-2.4 GHz due to noise. The instantaneous bandwidth is 500 MHz; it switches between each band in 20 ms, allowing full coverage of the whole frequency range in 1 second. The data they collect will be used to study solar flares, solar active regions, and sources for space weather. EOVSA consists of 13 2.1-meter radio dishes, with a 27-m dish used for high-sensitivity calibration. The array covers an area 1.1 by 1.2 kilometers in extent, and operates seven days a week, from sunrise to sunset. The proposers seek to use the Array as a community instrument, not only making the data available to the larger solar astronomy and space weather community, but also using the system a testbed for prototyping systems for potential future instrumentation in the microwave.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.