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E. Momjian, T. Ghosh, C. Salter, A. Venkataraman (NAIC/Arecibo Observatory)
Using the newly acquired Mark5A data acquisition system, we present the first eVLBI results from the Arecibo. The Mark 5A system, developed by Haystack Observatory, is a Gbps VLBI data system based on magnetic disk technology. Incorporating primarily low-cost PC-based components, it can record data at rates of up to 1024~Mbps on to an array of inexpensive, removable IDE/ATA disks.
Until now, VLBI has been severely inconvenienced because the data had to be recorded onto tape or disk and then shipped for correlation. Consequently, it was impossible to judge the success of the observations until weeks or months after it had been performed. The solution, to link the telescopes electronically in real-time, now enables us to cross-correlate e data as it arrives. This technique, naturally called eVLBI, is now possible with high-bandwidth network connectivity having become a reality.
The first eVLBI observations with the Arecibo radio telescope took place on September 10, 2004. Using the Mark 5A , the ICRF (The International Celestial Reference Frame) source, 0528+134, was observed at 1.6 GHz using an internationtal VLBI array. Along with Arecibo, the EVN telescopes in Cambridge (UK), Torun (Poland) and Westerbork (Netherlands) participated in these observations. The data from all these stations were directly transfered to JIVE, and an on-line correlation was performed. The observations resulted in the first transatlantic eVLBI image, and Arecibo-Torun is believed to be the longest real-time interferometer baseline yet created.
These new observations gave an exciting glimpse of the future of radio astronomy, and led to the first scientific eVLBI observations on September 22, 2004.
The Arecibo Observatory is part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, which is operated by Cornell Univ. under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 5
© 2004. The American Astronomical Society.