Very Long Baseline Array

Very Long Baseline Array
The eastern terminus of the VLBA, on Saint Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Alternative namesVLBA Edit this at Wikidata
Organization
  • Long Baseline Observatory Edit this on Wikidata
LocationWashington, Pacific Northwest, Washington, Pacific States Region
Coordinates34°04′44″N 107°37′06″W / 34.07883°N 107.61831°W / 34.07883; -107.61831
Websitepublic.nrao.edu/telescopes/vlba/ Edit this at Wikidata
Telescopes
  • Brewster VLBA station
  • Fort Davis VLBA station
  • Hancock VLBA station
  • Kitt Peak VLBA station
  • Los Alamos VLBA station
  • Mauna Kea VLBA station
  • North Liberty VLBA station
  • OVRO VLBA station
  • Pie Town VLBA station
  • St. Croix VLBA station Edit this on Wikidata
Very Long Baseline Array is located in the United States
Very Long Baseline Array
Location of Very Long Baseline Array
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The VLBA telescope in Owens Valley, California

The Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) is a system of ten radio telescopes which are operated remotely from their Array Operations Center located in Socorro, New Mexico, as a part of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO).[1] These ten radio antennas work together as an array that forms the longest system in the world that uses very long baseline interferometry. The longest baseline available in this interferometer is about 8,611 kilometers (5,351 mi).[2]

The construction of the VLBA began in February 1986 and it was completed in May 1993. The first astrometrical observation using all ten antennas was carried out on May 29, 1993.[3] The total cost of building the VLBA was about $85 million. The array is funded by the National Science Foundation, and costs about $10 million a year to operate.[4]

Each receiver in the VLBA consists of a parabolic dish antenna 25 meters (82 feet) in diameter, along with its adjacent control building. This contains the supporting electronics and machinery for the receiver, including low-noise electronics, digital computers, data storage units, and the antenna-pointing machinery. Each of the antennas is about as tall as a ten-story building when the antenna is pointed straight up, and each antenna weighs about 218 metric tons (240 short tons).[4]

The signals from each antenna are recorded on a bank of approximately one-terabyte hard disc drives, and the information is time-stamped using atomic clocks. Once the disc drives are loaded with information, they are carried to the Pete V. Domenici Science Operations Center at the NRAO in Socorro. There, the information undergoes signal processing in a powerful set of digital computers that carry out the interferometry. These computers also make corrections for the rotation of the Earth, the slight shifts in the crust of the Earth over time, and other small measurement errors.

  1. ^ "VLBA Returning to NRAO, Getting Technical Upgrade". NRAO eNews. National Radio Astronomy Observatory. 2018-10-24. Retrieved 2019-12-21.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference saha2010 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Bouton, Ellen (2019-01-02). "National Radio Astronomy Observatory Archives: NRAO Timeline". National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  4. ^ a b Lacitis, Erik (2010-04-28). "Seeking the universe from an apple orchard in Brewster". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2018-10-20.