Radio Instrument Design and Commissioning for 21 cm Cosmology and K-12 Education

• Main Author: Berkhout, Lindsay M
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01-01-2024
• Subjects: Aerospace engineering; Astronomy; Astrophysics; Education
• ISBN: 9798382757889

The Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array is a radio interferometer targeting precision measurements of the 21 centimeter hydrogen line during the formation of the first stars in the Cosmic Dawn and the subsequent Epoch of Reionization (EoR) when the intergalactic medium (IGM) was ionized. Studies of the distribution of neutral hydrogen during the EoR and Cosmic Dawn offer insight into how the structure in the universe formed and evolved. I present the as-built HERA design and discuss the commissioning of the array, as well as study the theoretical and lab performance of HERA’s cross-talk mitigation system, which reduces the effect of signal chain leakage from neighboring antennas in the array. Additionally, I discuss three experiments targeted at educational or outreach uses in satellite or radio astronomy science. First, I present the design and commissioning of a new digital signal processing system for the Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT), which operates a 34-m antenna as part of a K-12 initiative. Secondly, I describe the design of the telemetry decoder and subsequent analysis of received telemetry for the LightCube mission, which was a 1U CubeSat was designed to connect the public with space operations. Finally, I present the framework for a course lab that measures the rotation curve of the Milky Way with a low-cost radio telescope totaling under 200 dollars. The rotation curve of the Milky Way offers an exciting educational target for studies of spiral galaxy dynamics, and can be measured easily from the ground with simple instruments.