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Radio bursts reveal feisty magnetic arches

An international team has discovered a new type of radio emission originating from a red dwarf star.

Astronomy
News
Published by the editorial team, 17 October 2025

Radio astronomers join global standards body seeking to address satellite interference

The Committee on Radio Astronomy Frequencies (CRAF) has been admitted as an I-member of the International Special Committee on Radio Interference (CISPR), the international body that sets standards to prevent electronic devices from interfering with each other.

Astronomy
News
Published by the editorial team, 24 September 2025

Astronomers pinpoint the source of the brightest one-off fast radio burst ever

An international team of astronomers has localized one of the brightest non-repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs) ever observed to a nearby galaxy.

Astronomy
News
Science
WSRT-APERTIF
Published by the editorial team, 21 August 2025

In Memoriam: Albert-Jan Boonstra

It is with deep sadness we share the news that our longtime colleague, Albert-Jan Boonstra, has passed away on Friday, August 1.

Uncategorized
Published by the editorial team, 1 August 2025

Astronomers uncover white dwarf system emitting bright radio pulses with strange rhythm

Researchers identify a mystifying Long-Period Transient with 100% polarized radio emission, suggesting new type of cosmic radio source. A team of astronomers at ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, has discovered a mysterious new cosmic radio source that challenges current theories about how dead stars can produce such powerful emissions. Using the LOFAR (Low Frequency Array) radio telescope, the team picked up the unusual signal as part of a study led by astronomer Sanne Bloot. This research was published today in the scientific journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Astronomy
LOFAR
Published by the editorial team, 17 July 2025

Exoplanet Sparks Stellar Fireworks

Astronomers have witnessed a planet causing storms to erupt on its parent star, a discovery that could reshape our understanding of how planets and stars interact and evolve together. These findings are published today in the scientific journal Nature.

Astronomy
Published by the editorial team, 2 July 2025
EVENTS

8th LOFAR Data School

Wed 16 Sep 2026 - Wed 23 Sep 2026

We are happy to announce that the 8th LOFAR Data School (LDS2026) will take place at ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (Dwingeloo, The Netherlands) from 16 to 23 September 2026. RATIONALE The goal of the school is to assist the participants in the generation and analysis of LOFAR science ready data. The school will cover the […]

Cursus: Toegepaste RF-techniek

Mon 10 Nov 2025 - Thu 13 Nov 2025

De cursus Toegepaste RF-techniek bestaat uit een theoriegedeelte (75%) en hands-on sessies in ons eigen lab (25%).
Deelnemers aan deze cursus dienen een hbo werk- en denkniveau te hebben. De deelnemer kent de basisbegrippen van elektronica. Parate kennis van wiskundige concepten is niet vereist, maar komt wel aan de orde bij de transmissielijntheorie. In de cursus wordt ook complexe rekenwijze toegepast.

DAILY IMAGE
ALF prototype 2 in the air

© ASTRON

The ALF prototype-2 is a next step towards a more robust and better designed low-noise receiver system for the WSRT, operating at ambient temperature for the frequency range between 1 and 2 GHz. Initial tests on the test field in Dwingeloo have shown that this system performs well, but the ultimate test is to operate it in one of the WSRT dishes.

For that we have integrated the ALF prototype 2 receiver in an old MFFE frame. This frame can be easily transported and fixated in the old focus boxes at the WSRT. We refer to an earlier daily image that highlights the design of this prototype in an MFFE frame.

On October 9th, everything had been prepared for placing Prototype 2 into the WSRT's RT2 focus box. The frontend had been carefully transported from ASTRON's headquarters in Dwingeloo to the WSRT building. Some last minute improvisations had to be done there to be able to acquire the frontend data. When that was fixed, the frontend was transported from the WSRT building to RT2 and hoisted upwards with the cherry picker. Then it was hauled into the frontend box, structurally fixated in the box and finally the power and network were connected.

The first tests during the day showed that this operation has been successful. The engineers and astronomers are collecting and analysing the first data from the system. These initial results will be presented in another daily image, soon.

@astron

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