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3 - Radio Astronomy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 December 2022

Giuseppe Bertin
Affiliation:
Università degli Studi di Milano
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Summary

The chapter starts with a brief description of some of the most important telescopes for radioastronomy, and the distinction between single-dish telescopes and radio interferometers (with special attention on the ALMA array, a very successful facility particularly in the study of protostellar and protoplanetary systems). The chapter then highlights some of the most important discoveries that radio astronomy has contributed. Special attention is given to the discovery of (1) the 21-cm neutral hydrogen line and its importance in the study of the rotation of spiral galaxies; (2) the Cosmic Microwave Background and the birth of modern cosmology; (3) pulsars, with specific discussion of binary pulsars and millisecond pulsars; (4) gravitational lensing, first observed in terms of multiple images of distant quasars, with some description of weak and strong lensing and the interesting measurement of time delays in relation to the determination of the Hubble constant. The discovery of pulsars interpreted as fast rotators prompts a final section, which is a digression on the interplay among density, shape, and rotation in self-gravitating systems.

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Visible and Dark Matter in the Universe
A Short Primer on Astrophysical Dynamics
, pp. 37 - 53
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • Radio Astronomy
  • Giuseppe Bertin, Università degli Studi di Milano
  • Book: Visible and Dark Matter in the Universe
  • Online publication: 08 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023368.004
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  • Radio Astronomy
  • Giuseppe Bertin, Università degli Studi di Milano
  • Book: Visible and Dark Matter in the Universe
  • Online publication: 08 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023368.004
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Radio Astronomy
  • Giuseppe Bertin, Università degli Studi di Milano
  • Book: Visible and Dark Matter in the Universe
  • Online publication: 08 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009023368.004
Available formats
×