From Nanosecond Timing to Nanohertz Gravitational Wave Detection. Radio pulsars are the collapsed cores of once-massive stars that are renowned for their exceptional rotational stability. Ever since their discovery Australia has played a prominent role in the discovery and monitoring of these enigmatic sources. The timing and discovery of millisecond pulsars is an area where Australia is a world leader. This programme will use a powerful new instrument on the Parkes radio telescope to search for ....From Nanosecond Timing to Nanohertz Gravitational Wave Detection. Radio pulsars are the collapsed cores of once-massive stars that are renowned for their exceptional rotational stability. Ever since their discovery Australia has played a prominent role in the discovery and monitoring of these enigmatic sources. The timing and discovery of millisecond pulsars is an area where Australia is a world leader. This programme will use a powerful new instrument on the Parkes radio telescope to search for the minute influence of gravitational waves from supermassive black hole binaries on the millisecond pulsars.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989648
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$350,000.00
Summary
Optical test-bed facility for mid infrared components for sensing, imaging and astrophotonics. This test facility will enable Australian researchers to validate optical components and technologies at wavelengths from 2.5 to 20 microns, that are crucial for a wide range of applications including biophotonics, sensing, imaging, defense, and astro-photonics. Technologies related to the Mid IR are
expected to have a significant impact on quality of life and global economy. It will enable Australi ....Optical test-bed facility for mid infrared components for sensing, imaging and astrophotonics. This test facility will enable Australian researchers to validate optical components and technologies at wavelengths from 2.5 to 20 microns, that are crucial for a wide range of applications including biophotonics, sensing, imaging, defense, and astro-photonics. Technologies related to the Mid IR are
expected to have a significant impact on quality of life and global economy. It will enable Australian researchers to achieve a major impact in many areas of Mid IR fundamental and applied science as well as industry sectors such as sensing, biophotonics, defence, health, bio-security and imaging. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0561136
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$376,352.00
Summary
36-megapixel CCD camera for wide-field astronomy. This project aims to design and build a state-of-the-art 36-megapixel charge-coupled device (CCD) camera for wide-field imaging on a robotic telescope at Siding Spring Observatory. The camera will employ a mosaic of two 18-megapixel CCDs, which are amongst the largest ever fabricated. This new facility will have an unprecedented ability to obtain precision photometry over a wide field, and will enable breakthroughs in research into areas as diver ....36-megapixel CCD camera for wide-field astronomy. This project aims to design and build a state-of-the-art 36-megapixel charge-coupled device (CCD) camera for wide-field imaging on a robotic telescope at Siding Spring Observatory. The camera will employ a mosaic of two 18-megapixel CCDs, which are amongst the largest ever fabricated. This new facility will have an unprecedented ability to obtain precision photometry over a wide field, and will enable breakthroughs in research into areas as diverse as detection of extra-solar planets and nearby supernovae. The camera will also lead to collaborative research with ANU's newly-funded Skymapper telescope, as well as the Anglo-Australian Observatory's 6dF and 2dF instruments.Read moreRead less
Gamma-ray burst astronomy in the Swift era and beyond. The study of gamma-ray bursts is one of the most active and exciting fields in astrophysics, and touches on subjects that are of interest to all humans: e.g., to what extent was life on Earth shaped by cataclysmic explosions in our Galaxy? Australia's ROTSE-III telescope is the only facility in the southern hemisphere capable of rapidly (within 10 seconds) finding optical light from gamma-ray bursts. It will provide Australian astronomers ....Gamma-ray burst astronomy in the Swift era and beyond. The study of gamma-ray bursts is one of the most active and exciting fields in astrophysics, and touches on subjects that are of interest to all humans: e.g., to what extent was life on Earth shaped by cataclysmic explosions in our Galaxy? Australia's ROTSE-III telescope is the only facility in the southern hemisphere capable of rapidly (within 10 seconds) finding optical light from gamma-ray bursts. It will provide Australian astronomers with a competitive advantage in this high-profile field. The project will involve and inspire some of our best physics and engineering students.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354517
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
Adaptive Optics for Australian Astronomy, Medicine, Industry, and Defence. Adaptive optics is a technique for correcting wavefront distortions in light beams to improve optical imaging performance. The Research Network for Adaptive Optics aims to draw together isolated Australian and New Zealand research groups working on adaptive optics applications in disparate areas to achieve a critical mass of researchers in this burgeoning field. Adaptive optics has wide application in areas as diverse as ....Adaptive Optics for Australian Astronomy, Medicine, Industry, and Defence. Adaptive optics is a technique for correcting wavefront distortions in light beams to improve optical imaging performance. The Research Network for Adaptive Optics aims to draw together isolated Australian and New Zealand research groups working on adaptive optics applications in disparate areas to achieve a critical mass of researchers in this burgeoning field. Adaptive optics has wide application in areas as diverse as astronomy, vision science, ophthalmology, microscopy, optical communications, laser radar, and laser beam shaping. The Research Network will coordinate and expand Australian involvement in these areas and inform industry, as have similar networks in the USA and Europe.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0882778
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$201,224.00
Summary
Water vapour radiometers for millimetre-wave phase correction for the Australia Telescope. Australia has a tradition of excellence in astronomy. Inspired by wonder about the cosmos, it stimulates public interest in science, so leading to the training of highly skilled graduates. In turn, this drives the development of technologies needed to pursue the science. The nation has invested in the technology for millimetre-wave astronomy, building the first interferometer in our hemisphere. This equipm ....Water vapour radiometers for millimetre-wave phase correction for the Australia Telescope. Australia has a tradition of excellence in astronomy. Inspired by wonder about the cosmos, it stimulates public interest in science, so leading to the training of highly skilled graduates. In turn, this drives the development of technologies needed to pursue the science. The nation has invested in the technology for millimetre-wave astronomy, building the first interferometer in our hemisphere. This equipment will capitalise on this investment, extending the capabilities of the Australia Telescope to maintain it as a front line instrument, attracting the best scientists here to use it. This will help nurture a vigorous radio-science community, one able to actively participate in the billion-dollar investment being made internationally in the field.Read moreRead less
International collaboration in gravitational wave data analysis, simulations and third generation detectors. The project brings together seven outstanding international researchers into close collaboration with an Australian team to develop new techniques for finding gravitational wave signals in the vast archive of data they have helped to collect, as well as developing and testing theory for improved detectors that operate with sensitivity beyond the limits set by classical physics. The projec ....International collaboration in gravitational wave data analysis, simulations and third generation detectors. The project brings together seven outstanding international researchers into close collaboration with an Australian team to develop new techniques for finding gravitational wave signals in the vast archive of data they have helped to collect, as well as developing and testing theory for improved detectors that operate with sensitivity beyond the limits set by classical physics. The project will utilize a state of the art supercomputer and the superb national facility for high power laser interferometry at Gingin, Western Australia. Read moreRead less
Star Formation at Millimetre Wavelengths with the CSIRO Australia Telescope. The newly-upgraded CSIRO Australia Telescope Compact Array, together with the CSIRO Mopra Telescope, provide a unique and powerful combination for studying the millimetre-wave emission from molecules and cold dust in star formation regions. We propose to combine the astrophysical expertise of UNSW with the instrumental expertise of CSIRO to use these instruments to study the processes of star formation. There are two pa ....Star Formation at Millimetre Wavelengths with the CSIRO Australia Telescope. The newly-upgraded CSIRO Australia Telescope Compact Array, together with the CSIRO Mopra Telescope, provide a unique and powerful combination for studying the millimetre-wave emission from molecules and cold dust in star formation regions. We propose to combine the astrophysical expertise of UNSW with the instrumental expertise of CSIRO to use these instruments to study the processes of star formation. There are two parallel themes to this research: to commission and develop optimal techniques for using the new instruments, and to make use of them to explore the poorly-understood processes that cause stars to form.Read moreRead less
New Pulsar Instrumentation for Gravitation Wave Detection and Understanding the Emission Mechanism. Millisecond pulsar timing currently provides the most sensitive method of detecting long-period gravitational waves which permeate the Universe. Parkes leads the world in the discovery and timing of millisecond pulsars. This has motivated the development of three new advanced instruments including a cyrogenic dual-band receiver, a very wide-band correlator and a baseband recorder with an in-built ....New Pulsar Instrumentation for Gravitation Wave Detection and Understanding the Emission Mechanism. Millisecond pulsar timing currently provides the most sensitive method of detecting long-period gravitational waves which permeate the Universe. Parkes leads the world in the discovery and timing of millisecond pulsars. This has motivated the development of three new advanced instruments including a cyrogenic dual-band receiver, a very wide-band correlator and a baseband recorder with an in-built supercomputer. We aim to exploit these new technologies to systematically study the pulsar population. We will establish a timing array which can detect gravitational waves, enable GLAST to identify over 100 gamma-ray pulsars and study the pulsar emission mechanism at sub-microsecond time resolution.
Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0228799
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,602,000.00
Summary
Australian Membership of the International Gemini Partnership. The International Gemini Partnership is an intergovernmental consortium formed to construct and operate two 8-metre optical/infrared telescopes, one in Chile, and the other in Hawaii. Australia joined the IGP in May 1998, taking approximately 5% of the partnership. The Gemini telescopes have been carefully engineered to exploit the superb atmospheric conditions at both sites, allowing users to address key astronomical problems in way ....Australian Membership of the International Gemini Partnership. The International Gemini Partnership is an intergovernmental consortium formed to construct and operate two 8-metre optical/infrared telescopes, one in Chile, and the other in Hawaii. Australia joined the IGP in May 1998, taking approximately 5% of the partnership. The Gemini telescopes have been carefully engineered to exploit the superb atmospheric conditions at both sites, allowing users to address key astronomical problems in ways not previously possible. Through membership of Gemini, Australian astronomers have access to the world-class facilities necessary to maintain their high international profile and great public visibility in Galactic and extragalactic astronomy, and also to enhance the national capacity to construct advanced scientific instrumentation. Australia has already won a contract to build one of the instruments.Read moreRead less