CAREER: Fast Radio Bursts Illuminating the Unseen Universe

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On a dark night, the stars appear unchanging and immeasurably remote. But if one could see the sky with radio eyes, it would appear like a never-ending fireworks show. Bright flashes would occur once every few seconds, somewhere in the sky. Unlike the stars we are used to, however, these “fast radio bursts” (FRBs) are from distant galaxies. Little is understood about the sources of FRBs, or about the billions of light-years of mostly empty space through which they travel towards the Earth. The physics of how FRB sources release more energy in milliseconds than the Sun releases in months is unknown. Perhaps more mysteriously, most matter in the Universe has not yet been observed, and so we do not know how what structures it forms in the space between galaxies. To tackle these problems, this project will gather and analyze data for FRBs discovered with a new telescope, the Deep Synoptic Array (DSA-110). In parallel these FRB host galaxies will also be observed with large optical telescopes. The project will leverage this research program to enrich a modern, active-learning education program that impacts students from high school to graduate school. The education program will be centered on a student-led experiment to find the nearest, brightest FRBs by building and operating radio Burst Detectors (BuDes). Fundamental questions on FRBs and the nature of the medium through which the radio pulses propagate will be investigated using arcsecond-localized of FRBs obtained with DSA-110, and optical observations of the host and intervening galaxy systems. First, FRB dispersion measures probe the medium out of which galaxies form, in which they evolve, and which they enrich. Such measures will address the baryon occupation fraction of halos of different masses, a quantity where galaxy formation simulations are in strong disagreement. Second, FRB sources likely represent heretofore unknown classes of neutron star. The proposed education program will address three goals: (a) effective university teaching in a modern context, (b) broadening participation and the diversity of backgrounds in STEM fields, and (c) expanding the career options for astronomy and physics students. The education program will initiate a new annual class to involve undergraduate students in the commissioning of the all-sky BuDes detectors that will be able to detect brighter FRBs. High-school students will be involved in the program on an annual basis through the Summer Research Connection to implement web-based tools to display and analyze data from the BuDe network.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.