CAREER: Fast Radio Bursts Illuminating the Unseen Universe

在漆黑的夜晚，星星看起来一成不变，遥不可及。但如果一个人能用无线电眼睛看到天空，它就会看起来像一场永无止境的烟火表演。明亮的闪光每隔几秒钟就会在天空中的某个地方发生一次。然而，与我们所熟悉的恒星不同，这些“快速射电爆发”(FRB)来自遥远的星系。人们对FRB的来源以及它们运行到地球所经过的几十亿光年、大多是空旷的空间知之甚少。FRB源如何在毫秒内释放比太阳在几个月内释放的能量更多的能量的物理机制尚不清楚。也许更神秘的是，宇宙中的大多数物质还没有被观测到，所以我们不知道它是如何在星系之间的空间形成什么结构的。为了解决这些问题，该项目将收集和分析使用新的望远镜--深层天气阵列(DSA-110)发现的FRB的数据。同时，这些FRB宿主星系也将用大型光学望远镜进行观测。该项目将利用这一研究计划来丰富现代的主动学习教育计划，影响到从高中到研究生的学生。教育计划将以学生主导的实验为中心，通过建造和操作射电爆发探测器(BUDE)来寻找最近、最明亮的FRB。将利用DSA-110获得的FRB的弧次局域化以及对宿主和中间星系系统的光学观测来研究关于FRB的基本问题和射电脉冲传播所通过的介质的性质。首先，FRB色散测量探测星系形成、演化和丰富的媒介。这些措施将解决不同质量晕的重子占有率，这是星系形成模拟存在强烈分歧的一个量。其次，FRB源可能代表了迄今为止未知的中子星类别。拟议的教育计划将涉及三个目标：(A)在现代背景下进行有效的大学教学，(B)扩大STEM领域的参与度和背景多样性，以及(C)扩大天文学和物理专业学生的职业选择。该教育计划将启动一个新的年度课程，让本科生参与全天空BuDes探测器的调试，该探测器将能够探测到更明亮的FRB。高中生将通过暑期研究连接每年参与该项目，以实施基于网络的工具来显示和分析来自Bude网络的数据。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。

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.