MRI: Development of a Cloud-Computing Platform for Interferometric Processing

甚长基线干涉测量(VLBI)技术将全球各地的射电天线连接在一起，形成地球大小的望远镜。阵列中的每个望远镜由原子钟网络同步，在同一时刻观察相同的宇宙目标，将数据记录到硬盘驱动器库中。目前，这些磁盘被发送到专门构建的计算机集群进行处理和映像。但该领域最尖端的工作所需的敏感性导致记录速率和数据量现在超过了内部计算集群的能力。该项目将包括与谷歌合作开发基础设施和软件，将VLBI处理转移到云中，在云中，可以灵活地配置巨大的虚拟机，以轻松跟上不断提高的记录速率的速度处理科学数据。该项目将使VLBI的实践发生革命性变化，并为广泛的科学领域提供增加阵列带宽和光谱分辨率的可扩展手段。在VLBI技术的绝对极限下，作为事件视界望远镜(EHT)的一部分，一个毫米波长的全球阵列将对附近的超大质量黑洞成像。该项目还将包括在仪器和天文学研究方面的教育参与和早期职业发展机会。该项目将为VLBI开发一个可扩展的、基于云的计算系统。该项目的动机是将EHT观测扩展到短波长的计算需要；然而，它将开发一种广泛适用于VLBI观测的当前和未来需求的方法。该项目将与商业合作伙伴谷歌共同开发一种硬件/软件方法。这一办法将包括一个新的VLBI记录系统，使用定制的商业设备将数据从望远镜传输到云端，并修改现有的相关器代码，使其适合在并行化的云端平台上执行。该项目将通过与马萨诸塞州城市路易斯·斯托克斯少数群体参与计划联盟和Akamai劳动力倡议相结合的学生研究机会，帮助扩大对科学的参与。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The technique of Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) links together radio dishes around the globe to form Earth-sized telescopes. Each telescope in the array, synchronized by a network of atomic clocks, observes the same cosmic target at the same moment, recording data onto banks of hard-disk drives. Currently, these disks are sent to a purpose-built computer cluster for processing and imaging. But the sensitivity required for the most cutting edge work in this field has led to recording rates and data volumes that now exceed the capacity of in-house computing clusters. This project will include a partnership with Google to develop infrastructure and software that will shift VLBI processing to the cloud, where enormous virtual machines can be nimbly configured to process scientific data at speeds that easily keep pace with advancing recording rates. This project will revolutionize the practice of VLBI, and provide an extensible means of increasing array bandwidths and spectral resolution for a broad range of science. At the absolute limits of the VLBI technique, a millimeter wavelength global array will image nearby supermassive black holes as part of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT). This project will also include educational participation and early career development opportunities in instrumentation and astronomy research.This project will develop a scalable, cloud-based computational system for VLBI. This project is motivated by the computational needs of extending EHT observations to short wavelengths; however, it will develop a methodology that is broadly applicable to the current and future needs of VLBI observations. The project will develop a hardware/software approach in conjunction with commercial partner, Google. This approach will include a new recording system for VLBI using customized commercial appliances for the transfer of data from the telescope to the cloud, and modifications to existing correlator code to make it suitable for execution on a parallelized, cloud-based platform. This project will contribute to broadening participation in science through student research opportunities made in conjunction with the Urban Massachusetts Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation Program and the Akamai Workforce Initiative.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.