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The Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), developed and operated by Australia’s national scientific agency, CSIRO, mapped approximately 3,000,000 galaxies in just 300 hours. This Rapid ASKAP Continuum Survey is like a Google map of the universe where most of the millions of star-shaped point maps are distant galaxies.
CSIRO CEO Dr. Larry Marshall said: “ASKAP is applying the latest in science and technology to ancient questions about the mysteries of the universe and equipping astronomers around the world with advancements to solve their challenges.”
“Everything is enabled by innovative receivers developed by CSIRO that feature matrix-in-phase feed technology, enabling ASKAP to generate more raw data at a faster rate than all of Australia’s Internet traffic.”
“At a time when we have access to more data than ever, ASKAP and the supercomputers that support it are delivering unmatched insights and driving the tools that will support our data-driven future to improve everyone’s lives.”
Using ASKAP, the scientists were able to observe 83 percent of the entire sky. And this unprecedented result shows that an all-sky survey can be accomplished in weeks rather than years.
The results of this survey are expected to help astronomers perform statistical analyzes of large populations of galaxies.
CSIRO lead author and astronomer Dr. David McConnell said: “Astronomers around the world will use this census of the universe to explore the unknown and study everything from star formation to how galaxies and their supermassive black holes evolve and interact.”
“With ASKAP’s advanced receivers, the RACS team only needed to combine 903 images to form the complete map of the sky, significantly less than the tens of thousands of images needed for the first radio surveys of the entire sky by major telescopes. of the world”.
“For the first time, ASKAP has done its best to map the universe in more detail than ever and at record speed.”
“We hope to find tens of millions of new galaxies in future studies.”
The final 903 images and supporting information amount to 26 terabytes of data.
Stickells said: “The Pawsey Supercomputing Center has worked closely with CSIRO and the ASKAP team since our inception, and we are proud to provide the essential infrastructure that supports the science that makes big impact.”
Magazine reference:
- D. McConnell et al. The Rapid ASKAP Continuum Survey I: Design and First Results, Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia (2020). DOI: 10.1017 / pass.2020.41
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