Australian Telescope National Facility, Paul Wild Observatory - Narrabri, NSW
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Tuena
S 30° 18.810 E 149° 33.883
55J E 746620 N 6643688
The Paul Wild Observatory is home to the Australian Telescope Compact Array.
Waymark Code: WMP2ND
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Date Posted: 06/17/2015
Views: 7
The Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) is an array of six 22 metre antennas used for radio astronomy. It is located about 25 km west of the town of Narrabri in rural NSW (about 500 km north-west of Sydney). It is operated by CSIRO's Astronomy and Space Science division and is a part of the Australia Telescope National Facility.
What's happening right now? (6/18/2015)
All antennas are tracking. This afternoon astronomers are observing the source 0823-500 which has an azimuth of 183.2 degrees and an elevation of 69.7 degrees. The telescope is setup to observe at 5500 and 9000 MHz simultaneously.
The project currently being observed is entitled "Monitoring the real time birth of a planetary nebula".
When I visited there were 5 telescopes in view. Each telescope is located on steel lines & can be moved as required. During my visit the actual antennas were moved through 180 degrees, from facing north to facing south. Quite a spectacle.
Other telescopes on the site are a former radioheliograph, a stellar interferometer used to measure the size of stars, IPS Radio & Space Services which monitors activity on the Sun & Bison (Birmingham Solar Oscillations Network telescope) which monitors standing waves on the Sun's surface.
There is a visitor information centre which is unmanned. There are information plaques, models of telescopes past & present & audio-visual displays.
Outside there is a range of telescope models some of which you can manipulate, with my favourite being a Solar Radio Telescope.
Observatory Purpose: Research
Optical / Infrared Telescopes?: No
Radio Telescopes?: Yes
Solar Telescopes?: Yes
Open to the Public?: No
Is this a Club Observatory?: No
Public Viewing Allowed?: Yes
Active Observatory?: Active
Number of Telescopes or Antennas: 6 to 10
Site URL: [Web Link]
Year Dedicated or Opened: 1988
Altitude (meters): 110
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Visit Instructions:Note the time of day of your visit, and your own photo of your favorite part of the observatory. This might be the view from the observatory, picture of your favorite building or favorite exhibit. (Be mindful of flash photography rules!)
If you participated in an observing session, let everyone know what you saw!