WoU-MMA: An Integrated Time Domain System for Discovery and Fast Follow-up of Gravitational Wave Events and Other Transients

通过专门的实验（如激光干涉仪引力波天文台；LIGO），黑洞和中子星的宇宙碰撞正在定期发生，但天文学家很难识别相关的爆炸，因为它们在天空中的位置定位得很差。要在天空中大面积定位瞬时目标，需要快速反应、机器学习技术以及不同团队和机器人望远镜之间的协调。该项目将开发亚利桑那时域系统，这是一套软件工具和机器人望远镜，旨在能够快速跟踪爆炸报告。该系统将查询来自世界各地望远镜和实验的传入数据流，使用机器学习技术对其进行解析，找出有趣的目标，然后实时做出反应，观察并收集爆炸数据。这个过程很少或根本没有人为干预。从发现一颗新的超新星或其他宇宙爆炸到描述这一事件之间的时间缩短，将导致新的科学认识。该项目计划与皮马社区学院（Pima Community College）进行互动，向学生教授以天文学为导向的计算机编程。双中子星合并GW170817的电磁发射的发现，以及LIGO/Virgo第三次观测期间进一步发现的中子星合并，为多信使天文学领域注入了活力。为了解决与千新星发射有关的悬而未决的问题，必须发现更多的对应物，最好是在早期发现，以便区分理论模型。该项目将建立亚利桑那时域系统（ATDS），这是一套集成的工具，可以与两个搜索望远镜一起促进引力波的发现和跟踪。ATDS将为LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA的第四次先进探测器运行（O4）及以后提供重要的发现潜力。ATDS将把望远镜和警报数据流连接到一个内部瞬态代理，该代理将把有希望的候选者发送给一个新建的望远镜观测管理器，该管理器将迅速建立光度和光谱跟踪。将未经证实的、很大程度上是概念性的时域工具整合到第一个真正集成的时域系统中，这将大大提高我们对新引力波事件及其候选对应事件的响应能力。这样的集成系统对于从多信使天体物理学和其他大时间域调查中最大限度地发挥科学作用至关重要。作为该计划的一部分，所有开发的工具和软件都将是开源的，这将使整个天文社区受益。这个项目推进了“宇宙大构想之窗”的目标。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并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，被认为值得支持。

Detection of the cosmic collisions of black holes and neutrons stars are happening on a regular basis with specialized experiments (such as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory; LIGO), but astronomers struggle to identify the associated explosions because the positions are poorly localized on the sky. To locate the transient target in a large area on the sky requires fast reaction, machine learning techniques, and coordination between different teams and robotic telescopes. This project will develop the Arizona Time Domain System, a set of software tools and robotic telescopes designed to be able to follow-up quickly on reports of explosions. The system will interrogate streams of incoming data from telescopes and experiments around the world, parse them for interesting targets using machine learning techniques, and then react in real time to observe and gather data on the explosion. This sequence occurring with little or no human intervention. The resulting reduction in time between discovery of a new supernova or other cosmic explosion, and the characterization of that event will lead to new scientific understanding. The project plans an interaction with Pima Community College that will teach astronomy oriented computer programming to students.The field of multi-messenger astronomy has been energized by the discovery of electromagnetic emission from the binary neutron star merger GW170817, along with the discovery of further neutron star mergers during the third LIGO/Virgo observing run. To address open questions related to kilonova emission, more counterparts must be discovered, preferably at early times in order to distinguish between theoretical models. This project will build the Arizona Time Domain System (ATDS), an integrated set of tools to facilitate the discovery and follow-up of gravitational wave counterparts, in conjunction with two search telescopes. ATDS will provide significant discovery potential for LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA’s fourth advanced detector run (O4) and beyond. The ATDS will connect telescopes and alert data streams to an in-house transient broker that will send promising candidates to a newly built telescope observation manager that will rapidly institute photometric and spectroscopic follow-up This open source program will integrate several new, unproven and largely conceptual time domain tools into one of the first truly integrated time domain systems that will significantly advance our ability to respond to new gravitational wave events and their candidate counterparts. Such integrated systems will be essential for maximizing the science from both multi-messenger astrophysics and other large time domain surveys. All the tools and software developed as part of this program will be open source, benefiting the entire astronomical community. This project advances the goals of the Windows on the Universe Big Idea.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.