UvA MSc Radio Astronomy 2013

Course Outline

Lecture 1

• Introduction to the course: lecture structures, practica, etc.
• Maxwell, Hertz, Marconi
• Karl Jansky
• Grote Reber
• Technological developments during WWII
• The post-war dawn of radio astronomy
• Great discoveries in the first half century of radio astronomy
• Radio astronomy in the context of multi-wavelength astronomy
• The radio telescope as IT instrument

Lecture 2

• Radio Astronomy for Extragalactic Science
• Nearby Galaxies, Mapping HI, Dynamics, Magnetic Fields
• Nearby Galaxies, Astrometry, SNR, GRBs, Mapping HI, Dynamics,
• Star Formation, FIR-Radio Correlation, Lensing
• Radio Galaxies, AGN, Jets, Quasars, Gas Flows, and Radio Source Evolution
• Galaxy Groups and Clusters, Feedback, Black Hole Growth, Relics, Halos, and Shocks
• Cosmic Microwave Background, S-Z Effect, EoR, Cosmology and Large-scale Structure

Lecture 3

• The Milky Way
• Clouds of gas, supernovae, pulsars
• The Sun
• The Giant planets
• Radar imaging of the planets, moon, and near-Earth asteroids

Lecture 4

• Thermal vs. non-thermal observing windows on the Universe
• Synchrotron radiation

Lecture 5

• Antenna response: resolution and beam shapes
• Reflector types, collecting area
• The signal chain: antenna, receivers, amplifiers, and mixers
• Sensitivity: the radiometer equation

Lecture 6

• Motivation for radio interferometry
• Two-element interferometer
• Basic interferometer equations
• Confusion limit
• Beam shape
• Understanding the UV-plane

Lecture 7

• Definition of Calibration
• Visibilities, uv Coverage, Gains, Phases
• Real Data, Data Examination, Data Editing
• Formalism, Ideal vs. Real Measurements
• Calibration Strategies and Effectiveness

Lecture 8

• Imaging and Deconvolution
• Image Quality, Noise, Dynamic Range
• Wide-band imaging, Multi-frequency Synthesis
• Wide-field imaging, Facet Imaging, W-Projection
• Mosaicing

Lecture 9

• Main differences between imaging and single-dish time domain astronomy
• High-time resolution recording
• Pulsar properties
• Pulsar timing

Lecture 10

• Comparison with single-dish observations.
• Incoherent vs. coherent summation.
• Fly's Eye observations.
• Fast imaging.
• Advanced techniques.

• No lecture because of NAC conference.

Lecture 11

• The Square Kilometre Array (SKA)
• SKA Pathfinders
• SKA Computational Challenges
• Data Intensive Astronomy
• Beyond the SKA

Instructions on installing software to work on the LOFAR Cluster

The proposal is 3 page scientific justification, 1 page technical justification, and 1 page references maximum. Final deliverable is a PDF. You can write it as Latex, Word, or otherwise. Templates: PDF | Latex

A few suggestions on writing good observing proposals:

• http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/events/xraydio/meetingcont/6.3_fomalont.pdf: First read 5.1, then all of 5, then skip the rest.
• http://pulsar.sternwarte.uni-erlangen.de/black-hole/1stschool/coursematerial/proposals.pdf After page 22, “Tips and Tricks”
• http://summerschool2011.oa-cagliari.inaf.it/SSS2011/lectures/110916_01_Casu.pdf First page 21 and following, then rest.

• NRAO Essential Radio Astronomy (Condon & Ransom): http://www.cv.nrao.edu/course/astr534/ERA.shtml
• NJIT Radio Astronomy Course (Gary): http://web.njit.edu/~gary/728/
• Leiden Radio Astronomy Course (Garrett): http://www.astron.nl/~mag/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=radio_astronomy_course_description
• Leiden Radio Astronomy Course (Schilizzi): http://home.strw.leidenuniv.nl/~intema/ra2006.htm
• Glasgow Radio Astronomy Course (Woan): http://radio.astro.gla.ac.uk/ralectures/
• UvA Interferometry (Jaffe): http://home.strw.leidenuniv.nl/~jaffe/interferometry/AMS2/
• UvA Radio Astronomy (Strom): http://www.astron.nl/~leeuwen/course/RadioAstronomy_2013/Strom/
• NRAO Synthesis Imaging Summer School: http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/events/synthesis/2012/lectures.shtml
• U. Calgary radio telescope project: http://www.ras.ucalgary.ca/radiotel/

• An introdution to Radio Astronomy
• Radio Astronomy
• High Energy Astrophysics
• Tools of Radio Astronomy
• Antennas
• Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy