Research:Radio Background
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The History of PRO
This is a somewhat brief run thru of the history of PRO as we know it. The system of keeping useable records/files/notes for future users to read has been unheard of until now. It makes sense to try and record the origins as close to the fact as possible.
The 1st Generation
In 2000 a group of a few undergrads here at UW applied for $200,000 from the Student Tech Fee (STF). They were helped by a then member of the faculty, Stacy Palen. This grant was for the creation of the Undergraduate Astronomical Institute, a sort of catch-all name applied to a wide range of programs for undergrads (the radio telescope being one of them). This money was used to purchase the first large set of computers for B356, a printer, and a large share was spent on the radio telescope project. A lot of equipment was gathered, much of it was included in the previous generation of the MIT SRT kit (however, according to CASSI CORP, the UW has never before purchased one of their systems. We must conclude they were using similar plans or possibly a competitor as a source.) This equipment included a Kaultronics dish with H180 motors and a modified mount, exactly as the SRT used to sell with. It is possible that the UW ordered parts and not an entire kit, but no records can be found as to where all of the gear was obtained.
We are not clear as to when/how permission was given to use the roof of the atmospheric sciences building. As of 2006 we have a set number of keys and they must be kept accounted for indefinitely. We are also unclear as to how we obtained use of "the shed" as it's called, the large locker on top of the roof where the computer is stored and data collected. There is at this time a radio-repeater of some sort, although we are unsure if it will contaminate the data in any major fashion.
Due to the skill and guidance of Palen, our undergraduate program today is the shining example that it is. She helped set the foundations of our major, and for that we have decided to name the observatory in her honor. The first generation of students received much praise and press for their efforts. But despite their good intentions and faculty support, the small radio telescope never fully came online. As far as we know, at no time did it move or track targets under its own control. Simple test signals were taken on possibly the sun using a spectrograph, but the software for "Fred" (our control computer) was never fully written.
The control & acquisition software was to be written in a "language" called LabView. This program is not up to the task of running a research instrument, and has yet to yield positive results. Currently the SRT Kit comes with it's own Java based control software, and data reduction is performed by hand-made programs in IDL (a standard language in astronomical data reduction.)
The 2nd Generation
The first group of students graduated soon after the system was purchased. There was little to no follow-thru on keeping membership up and soon the telescope was all but forgotten. One windy day the half-built neglected antenna was blown apart while on its mount. This destroyed the mount and hurt the dish. As far as we know, the system was mothballed for a couple years.
The second generation of undergrads stepped in to rebuild the telescope. Their first task was repair the damage done by the storm. The mount was taken to the physics machine shop and professionally fixed (this is the very heavy metal affair painted black, possibly under/in the shed or B356.) However, similar to the 1st group, the system never reached completion (lack of motion control and/or data capture software) and the members all graduated in 2003. I have been in charge of PRO since they left and am likely the longest "head" of the UAI.
Somewhere in either the gap between Group 1 and 2, or the years of Group 2, overall department interest in the project dropped considerably. There was hesitation to assist us when we started as Group 3. Several bridges were burnt politically, and we have tried our hardest to earn a good reputation and wide respect.
The 3rd Generation
Currently we are the 3rd group of students to undertake this project (however we shall not call each successive year after ours a "generation"). We have managed to remove nearly all of the original equipment and replace it with a fantastic new kit. The decision was made that we would rather spend time figuring out how to use the system from an astronomer perspective, as opposed to spending ghastly amounts of time discovering how to build it. Bennett Hornbostel wrote a new proposal to the STF for the materials we thought were needed to rebuild the existing setup, as well as the money for an entirely new system. We won all the money we asked for (just shy of $8,000) and purchased the MIT SRT Kit.
Dr. Ana Larson, (a lecturer for UW Astro) has been the "go-to" person for our group, she has helped us find supplies, people, and information for many years. Overall the faculty has warmed up to us considerably. PRO gives students the chance to meet faculty and grad-students for a more 1-on-1 learning approach to real problems we must solve. Several grad students have helped guide us, as well as many of the faculty.
It is hoped that this 3rd gen. will last thru the life of the instrument. PRO has the opportunity to teach younger undergrads how to do basic observations and research, forcing them to interact with the department tools, as well as the people who have so much knowledge to share. With luck, it will be able to provide the baby-steps into many full and wonderful astronomy careers, as it has for mine. We are successful as an undergrad research group because nearly all of us engage in other research/teaching projects for the faculty. But the foundations in research techniques laid down by building PRO give us the ability to do such amazing things.
[As told by Jim Davenport in 2006]
