An Overview of FAST Real-time Fast Radio Burst Searching System

In this paper,we report a real-time Fast Radio Burst(FRB)searching system that has been successfully implemented with the 19 beam receiver of the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope(FAST).The relatively small field of view of FAST makes the search for new FRBs challenging,but its high sensitivity significantly improves the accuracy of FRB localization and enables the detection of high-precision neutral hydrogen absorption lines generated by FRBs.Our goal is to develop an FRB searching system capable of realtime detection of FRBs that allows high-time resolution spectro-temporal studies among the repeated bursts,as well as detailed investigations of these bursts and exploration of FRB progenitor models.The data from each beam of the 19-beam receiver are fed into a high-performance computing node server,which performs real-time searches for pulses with a wide dispersion measure(DM)range of 20–10,000 pc cm^(-3) with step efficiency of 25%in real time.Then,the head node server aggregates all the candidate signals from each beam within a given time,determining their authenticity based on various criteria,including arrival time,pulse width,signal-to-noise ratio and coincidence patterns among the 19 beams.Within the 1.05–1.45 GHz operating bandwidth of the FAST 19beam receiver,the system achieves a frequency resolution of 122.07 kHz and a time resolution of 270.336μs.Subsequently,our team detected a series of bursts with a DM of 566 on 2019 August 30 confirming them as FRB121102.The FRB searching system enables the 19-beam receiver of FAST to detect repeated/one-off pulses/bursts in real time.

Design,Fabrication and Assembly of the Solar Upper Transition Region Imager(SUTRI)

The Solar Upper Transition Region Imager(SUTRI)focuses on the solar transition region to achieve dynamic imaging observation of the upper transition region.In this paper,we report the optical system design,mechanical design,ultrasmooth mirror manufacture and measurement,EUV multilayer film coating,prelaunch installation and calibration for the SUTRI payload at IPOE,Tongji University.Finally,the SUTRI carried by the SATech-01 satellite was successfully set to launch.All functions of this telescope were normal,and the observation results obtained in orbit were consistent with the design.

A Novel Low-frequency Radio Astronomical Observation Array(1~90 MHz)and its First Light

The extremely low frequency(f<40 MHz)is a very important frequency band for modern radio astronomy observations.It is also a key frequency band for solar radio bursts,planetary radio bursts,fast radio bursts detected in the lunar space electromagnetic environment,and the Earth’s middle and upper atmosphere with low dispersion values.In this frequency band,the solar stellar activity,the early state of the universe,and the radiation characteristics of the planetary magnetosphere and plasma layer can be explored.Since there are few observations with effective spatial resolution in the extremely low frequency,it is highly possible to discover unknown astronomical phenomena on such a band in the future.In conjunction with low frequency radio observation on the far side of the Moon,we initially set up a novel low-frequency radio array in the Qitai station of Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory deep in Tianshan Mountains,Xinjiang,China on 2021 August 23.The array covers an operating frequency range of 1~90 MHz with a sensitivity of-78 dBm/125kHz,a dynamic range of 72 dB,and a typical gain value of 6 dBi,which can realize unattended all-weather observations.The two antennas due south of the Qitai Low-Frequency Radio Array were put into trial observations on 2021 May 28,and the very quiet electromagnetic environment of the station has been confirmed.So far,many solar radio bursts and other foreign signals have been detected.The results show that this novel low frequency radio array has the advantages of good performance,strong direction,and high antenna efficiency.It can play a unique role in Solar Cycle 25,and has a potential value in prospective collaborative observation between the Earth and space for extremely low frequency radio astronomy.

Thermal Analysis of the Backup Structure of the Tianma Telescope

Taking the Tianma Radio Telescope(TMRT)as an object,this paper focuses on the determination of temperature gradients and thermal deformations of the backup structure(BUS)with the finite element method.To this end,a modeling and analysis method,which consists of a simplified FEM and a four-component simulation process,is proposed.In the development,only solar radiation is considered and thermal convection is neglected.Based on the thermal time constant of the BUS,the simulations of temperature gradients are simplified as static analysis.The superposed temperature gradients agree well with the ones measured by thermometers with a 0.57℃ root mean square(rms)error.In addition,the illuminated-weighted rms errors of the primary reflector surface calculated by the simulation and measured by the extended out-of-focus holography are in good agreement.The rms error increases approximately 170μm when the Sun persistently illuminated the BUS for 3 hr.The optimized initial temperature of the antenna structure is 20℃ by comparing the results between the finite element analysis and the e-OOF measurement.The thermal deformation database can support the real-time compensation of the active surface system if the traces of the radio telescope are known in advance.