News Release 05-015
Arecibo Begins Search for Dark Galaxies
New receiver increases the radio telescope's sensitivity by seven times
As seen looking up from the big Arecibo dish, ALFA soars toward its new home.
February 7, 2005
This material is available primarily for archival purposes. Telephone numbers or other contact information may be out of date; please see current contact information at media contacts.
Fitted with a new compound eye, the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico last week began a multiyear effort to survey all the galaxies in a large swath of sky out to a distance of 800 million light years—a survey that may well uncover the often-theorized, but never-seen, "dark galaxies."
If they do exist, dark galaxies, would be vast clumps of primordial hydrogen and helium gas that have drifted through the universe for 10 billion years or more, but for some reason have never been able to turn that gas into stars. As such, they would account for at least some of the mysterious cosmic "dark matter," which makes itself known only by its gravitational effects on the ordinary, star-rich galaxies. Certainly the dark galaxies would have been missed by previous astronomical surveys, most of which were restricted to optical and infrared light; the cold hydrogen and helium of a dark galaxy would shine only at radio wavelengths—Arecibo's specialty.
Funded by the National Science Foundation and operated by the the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center at Cornell University, the 305-meter-wide Arecibo Observatory telescope is the world's largest and most-sensitive single-dish radio telescope. Last year, its sensitivity was further boosted by the Arecibo L-Band Feed Array (ALFA): essentially a seven-pixel camera that will allow astronomers to collect data about seven times faster than before. The the survey project starting today has thus been dubbed ALFALFA, for Arecibo Legacy Fast Alfa Survey.
-NSF-
-
The ALFA receiver (hanging from cable) enters the Gregorian dome high above the Arecibo dish
Credit and Larger Version
Media Contacts
M. Mitchell Waldrop, NSF, (703) 292-8070, email: mwaldrop@nsf.gov
David Brand, Cornell University, (607) 255-3651, email: deb27@cornell.edu
Program Contacts
Richard E. Barvainis, NSF, (703) 292-4891, email: rbarvai@nsf.gov
Principal Investigators
Riccardo Giovanelli, Cornell University, 607-255-6505, email: riccardo@astro.cornell.edu
Related Websites
The NAIC Web site: http://www.naic.edu/
The ALFA Web site: http://alfa.naic.edu/
A Cornell press release on ALFA: http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/April04/Arecibo.Eye.deb.html
Cornell University press release on the survey: http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Feb05/Arecibo.skysurvey.deb.html
The U.S. National Science Foundation propels the nation forward by advancing fundamental research in all fields of science and engineering. NSF supports research and people by providing facilities, instruments and funding to support their ingenuity and sustain the U.S. as a global leader in research and innovation. With a fiscal year 2023 budget of $9.5 billion, NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 40,000 competitive proposals and makes about 11,000 new awards. Those awards include support for cooperative research with industry, Arctic and Antarctic research and operations, and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts.
Connect with us online
NSF website: nsf.gov
NSF News: nsf.gov/news
For News Media: nsf.gov/news/newsroom
Statistics: nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards database: nsf.gov/awardsearch/
Follow us on social
Twitter: twitter.com/NSF
Facebook: facebook.com/US.NSF
Instagram: instagram.com/nsfgov