This study documents several correlations observed during the first run of the plasma wakefield acceleration experiment E300 conducted at FACET-II, using a single drive electron bunch. The established correlations include those between the measured maximum energy loss of the drive electron beam and the integrated betatron X-ray signal, the calculated total beam energy deposited in the plasma and the integrated X-ray signal, among three visible light emission measuring cameras and between the visible plasma light and X-ray signal. The integrated X-ray signal correlates almost linearly with both the maximum energy loss of the drive beam and the energy deposited into the plasma, demonstrating its usability as a measure of energy transfer from the drive beam to the plasma. Visible plasma light is found to be a useful indicator of the presence of a wake at three locations that overall are two metres apart. Despite the complex dynamics and vastly different time scales, the X-ray radiation from the drive bunch and visible light emission from the plasma may prove to be effective non-invasive diagnostics for monitoring the energy transfer from the beam to the plasma in future high-repetition-rate experiments.

Meta-sedimentary rocks recovered beneath Palaeogene basalts near the base of Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 152-917A offshore South-East Greenland were thought to be of Late Cretaceous age. This interpretation, however, has several inconsistencies as it requires a tectono-metamorphic event during the Cretaceous not recognized in the North Atlantic region, and the presence of a wide Mesozoic sedimentary basin that extended from SE-Greenland to the Rockall Plateau, for which there is currently no evidence. Here, we report a Neoproterozoic U/Pb apatite age of 905 ± 21 Ma and a younger 40Ar/39Ar isochron whole-rock age of 820 ± 40 Ma for an altered tuff layer that occurs in the upper part of the meta-volcaniclastic sequence recovered from hole 917A. The 40Ar/39Ar step-heating ages on biotite and whole-rock mini-cores from deeper in hole 917A yielded Palaeoproterozic dates that cluster around 1950 to 1850 Ma, pointing toward a Palaeoproterozoic source. The U/Pb apatite date is interpreted as the eruption age of the tuff layer, whereas the younger whole-rock 40Ar/39Ar age is consistent with low-temperature greenschist alteration of volcanic glass and secondary mineral growth during sedimentary burial in an extensional regime. The c. 905 Ma age for the tuff provides the first evidence for Neoproterozoic rocks offshore South-East Greenland and suggests a correlation between this sequence and the Torridon Group in the Hebridean Foreland of the Scottish Caledonides. The calc-alkaline nature of the volcaniclastic rocks and the age of the tuff layer point toward a source area with arc-magmatism related to the Renlandian event of the Valhalla Orogeny.

An ultramafic lamprophyre dyke is described from the otherwise tholeiitic Ferrar magmatic province of Antarctica. We report an Ar-Ar age of 183 ± 2.2 Ma for the dyke, indistinguishable from those of the Ferrar tholeiites. However, the dyke has mineralogical and major and trace element compositions, and radiogenic isotopes ratios, very different from the Ferrar tholeiites. The sample consists of olivine and rare clinopyroxene phenocrysts with perovskite and spinel microphenocrysts in a groundmass of amphibole, nepheline and biotite. Carbonatitic globules contain calcite, dolomite, Fe-rich carbonate, nepheline, biotite, orthoclase, pyrite, clinopyroxene, apatite and silicate glass, and were formed by liquid immiscibility. The rock is mildly potassic and classifies as an ouachitite. It is strongly enriched in both moderately and highly incompatible trace elements and is the first high-Ti rock to be described from the Ferrar magmatic province. The rock has similar initial 143Nd/144Nd to OIB, notably Bouvet, Crozet and Réunion, but significantly higher initial 87Sr/86Sr. The lamprophyre magma is interpreted as having been generated by low-degree partial fusion of metasomatized lithospheric mantle as a result of heat conducted from an underlying Jurassic mantle plume. The same mantle plume was probably also responsible for generating one of the world’s largest layered gabbro bodies, the Dufek-Forrestal intrusions.

Trifluralin a,a,a-trifluoro-2,6-dinitro-N,N-dipropyl-p-toluidine) applied at 1.12 kg/ha inhibited lateral root development on field-grown pecan (Carya illinoensis (Wang.) K. Koch) seedlings. In a greenhouse study, inhibition of lateral roots, club-shaped radicles, and restricted penetration of tap roots resulted when pecans were planted in soil treated with 1.0 ppm trifluralin. When pecans were planted above soil treated with trifluralin, normal root development occurred only in the soil which had not been treated. Lateral roots were inhibited in the trifluralin-treated soil. Pecan nuts from trifluralin plots were smaller than those collected from controls, but other factors of quality were statistically equal or superior to nuts harvested in plots which had been treated with 2-chloro-4,6-bis-(ethylamino)-s-triazine (simazine) and 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (diuron). The smaller nut size was attributed to lateral root inhibition by trifluralin early during nut development.

We describe the performance of the Boolardy Engineering Test Array, the prototype for the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder telescope. Boolardy Engineering Test Array is the first aperture synthesis radio telescope to use phased array feed technology, giving it the ability to electronically form up to nine dual-polarisation beams. We report the methods developed for forming and measuring the beams, and the adaptations that have been made to the traditional calibration and imaging procedures in order to allow BETA to function as a multi-beam aperture synthesis telescope. We describe the commissioning of the instrument and present details of Boolardy Engineering Test Array’s performance: sensitivity, beam characteristics, polarimetric properties, and image quality. We summarise the astronomical science that it has produced and draw lessons from operating Boolardy Engineering Test Array that will be relevant to the commissioning and operation of the final Australian Square Kilometre Array Path telescope.

Our knowledge of the universe comes from recording the photon and particle fluxes incident on the Earth from space. We thus require sensitive measurement across the entire energy spectrum, using large telescopes with efficient instrumentation located on superb sites. Technological advances and engineering constraints are nearing the point where we are recording as many photons arriving at a site as is possible. Major advances in the future will come from improving the quality of the site. The ultimate site is, of course, beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, such as on the Moon, but economic limitations prevent our exploiting this avenue to the degree that the scientific community desires. Here we describe an alternative, which offers many of the advantages of space for a fraction of the cost: the Antarctic Plateau.

The University of NSW’s Automated Patrol Telescope is a modified Baker-Nunn satellite tracking camera, now used for CCD imaging of astronomical objects. The f/1 Baker-Nunn optical design gives a 30° field of view with an approximately spherical focal surface of radius ≈500 mm. While the focal plane curvature is tolerable across the 1.4° × 1.0° field of the present CCD, it becomes unacceptable when a larger CCD is used. In addition, the use of glass filters in the highly convergent beam produces intolerable spherical aberration. We present a design modification to the original Baker-Nunn which enables a 5° diameter flat field to be produced when using B, V, R or I filters. By making this modification, we plan to perform multicolour imaging, using a new large-format CCD with a 2.9° × 1.9° field of view.

This paper describes the system architecture of a newly constructed radio telescope – the Boolardy engineering test array, which is a prototype of the Australian square kilometre array pathfinder telescope. Phased array feed technology is used to form multiple simultaneous beams per antenna, providing astronomers with unprecedented survey speed. The test array described here is a six-antenna interferometer, fitted with prototype signal processing hardware capable of forming at least nine dual-polarisation beams simultaneously, allowing several square degrees to be imaged in a single pointed observation. The main purpose of the test array is to develop beamforming and wide-field calibration methods for use with the full telescope, but it will also be capable of limited early science demonstrations.

Antarctic and Southern Ocean science is vital to understanding natural variability, the processes that govern global change and the role of humans in the Earth and climate system. The potential for new knowledge to be gained from future Antarctic science is substantial. Therefore, the international Antarctic community came together to ‘scan the horizon’ to identify the highest priority scientific questions that researchers should aspire to answer in the next two decades and beyond. Wide consultation was a fundamental principle for the development of a collective, international view of the most important future directions in Antarctic science. From the many possibilities, the horizon scan identified 80 key scientific questions through structured debate, discussion, revision and voting. Questions were clustered into seven topics: i) Antarctic atmosphere and global connections, ii) Southern Ocean and sea ice in a warming world, iii) ice sheet and sea level, iv) the dynamic Earth, v) life on the precipice, vi) near-Earth space and beyond, and vii) human presence in Antarctica. Answering the questions identified by the horizon scan will require innovative experimental designs, novel applications of technology, invention of next-generation field and laboratory approaches, and expanded observing systems and networks. Unbiased, non-contaminating procedures will be required to retrieve the requisite air, biota, sediment, rock, ice and water samples. Sustained year-round access to Antarctica and the Southern Ocean will be essential to increase winter-time measurements. Improved models are needed that represent Antarctica and the Southern Ocean in the Earth System, and provide predictions at spatial and temporal resolutions useful for decision making. A co-ordinated portfolio of cross-disciplinary science, based on new models of international collaboration, will be essential as no scientist, programme or nation can realize these aspirations alone.

Gattini and CSTAR have been installed at Dome A, Antarctica, which provide time-series photometric data for a large number of pulsating variable stars. We present the study for several variable stars with the data collected with the two facilities in 2009 to demonstrate the scientific potential of observations from Dome A for asteroseismology.

PILOT (the Pathfinder for an International Large Optical Telescope) is a proposed 2.5-m optical/infrared telescope to be located at Dome C on the Antarctic plateau. The atmospheric conditions at Dome C deliver a high sensitivity, high photometric precision, wide-field, high spatial resolution, and high-cadence imaging capability to the PILOT telescope. These capabilities enable a unique scientific potential for PILOT, which is addressed in this series of papers. The current paper presents a series of projects dealing with the distant (redshift >1) Universe, that have been identified as key science drivers for the PILOT facility. The potential for PILOT to detect the first populations of stars to form in the early Universe, via infrared projects searching for pair-instability supernovae and gamma-ray burst afterglows, is investigated. Two projects are proposed to examine the assembly and evolution of structure in the Universe: an infrared survey searching for the first evolved galaxies at high redshift, and an optical survey aimed at characterising moderate-redshift galaxy clusters. Finally, a large-area weak-lensing survey and a program to obtain supernova infrared light-curves are proposed to examine the nature and evolution of dark energy and dark matter.

The near infrared sky spectral brightness has been measured at the South Pole with the Near Infrared Sky Monitor (NISM) throughout the 2001 winter season. The sky is found to be typically more than an order of magnitude darker than at temperate latitude sites, consistent with previous South Pole observations. Reliable robotic operation of the NISM, a low power, autonomous instrument, has been demonstrated throughout the Antarctic winter. Data analysis yields a median winter value of the 2.4μm (Kdark) sky spectral brightness of ˜120μJy arcsec−2 and an average of 210 ± 80μJy arcsec−2. The 75%, 50%, and 25% quartile values are 270 ± 100, 155 ± 60, and 80 ± 30μJy arcsec−2, respectively.

PILOT (the Pathfinder for an International Large Optical Telescope) is a proposed 2.5-m optical/infrared telescope to be located at Dome C on the Antarctic plateau. The atmospheric conditions at Dome C deliver a high sensitivity, high photometric precision, wide-field, high spatial resolution, and high-cadence imaging capability to the PILOT telescope. These capabilities enable a unique scientific potential for PILOT, which is addressed in this series of papers. The current paper presents a series of projects dealing with the nearby Universe that have been identified as key science drivers for the PILOT facility. Several projects are proposed that examine stellar populations in nearby galaxies and stellar clusters in order to gain insight into the formation and evolution processes of galaxies and stars. A series of projects will investigate the molecular phase of the Galaxy and explore the ecology of star formation, and investigate the formation processes of stellar and planetary systems. Three projects in the field of exoplanet science are proposed: a search for free-floating low-mass planets and dwarfs, a program of follow-up observations of gravitational microlensing events, and a study of infrared light-curves for previously discovered exoplanets. Three projects are also proposed in the field of planetary and space science: optical and near-infrared studies aimed at characterising planetary atmospheres, a study of coronal mass ejections from the Sun, and a monitoring program searching for small-scale Low Earth Orbit satellite debris items.

PILOT (the Pathfinder for an International Large Optical Telescope) is a proposed 2.5-m optical/infrared telescope to be located at Dome C on the Antarctic plateau. Conditions at Dome C are known to be exceptional for astronomy. The seeing (above ∼30 m height), coherence time, and isoplanatic angle are all twice as good as at typical mid-latitude sites, while the water-vapour column, and the atmosphere and telescope thermal emission are all an order of magnitude better. These conditions enable a unique scientific capability for PILOT, which is addressed in this series of papers. The current paper presents an overview of the optical and instrumentation suite for PILOT and its expected performance, a summary of the key science goals and observational approach for the facility, a discussion of the synergies between the science goals for PILOT and other telescopes, and a discussion of the future of Antarctic astronomy. Paper II and Paper III present details of the science projects divided, respectively, between the distant Universe (i.e. studies of first light, and the assembly and evolution of structure) and the nearby Universe (i.e. studies of Local Group galaxies, the Milky Way, and the Solar System).

We have developed a 350 μm radiometer to perform automated site testing in remote regions of Antarctica. In summer 2000–2001 the instrument operated at Concordia, a new station under construction at Dome C on the Antarctic Plateau. We present the results, and compare them with the atmospheric opacity measured at the South Pole in the same five-week period. During these five weeks, observing conditions at Dome C were, on average, substantially better than those at the South Pole.

Over the past few years, site-testing at the South Pole has revealed conditions that are uniquely favourable for infrared astronomy. In particular, the exceptionally low sky brightness throughout the near and mid-infrared leads to the possibility of a modest-sized telescope achieving comparable sensitivity to that of existing 8–10 metre class telescopes. An 8 metre Antarctic telescope, if constructed, would yield performance that would be unrivalled until the advent of the NGST. In this paper we review the scientific potential of infrared telescopes in Antarctica, and discuss their complementarity with existing 8–10 metre class telescopes and future proposed space telescopes. In particular, we discuss the role that a 2 metre class infrared telescope plays in future plans for the development of an observatory on the Antarctic plateau.

We describe the specifications, characteristics, calibration, and analysis of data from the University of New South Wales Infrared Fabry–Perot (UNSWIRF) etalon. UNSWIRF is a near-infrared tunable imaging spectrometer, used primarily in conjunction with IRIS on the AAT, but suitable for use as a visitor instrument at other telescopes. The etalon delivers a resolving power in excess of 4000 (corresponding to a velocity resolution ∼75 km s−1), and allows imaging of fields up to 100″ in diameter on the AAT at any wavelength between 1·5 and 2·4 μm for which suitable blocking filters are available.