Solar Radio SpectroPolarimeter
The Solar Radio SpectroPolarimeter is a planned instrument currently being installed at the Jenny Jump site. Installation has been delayed by a number of factors and there is no current completion date. We look forward to sharing updates as the project progresses.
When complete, it will be one of the more unique scientific instruments at our facility. The 2-meter dish was originally mounted on the roof of the Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs facility in Murray Hill, New Jersey, one of the most storied research institutions in American history. The mechanical components have been reconditioned and the electronics updated for continued scientific use.
The dish is connected to a 1-18 GHz receiver capable of 200 MHz resolution, driven by a chain-drive stepper motor in 7.5-degree increments. This frequency range is the same used by the Owens Valley Solar Array (OVSA) in California, operated by NJIT and one of the premier solar radio observatories in the United States. Like those instruments, the SpectroPolarimeter will automatically track the Sun from sunrise to sunset each day, continuously recording solar radio emissions and monitoring for solar storm events. After sunset, the dish will be turned toward Jupiter to listen for the giant planet's powerful radio bursts, generated by its intense magnetic field and its interaction with its moon Io.
Solar radio astronomy gives scientists a window into space weather that optical telescopes cannot provide. Radio emissions from the Sun reveal activity in the corona and chromosphere, including solar flares and coronal mass ejections, often before their effects are felt here on Earth.
When complete, it will be one of the more unique scientific instruments at our facility. The 2-meter dish was originally mounted on the roof of the Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs facility in Murray Hill, New Jersey, one of the most storied research institutions in American history. The mechanical components have been reconditioned and the electronics updated for continued scientific use.
The dish is connected to a 1-18 GHz receiver capable of 200 MHz resolution, driven by a chain-drive stepper motor in 7.5-degree increments. This frequency range is the same used by the Owens Valley Solar Array (OVSA) in California, operated by NJIT and one of the premier solar radio observatories in the United States. Like those instruments, the SpectroPolarimeter will automatically track the Sun from sunrise to sunset each day, continuously recording solar radio emissions and monitoring for solar storm events. After sunset, the dish will be turned toward Jupiter to listen for the giant planet's powerful radio bursts, generated by its intense magnetic field and its interaction with its moon Io.
Solar radio astronomy gives scientists a window into space weather that optical telescopes cannot provide. Radio emissions from the Sun reveal activity in the corona and chromosphere, including solar flares and coronal mass ejections, often before their effects are felt here on Earth.
