Upgrading the Jicamarca Radio Observatory

升级吉卡马卡射电天文台

• 批准号: 1903109
• 负责人: David Hysell
• 金额: $ 95.38万
• 依托单位: Cornell University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-09-01 至 2022-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1903109&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Upgrading; Jicamarca; Radio; Observatory

The NSF-supported Jicamarca Radio Observatory (JRO) in Peru has been operational for over 50 years. This major center for upper atmospheric research, training, and education, currently facilitating the research efforts of investigators supported by NSF's Geospace Programs, NASA, and the U.S. Air Force. The observatory participates in the World Day investigations, which is a globally coordinated observing effort where participating radars make simultaneous measurements of the upper atmosphere. The observatory also performs specialized experiments, maintains a large instrument cluster in partnerships with other investigators, hosts visitors at different professional levels, and conducts internship programs and schools in aeronomy and space weather. JRO is also preparing to support NASA's ICON (Ionospheric Connection Explorer) and GOLD (Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk) missions as well as a NASA sounding rocket campaign in Peru planned tentatively for 2022. This award will support upgrades to the facility to maintain its historically highly productive status. These upgrades are to complete the final half of electronic antenna beam steering upgrade, to entirely replace the deteriorating ground screen that the main antenna sits above, and to upgrade obsolete tube amplifiers to solid state amplifiers which will increase the power output of the antenna.Jicamarca is the foremost ground-based instrument for studying the equatorial ionophere and can observe echoes from the lower, middle, and upper atmosphere, ionosphere, topside, and plasmasphere to an altitude of nearly 10,000 km. Jicamarca is unique because if its high power (50-MHz operating frequency), its modularity, and its proximity to the magnetic equator. The frequency allows it to probe both exceptionally low and exceptionally high altitudes compared to other mesosphere-stratosphere-troposphere (MST)/incoherent scatter radars, in a region with few instruments. The capabilities permit discovery research even after several decades of operation but are suffering from the postponement of essential maintenance and upgrades. The new ground screen will improve the gain and the beam shape which directly impacts pointing precision. The beam steering and switching capability along with increased power will enable new and improved experiments to be carried out including monitoring of equatorial spread F and of mesosphere-stratosphere-troposphere winds and turbulence, as well as planetary and solar radar experiments.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

秘鲁的NSF支持的Jicamarca无线电天文台（JRO）已经运作了50多年。这个主要大气研究，培训和教育的主要中心，目前促进了NSF的Geospace计划，NASA和美国空军支持的研究人员的研究工作。天文台参加了世界日调查，这是一项全球协调的观察工作，参与雷达可以同时测量上层大气。天文台还进行专业实验，与其他调查人员合作维护一个大型乐器馆，以不同的专业级别接待访客，并在空中和太空天气中开展实习计划和学校。 JRO还准备支持NASA的图标（Ionospheric Connective Explorer）和黄金（全球尺度观察肢体和磁盘）任务，以及在秘鲁计划在2022年进行的NASA Sound Rocket运动。该奖项将在2022年进行。该奖项将支持该设施升级以维持其历史悠久的高产能力。 These upgrades are to complete the final half of electronic antenna beam steering upgrade, to entirely replace the deteriorating ground screen that the main antenna sits above, and to upgrade obsolete tube amplifiers to solid state amplifiers which will increase the power output of the antenna.Jicamarca is the foremost ground-based instrument for studying the equatorial ionophere and can observe echoes from the lower, middle, and upper大气，电离层，顶部和等离子体的高度近10,000公里。 JICAMARCA是独一无二的，因为如果其高功率（50 MHz工作频率），其模块化和与磁赤道的距离。与其他几乎没有仪器的区域中，与其他中层圈层 - 对流层（MST）/不一致的散射雷达相比，频率允许其探测出异常低和异常高的高度。该功能即使经过几十年的运行，功能也允许发现研究，但仍遭受了基本维护和升级的推迟。新的接地屏幕将改善直接影响指向精度的增益和光束形状。光束转向和开关能力以及增加的功率将使新的和改进的实验能够进行，包括监视赤道散布F和Mesosphere-sphatosposposphere-Mectosposposposphere风和湍流，以及行星和太阳雷达实验。 标准。