Global holographic VLBI capability for the Alqonquin Radio Observatory

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Canada was once world leader in radio astronomy and the development of VLBI, an advanced radio technique which combines widely separated telescopes into a single instrument, greater than the sum of its parts. Substantial infrastructure still remains at the Algonquin Radio Observatory (ARO), operated by Thoth Technologies Inc. We propose to develop ARO capability to again become a world leading VLBI node, enabling Thoth to compete scientifically, technically and economically. Scientifically, we will be developing the new technique of holographic VLBI, which combines the resolution of VLBI with that of interstellar scintillation to obtain increased resolution. Recent VLBI analysis of pulsars indicates that sub nano-arcsecond position detection may be achievable. This proposal will advance the VLBI frontier.