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Australia Telescope: A National Radio Astronomy Facility Since 1990

The Australia Telescope, operated by CSIRO since 1990, offers world-class radio astronomy facilities for astronomers in Australia and globally. Key components include the Parkes 64m dish, the Compact Array at Narrabri, and the Mopra 22m dish, supporting a wide range of frequencies. The facility has contributed significantly to pulsar surveys and other groundbreaking science. Beyond research, it also fosters student training through collaborations and scholarships. Future developments focus on enhancing capabilities and technological advancements in the field.

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Australia Telescope: A National Radio Astronomy Facility Since 1990

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  1. Australia Telescope • Operated by CSIRO as a National Facility since 1990 • As a National Facility, the Australia Telescope provides world-class observing facilities in radio astronomy for astronomers at Australian and overseas institutions. Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  2. Facilities • Parkes • 64m diameter single dish • Operates over many bands in 0.44 - 22 GHz • including the 13-beam 21cm receiver • Compact Array (Narrabri) • Aperture synthesis array of 6 22m dishes, 6km baseline • 1.2 – 1.7, 2.2 – 2.6, 4.4 – 6.7, 8.0 – 9.2 GHz • 16 – 25 and 84 – 106 GHz • Mopra (Coonabarabran) • 22m single dish • 1.2 – 1.7, 2.2 – 2.6, 4.4 – 6.7, 8.0 – 9.2 GHz • 85 - 115 GHz Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  3. Facilities • Long Baseline Array (LBA) • Parkes, Mopra, ATCA • Hobart & Ceduna (U Tasmania) • Tidbinbilla (NASA Deep Space Network) • offshore facilites • Headquarters, LBA correlator and engineering development in Marsfield Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  4. Past decade - Instrumentation • Parkes • 13-beam 21cm receiver • 8GHz receiver and surface upgrade to 54m • Wideband digital correlator • 10/50cm receiver • ATCA • 214m North Spur • 12/3.5mm upgrade • Mopra • 600 MHz digital spectrometer Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  5. Past decade - Science • Pulsar surveys • ~1000 pulsars discovered • Double pulsar • HI surveys • SGPS • HIPASS • Deep radio continuum • Hubble/Chandra deep fields • 20GHz ATCA survey Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  6. Usage - ATCA • Long Baseline Array (LBA) Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  7. Usage - Parkes Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  8. User Profile Compact Array Parkes Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  9. Publications Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  10. Student training • ATNF-affiliated PhD students • Joint University-ATNF supervision • Free accommodation at observatories • Support for page charges and one overseas trip • Top-up scholarships available via CSIRO (~2 per year) Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  11. Student training Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  12. ATNF Developments The Big Five • New Technology Demonstrator (NTD) • Part of SKA Roadmap • Compact Array Broadband Backend (CABB) • 512MHz Digital Filter Bank (DFB) operational • 2GHz available @ Mopra by June 2005 • 8GHz @ ATCA by Jun 07 • Priority of broadband L/S & C/X upgrade? Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  13. ATNF Developments The Big Five (continued) • Parkes Methanol Multibeam 6 - 6.7 GHz (w/Jodrell Bank) • Preliminary mechanical design complete • Oct 2005 installation • ATCA 7mm system • Construction cost A$6.4M • 50:50 cost sharing • Commissioning Q4 2006 (w/CABB: Q2 2007) Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  14. ATNF Developments The Big Five (continued) • eVLBI • All stations network-ready • 512MB/s achieved • Huygens demo • 31s photon-to-fringe • Network connections • July 2005? Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  15. Future Strategic Directions • ATCA • Maximise pre-ALMA window-of-opportunity • Parkes • Major survey programs • Mileura • xNTD operations • Australasian LBA • eVLBI network (PKS/ATCA/Hobart/Ceduna/Mileura/NZ) • ATNF • SKA development Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  16. ATNF Issues • Future of Mopra • Extent of engagement in Virtual Observatory • Managing 3 sites • Investment in new technology: NBR/PKS v SKA • Remote/queue observing • Major new initiatives • Extend N Spur @ Narrabri? • 20GHz Multibeam/FPA development @ Parkes? Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

  17. Future Mileura Narrabri/Mopra Parkes 2005 Pulsar DFB MOPS 6GHz m’beam 2006 eVLBI eVLBI 7mm 2007 20GHz M’beam? NTD CABB 2008 FPA? Ext N Spur? xNTD 2009 Decadal Plan UNSW, 17 Dec 2004

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