Futures

U.S. Radio-Millimeter-Submillimeter Science Futures Conference Series

The NRAO is organizing a series of three conferences for the broader community to discuss potential U.S. futures for radio-millimeter-submillimeter science in the 2020’s and beyond.  Funded by Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI) and the Kavli Foundation, these workshops will be structured around key science themes that reflect priorities identified in the New Worlds, New Horizons Decadal Survey, are likely to be important in the forthcoming decade, and require observations at radio-mm-submm wavelengths to be properly addressed.

Next Generation Very Large Array

 Inspired by dramatic discoveries from the Jansky VLA and ALMA, the astronomy community has initiated discussion of a future large area radio array optimized for imaging of thermal emission to milli-arcsecond (mas) scales that will open new discovery space from proto-planetary disks to distant galaxies.

This Next Generation Very Large Array (ngVLA) is currently envisioned to include:

    • 10x the collecting area of the Jansky VLA & ALMA
    • science operations from 1 - 115 GHz
    • 10x longer baselines (300 km) that yield mas-resolution, and
    • a dense antenna core on km-scales for high surface brightness imaging.

As part of the process of building towards a final concept for the ngVLA, NRAO has issued a call for ngVLA Community studies that will provide a mechanism for members of the community to become major contributors to this effort. These studies will be carried out over the next year and be used to help construct a final design concept to be brought to Astro2020. 

 

Connect with NRAO

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory and Green Bank Observatory are facilities of the U.S. National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc.

Founded in 1956, the NRAO provides state-of-the-art radio telescope facilities for use by the international scientific community. NRAO telescopes are open to all astronomers regardless of institutional or national affiliation. Observing time on NRAO telescopes is available on a competitive basis to qualified scientists after evaluation of research proposals on the basis of scientific merit, the capability of the instruments to do the work, and the availability of the telescope during the requested time. NRAO also provides both formal and informal programs in education and public outreach for teachers, students, the general public, and the media.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency created by Congress in 1950 "to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; to secure the national defense..."

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