Radioastronomy

Currently under construction in the Andean Altiplano, Northern Chile, the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) is the most ambitious astronomy facility under construction. ALMA is a radio interferometer composed of 54 antennas of 12 m diameter, and twelve 7 m antennas with about 6600 square meters of total collecting area. Initially covering the most interesting spectral wavelength ranges from 3 to 0.3 mm, ALMA will be a revolutionary telescope aimed to unveil the details of star and planet formation and to provide astronomy with the first exhaustive view of the dark and youngest objects of the Universe.

The Sky at Night team investigates the controversial world of alien communication. The search for life on other planets is one of the most fascinating subjects in science. But what is less reported is the work being done around the world to determine what happens next. If we discover aliens, how would we contact them, what should we say and should we communicate with them at all?

Written by two of the field's true pioneers, Spacetime Physics can extend and enhance coverage of specialty relativity in the classroom.

This textbook addresses students and practitioners. It attempts to give an outline of the methods and tools of radio astronomy needed by the astronomer who wants to relate the message from interstellar space to physical processes. It gives a unified treatment of the entire field of radioastronomy from the centimetre to the sub-millimetre wavelength range, discussing both single telescopes and interferometric devices. It describes the basic physical principles and gives a reasonably complete outline of the instruments and methods of measurements and analysis, including both continuum radiation and spectral lines. This second edition has been largely rewritten and expanded. It includes the most recent developments in astronomy.