Linked Questions

33 votes
4 answers
3k views

What will succeed the Arecibo Observatory?

Just a few minutes ago, I got a notification from Space.com stating that the Arecibo Observatory will be, sadly, decommissioned due to extensive damage to its structure. So, with the loss of one of ...
WarpPrime's user avatar
  • 6,613
10 votes
4 answers
3k views

Why can't we build a huge stationary optical telescope inside a depression similar to the FAST radio telescope?

So first we'll have to find a natural depression or we should create one. I understand you can only see a single portion of the sky since it can't be moved, so my money is on creating an artificial ...
AKR's user avatar
  • 159
12 votes
2 answers
2k views

How did Arecibo detect methane lakes on Titan, and image Saturn's rings?

This answer to Farthest distance to a solar system object that's been measured by radar? mentions that Saturn's rings, and the Uncover Travel post Arecibo Observatory, Puerto Rico – The World’s ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
15 votes
2 answers
3k views

Has radio astronomy ever been done on objects that appear very close to the Moon? Is this avoided?

This answer to Which kinds of astronomical observations most need to avoid the Moon being up? mentions For completeness - radio, mid-infrared and mm-wave observations are unaffected (unless the ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
7 votes
3 answers
2k views

How would a Fast Fourier Transform Telescope work without a mirror, dish or lenses?

I recently came across a short article mentioning the idea for a telescope built without mirrors or lenses that instead uses an array of antennas and massive computing power to resolve an image. Such ...
SurpriseDog's user avatar
11 votes
2 answers
875 views

Would Adaptive Optics be Useful in Radio Astronomy?

The question Why is this video showing radio waves transmitted from a radio telescope? and this answer to it got me thinking. If atmospheric seeing at visible wavelengths is the result of refractive ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
5 votes
2 answers
477 views

Why is Saturn invisible in this radar image of its rings?

The image below is from Radar imaging of Saturn’s rings Nicholson, P. D. et al., Icarus 177 (2005) 32–62, doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2005.03.023 and discussed further in this answer to How did Arecibo ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
7 votes
1 answer
847 views

What radio frequency ranges are most beneficial for astronomy?

I cannot get the idea of citizen radio astronomy out of my head, and choosing an antenna (design) heavily depends on the desired frequency range. The Arecibo telescope as my gold standard operated 300 ...
B--rian's user avatar
  • 5,526
6 votes
1 answer
306 views

What exactly is interplanetary scintillation; what was the Interplanetary Scintillation Array looking for? Did it successfully observe any?

The Interplanetary Scintillation Array is the radioastronomy observatory (i.e. big antenna) where the first pulsar was discovered by then graduate student Jocelyn Bell Burnell through careful and ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
6 votes
1 answer
309 views

What causes "North-South ambiguity" when doppler radar imaging a planet surface equator?

I'm having a hard time understanding why there would be this ambiguity. Also, why would this be not the case if the planet was viewed pole on? Edit: "North South ambiguity" is a term used in ...
MinYoung Kim's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
169 views

How much are the benefits of installing a telescope in orbit?

I know that our atmosphere acts like a protective blanket letting only some light through while blocking others. We send telescopes to orbit to get a clearer view of space objects. I want to know that ...
Was''s user avatar
  • 207
5 votes
1 answer
453 views

What is the highest granularity focal-plane array on a dish radio telescope? Or is this the ONLY ONE?

There is a short Wikipedia article Focal Plane Arrays that enumerates some projects, but my question is more along the lines of what is (at least) nearly complete or in "first light" phase, ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
1 vote
2 answers
195 views

Astrophysics Ph.D. thesis on intergalactic rogue planets and their habitability; how active is this field of research?

Is the habitability of intergalactic rogue planets something that has been studied a lot? The reason that I'm asking is that I've just started my PhD program last year and I'm wondering/concerned if ...
figureskater's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
167 views

What can be learned from low frequency radio astronomy available outside of Earth's ionosphere?

As discussions and answers to How large does refraction become in radioastronomy? point out, it is difficult to do radio astronomy much below 30 MHz (or 10 MHz depending on how aggressive you are in ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k
1 vote
1 answer
367 views

How do ASKAP's focal plane phased array feeds interact with the entire array phasing?

Sky & Telescope's ASKAP Joins the Hunt for Mysterious Bursts says: A new telescope, the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), has joined the search for energetic and elusive fast ...
uhoh's user avatar
  • 31.3k

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