Commission J activities are concerned with observation and interpretation of all radio emissions and reflections from celestial objects. Emphasis is placed on the promotion of technical means for making radio-astronomical observations and data analysis as well as the support of activities to protect radio-astronomical observations from harmful interference.
Updated: April 9, 2012
The URSI Newsletter (Volume 2, no1) is now available on the URSI Web site for downloading in PDF format. It can be found here.
----------------------------The NRAO North American ALMA Science Center is pleased to announce that the Joint ALMA Observatory (JAO) expects to start the next cycle of Early Science observations (Cycle 1) in January 2013. A Call for Proposals for Early Science Cycle 1 will be issued at the end of May 2012, with an anticipated deadline for proposal submission in mid-July. ALMA Early Science Cycle 1 observations will start in January 2013 and span 10 months. It is anticipated that approximately 800 hours of array time will be available for Cycle 1 projects. Any astronomer may submit a proposal in response to the ALMA Early Science Cycle 1 Call for Proposals. Cycle 1 operations will be conducted on a best efforts basis, similar to the current Cycle 0 observations. The full Cycle 1 announcement is available at https://almascience.nrao.edu/news/pre-announcement-for-cycle-1
This section of the website will be devoted to brief news items from the membership of USNC-URSI-J. Have you recently returned from an adventure to a remote field site? Have some interesting results to share? Please send the Chair, Rich Bradley, a brief description and a photo or two as well as a link to a website for further information.
In this section we will present a photo of a person associated with radio astronomy (past or present) and ask the membership to identify this person and describe his or her most significant contribution to the field. Some may be easy while others a bit more challenging. Let's have some fun with it! First person to provide the correct information to the Chair, Rich Bradley, will be acknowledged in the upcoming e-Newsletter.
Here is the mystery photo for this month. Who is this gentleman, and what is his most notable contribution to the field of radio astronomy?
Commission J TopicsDevelopments in Array Technology for Radio Astronomy (Joint B,J)
Detection of Short Duration Transients
Timely Technical Tutorials
Radio Frequency Interference Mitigation and Spectrum Usage (Joint E,F,J)
New Telescopes, Techniques, and Observations
There are ten 20 minute talks per each regular session and four 40 minute tutorials. We will also have a keynote presentation: Lessons from History
Special Meeting to be held at the Summer 2012 AAS in Anchorage
New Horizons for Science From the Moon: Gravitational Physics, Cosmology, and Radio Heliophysics
The unifying theme of the three sessions in this "Meeting in a Meeting" is the Moon as a unique platform from which to conduct advanced observations of the Sun, the high redshift (z>10) early Universe, and Gravitation. Please contact Jack Burns (jack.burns@cu.edu) for additional information.
Cosmic Dawn, Reionization, & Low Frequency Astrophysics (Chaired by S. Furlanetto, Warner Prize lecturer)
This session will discuss advances in theory, observations, and instrumentation for low frequency astrophysics and cosmology from the ground and from the Moon. As one example, the Astro2020 Decadal Report New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy & Astrophysics singles out Cosmic Dawn as a top science objective for this decade. When and how did the first galaxies form out of cold clumps of hydrogen gas? What signatures did the first stars leave on their surroundings? When and how did reionization occur? The highly redshifted (z=6-35) 21-cm hyperfine transition from neutral hydrogen at 40-200 MHz is a powerful probe of this epoch. Concepts for low frequency telescopes, including dipoles in lunar orbit and arrays on the radio-quiet lunar farside, will be presented in this session that will constrain Cosmic Dawn as COBE and WMAP did for the CMB.
Precision Measurements in Gravitational Physics
The New Worlds, New Horizons Particle Astrophysics & Cosmology Panel of the Astro2010 Decadal Survey emphasized the unique role of the Moon where Lunar Laser Ranging (LLR) "offers a promising and cost-effective way to test General Relativity and other theories of gravity". The report recommended "deploying a global, long-lived [LLR] network on the Moon," especially since the Apollo arrays have already demonstrated most of the best tests of GR. LLR is also complementary to the recently-launched GRAIL mission for studying the Moon's interior, providing more detailed data on the inner core region. In this session, recent advances in LLR will be presented including the first laser signals recovered from Lunokhod 1 and next generation retro-reflectors that may be placed on the Moon within the next few years by potential commercial spacecraft (Google Lunar X-Prize). This "Lunar Laser Ranging Retroreflector for the 21st Century" will increase the accuracy supported by the lunar emplacement by a factor of 10 to 100.
Heliophysics, Coronal Mass Ejections, & Space Weather
High energy particle acceleration occurs in diverse environments including the Sun, stars, supernovae, and AGNs. Fundamental problems include understanding the mechanisms and sites of this acceleration, in particular the roles of shock waves and magnetic reconnection. This session will discuss current observations and models of Coronal Mass Ejections, their impact on the near-Earth environs, and the radio bursts they produce. The design and deployment of proposed f<10 MHz imaging arrays on the Moon will be presented. The arrays and their deployers also have other science applications. Examples include detection of interplanetary and interstellar dust striking polyimide antennas on the lunar surface and deployment of a range of detectors for other science targets.
The 2012 IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC/URSI National Radio Science Meeting will be held the week of July 8-14, 2012 in Chicago, Illinois, USA at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers located in downtown Chicago. The symposium and meeting are co-sponsored by the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society and the U.S. National Committee of the International Union of Radio Science. The joint meeting provides an international forum for the exchange of information on state-of-the-art research in the areas of antennas, propagation, electromagnetic engineering, and radio science. For more information on the symposium, paper guidelines and student paper competition, visit the symposium website. The deadline for paper submissions has passed. Early registration deadline is May 15th.
Cape Town, South Africa, September 2-7, 2012.
The deadline for submitting abstracts has passed. Notification of acceptance: April 13, 2012. Final manuscript and presenter registration: June 8, 2012
General Information
The International Conference on Electromagnetics in Advanced Applications, ICEAA, has been held in Turin, Italy, on a biennial basis since 1989; in 2010, the first "offshore" edition of ICEAA was successfully launched in Sydney, Australia. On behalf of the local organizing committee, I extend a very warm South African welcome to you for the 2012 edition of the conference, being held in Cape Town!
As of 2011, the IEEE-APS Topical Conference on Antennas and Propagation in Wireless Communications (IEEE APWC) is being held jointly with ICEAA.
Additionally, a new event, the Electromagnetic Environment and Interference Symposium (EEIS, an URSI Commission E initiative), is being incorporated into ICEAA 2012. The scope of the combined ICEAA/IEEE APWC/Commission E event encompasses a broad range of topics in the field of antennas and engineering electromagnetics in general.
The Proceedings of ICEAA- EEIS and IEEE APWC will be included in the IEEE Xplore
If you have any questions about abstract's submission please contact: Dr. Guido Lombardi (Politecnico di Torino) E-Mail: iceaa12@iceaa.polito.it Other information, please contact local organizer: Nelda Rousseau/Hanri Klindt ICEAA - IEEE 2012 Conference ConsultUS (Pty) Ltd PO Box 19063 Tygerberg, 7505 Phone: +27 21 938 9651/9629/9082 Fax +27 21 933 2649 E-Mail: neldar@sun.ac.za
USNC-URSI-J Current Officers
Chair: Rich Bradley (NRAO and U. Virginia)
Vice-Chair: David DeBoer (U.C. Berkeley)
Secretary: Jeff Mangum (NRAO)
National Academy of Sciences Representative: Ken Kellermann (NRAO)
American Astronomical Society Representative: Joe Lazio (NASA JPL)
International URSI
URSI Commission J Chair: Justin Jonas (Rhodes University, South Africa)
URSI Commission J Vice-Chair: Willem Baan (ASTRON, Netherlands)
USNC-URSI Business Address
Kathie Bailey-Mathae Director, Board on International Scientific Organizations The National Academies 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
Commission J Business Meeting Minutes
Commission J Membership Roster
Here (Updated: January 30, 2012)
Membership Nominations
Please consider nominating someone for membership in USNC-URSI Commission J. The required qualifications for membership in the Commission are technical competence and interest in the activities of URSI. Students are encouraged to become involved - they can be nominated for non-voting Associate Membership. This is a three year term that can be renewed once for a total of six years. Guidelines for membership and the on-line nomination form can be found at the usnc-ursi membership nomination web page. The membership will vote on the nominees during the Boulder Commission J Business Meetings in January.Reference Documents
Radio Science, a fully refereed journal published by the American Geophysical Union (AGU) and cosponsored by URSI, carries original scientific contributions on all aspects of electromagnetic phenomena related to physical problems. These contributions can include propagation through and interaction of electromagnetic waves with geophysical media, biological media, plasmas, and man-made structures. Coverage includes, but is not limited to, the application of electromagnetic techniques to radio astronomy, the ionosphere, remote sensing of the Earth and its environment, telecommunications, and signals and systems. All frequencies (including optical) are considered.
A Special Section of Radio Science to be devoted to Low Frequency Arrays and the Ionosphere has been approved by the AGU. Anthea Coster (Commission G) and Rich Bradley are the co-editors. Topics include the use of astronomical arrays for ionospheric studies, ionospheric effects on the calibration of low frequency radio astronomy arrays, current joint initiatives, and trends in joint research. Manuscript submission for this Section is closed and the review process is underway. Publication is anticipated for late 2012.
