NAOJ tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011-08-30:/E//1 2012-02-01T06:12:20Z National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, the national center of astronomical research in Japan, has the most advanced observing facilities in the world. Movable Type Pro 5.01 ALMA Vacancy Notice - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2012:/E/release//2.173 2012-02-01T06:11:58Z 2012-02-01T06:12:20Z The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an international astronomy facility, is a p... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/ The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), an international astronomy facility, is a partnership of Europe, North America and East Asia in cooperation with the Republic of Chile. ALMA is funded in Europe by the European Organization for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO), in North America by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) in cooperation with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) and the National Science Council of Taiwan (NSC) and in East Asia by the National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS) of Japan in cooperation with the Academia Sinica (AS) in Taiwan. ALMA construction and operations are led on behalf of Europe by ESO, on behalf of North America by the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO), which is managed by Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI) and on behalf of East Asia by the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). The Joint ALMA Observatory (JAO) provides the unified leadership and management of the construction, commissioning and operation of ALMA.

The Joint ALMA Observatory invites applications for the position of:

Test Scientist

Duties and Responsibilities

The JAO invites applications for a Test Scientist to participate in system tests during the Assembly, Integration and Verification as well as Maintenance Verification processes. The Test Scientist will be part of the team responsible for ensuring that appropriate testing has been accomplished to verify that system requirements are met.

Main Responsibilities

  • Support routine tests on antennas, such as holographic measurement and optical pointing, by performing data analyses, developing automated control and reduction scripts, and training operators, engineers and technicians;
  • Execute tests to characterize integrated interferometric system behavior, including radiometric pointing, antenna and beam characterization, surface shape change with elevation, path delay, phase stability, band pass stability changes, etc.;
  • During array commissioning, work with the engineering staff to develop tests and provide the analysis needed to help solve problems with system performance;

Work with the commissioning team to define tests needed to validate the system;

Professional Requirements/Qualifications

Applicants for this position shall fulfill the following requirements:

  • Advanced degree in engineering, physics or astronomy at the Doctoral level is required.
  • At least three years observational experience with radio astronomy.
  • Demonstrable experience with observing techniques and data reduction
  • Knowledge in techniques used in radio astronomy observations.
  • Experience with microwave and digital systems.
  • Understanding of aperture synthesis arrays.
  • Experience working in a team environment.

Due to travel requirements and work at high altitudes, a successful high altitude medical check is a necessary condition of employment for this position.

Duty Station / Location of Position

The position is based at the ALMA Operations Support Facility (OSF) near San Pedro de Atacama at 2900m and, occasionally, to the Array Operations Site (AOS) at 5000m.

Starting Date

As soon as possible.

Contract

Contractual terms will be finalized with the employer (ESO, AUI/NRAO or NAOJ); however, the position is expected to last until December, 2013.

Remuneration

ALMA International Staff will be recruited as employees of either ESO or AUI/NRAO or NAOJ. Each of these employers offer competitive remuneration packages including a competitive salary as well as comprehensive social benefits, and provide financial support in relocating families. Furthermore, if applicable, an expatriation allowance as well as some other allowances will be added.

Applications must be completed in English and should include a cover letter and CV.

Applicants submitting their application to ESO are invited to apply online at https://jobs.eso.org/. The position requires three letters of reference which shall be sent to vacancy@eso.org.

Applicants submitting their application to NRAO are invited to apply online at https://careers.nrao.edu. Also, three reference letters are required.

Applicants submitting their application to NAOJ are invited to apply via e-mail to k.tatematsu@nao.ac.jp. Also, three reference letters are required.

Deadline for receipt of applications to be considered for the position is 15 March 2012.

For further information please consult (www.almaobservatory.org), as well as the ESO, NRAO, and/or NAOJ Home Pages (www.eso.org), (www.nrao.edu), or (http://alma.mtk.nao.ac.jp/e/).

ESO, NRAO, and NAOJ are Equal Opportunity Employers. The post is equally open to suitably qualified female and male applicants.

]]> The Role of Subaru Telescope in Supernova Research: A Q and A Interview with Nobel Laureate Saul Perlmutter - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2012:/E/release//2.172 2012-01-30T00:35:16Z 2012-01-30T00:55:05Z Researchers discuss the observational results with Dr. Saul Perlmutter. Inset is a group picture ta... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Researchers discuss the observational results with Dr. Saul Perlmutter. Inset is a group picture taken during one of the workshops of theSupernova Cosmology Project where several astronomers from Japan can be seen. (Photo ourtesy of Lawrence Berkeley National Lab).

Japanese researchers have been collaborating with Dr. Saul Perlmutter, one of the Nobel Physics Laureates of 2011. Dr. Perlmutter's Supernova Cosmology Project team member, Nao Suzuki, recently interviewed Perlmutter, who discussed the role of Subaru Telescope for supernova cosmology research.

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]]> Precise Measurment of Dark Matter Distribution with Strong and Weak Gravitional Lensing - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2012:/E/release//2.171 2012-01-20T05:06:58Z 2012-01-20T05:13:38Z An international research group led by Masamune Oguri, an assistant professor at IPMU, has made a p... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

An international research group led by Masamune Oguri, an assistant professor at IPMU, has made a precise measurement of dark matter distribution in galaxy clusters by analyzing both ‘strong’ and ‘weak’ gravitational lensing phenomena observed in images of 28 galaxy clusters taken at the Subaru 8.2-meter telescope. The result settles a long-standing controversy about the central concentration of dark matter distribution.

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]]> Subaru's Sharp Eye Confirms Signs of Unseen Planets in the Dust Ring of HR 4796A - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2012:/E/release//2.170 2012-01-04T04:21:32Z 2012-01-04T07:04:45Z Near-infrared (1.6 micron) image of the debris ring around the star HR 4796 A. An astronomical unit... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Near-infrared (1.6 micron) image of the debris ring around the star HR 4796 A. An astronomical unit (AU) is a unit of length that corresponds to the average distance between the Earth and Sun, almost 92 million miles (over 149 million km).

The SEEDS (Strategic Exploration of Exoplanets and Disks with Subaru Telescope/HiCIAO) project, a five-year international collaboration launched in 2009 and led by Motohide Tamura of NAOJ (National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) has yielded another impressive image that contributes to our understanding of the link between disks and planet formation. Researchers used Subaru's planet-finder camera, HiCIAO (High Contrast Instrument for the Subaru Next Generation Adaptive Optics), to take a crisp high-contrast image of the dust ring around HR 4796 A, a young (8-10 million years old) nearby star, only 240 light years away from Earth. The ring consists of dust grains in a wide orbit, roughly twice the size of Pluto's orbit, around the central star. The resolution of the image of the inner edge of the ring is so precise that an offset between its center and the star's position can be measured. Although data from the Hubble Space Telescope led another research group to suspect such an offset, the Subaru data not only confirm its presence but also reveal it to be larger than previously assumed.

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]]> Complete Map of Molecular Gas and Interstellar Dust of M33 - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.169 2011-12-28T06:38:03Z 2012-01-04T07:05:23Z A research group lead by Shinya KOMUGI (NAOJ) and Tomoka TOSAKI (Joetsu University of Education), h... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

A research group lead by Shinya KOMUGI (NAOJ) and Tomoka TOSAKI (Joetsu University of Education), has succeeded in completing a wide-field, precision map of the materials which give birth to stars in the Triangulum galaxy (M33, distance of 2.7 million light years), one of the closest galaxies to our own Milky Way Galaxy where we live.

The group invested more than one thousand hours of observing time at the Nobeyama 45m radio telescope, and at the 10m ASTE telescope located at an altitude of 4800m in the Chilean Andes of South America, to observe the distribution of molecular gas and interstellar dust in M33. Molecular gas is the main ingredient of stars, while interstellar dust works as the "factory" of molecular gas. The observation of molecular gas accomplished a three-fold improvement in spatial resolution compared to previous studies, whereas the observation of dust became the first of its kind.

Galaxies contain structures called "giant molecular clouds", which can be as massive as one hundred thousand suns and as large as several hundred light years. These giant molecular clouds are important in understanding the mechanism of how stars form. The study succeeded in completing a map of the distribution of molecular gas and interstellar dust over the full extent of M33, an area on the sky corresponding to two full moons. This research, for the first time, revealed the distribution of molecular gas and dust at a precision of individual molecular clouds in a galaxy other than our Milky Way.

The resulting map of gas and dust is expected to give important clues to understanding the questions of how molecular gas is formed and transformed into stars in a galaxy, one of the most outstanding questions of modern astronomy.

Links

]]> Discovery of a Vigorous Star-Forming Galaxy at the Cosmic Dawn - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.168 2011-12-26T04:13:17Z 2011-12-26T05:59:56Z An international team of astronomers led by Masami Ouchi at the University of Tokyo has discovered ... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

An international team of astronomers led by Masami Ouchi at the University of Tokyo has discovered a vigorous, star-forming galaxy that existed about 750 million years after the Big Bang. This galaxy, named GN-108036, was a remarkable source of star formation at the so-called "cosmic dawn", a very early time in cosmic history; it was generating an exceptionally large amount of stars in the calm, dark cosmos.

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]]> Dr. Iye Honored with the Medal with Purple Ribbon - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.167 2011-11-24T05:00:00Z 2011-12-02T02:56:27Z Dr. Iye's Medal with Purple Ribbon and certificate. On November 15, 2011, Dr. Masanori Iye was dec... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Dr. Iye's Medal with Purple Ribbon and certificate.

On November 15, 2011, Dr. Masanori Iye was decorated with the Medal with Purple Ribbon (Shiju Houshou). This honor was given to him not only for his excellence in leading cutting-edge research in astronomy but also for his numerous contributions to the academic world during his lengthy career. Dr. Iye is currently the Director of the TMT (Thirty Meter Telescope) Project Office of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) and a Professor at both the Subaru Telescope and at the Optical and Infrared Astronomy Division of NAOJ.

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]]> “Universe of Spectroscopy” open - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.166 2011-11-22T04:59:06Z 2011-11-22T05:32:41Z Spectral observations tend to be thought of as classical and difficult to understand. However, the ... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Spectral observations tend to be thought of as classical and difficult to understand. However, the advent of new instruments and improvement of accuracy have been producing research at the forefront of Astronomy. “Universe of Spectroscopy” introduces the evolution of spectral observations.

Universe of Spectroscopy

]]> Galaxy Collisions - Star Cluster Formation and Black Hole Growth - - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.165 2011-11-22T03:31:53Z 2011-11-22T03:52:50Z The contours on the right figure show the SMA data obtained and analyzed by the group. Can a galaxy... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

The contours on the right figure show the SMA data obtained and analyzed by the group.

Can a galaxy collision trigger massive bursts of star formation? or is it related to the growth of a super-massive black hole? In an attempt to answer these intriguing scientific questions, an international team led by researchers at the NAOJ Nobeyama and the University of Tokyo observed the nearest colliding galaxy pair from the Earth, the “Antennae galaxies”, using the Submillimeter Array (SMA) in Hawaii.

The team used the SMA to map the relatively warm and dense molecular gas cloud - the exact fuel for future star formation and black hole growth - at an angular resolution that is more than 10 times higher than previously possible. “What was only seen as a blurred picture before has now become increasingly sharp, thanks to the high resolution power offered by the SMA” says Junko Ueda who is a graduate student at the University of Tokyo and the principal investigator of the team.

The team used this new image to identify regions in the Antennae galaxies that do not show clear signs of star clusters in optical images, but have ample amounts of molecular gas clouds. These are regions that will possibly host numerous star clusters in the future, and the intense bursts of star formation could be triggered by the immense galaxy collision.

The high quality SMA image also shows new hints of gas streaming to the central region of the galaxy, which may be related to the growth of the central super massive black hole. Astronomers believe that many of the galaxies in the universe host black holes at galaxy centers.

The Antennae galaxies had been observed during the early commissioning phase at the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillmieter Array (ALMA), and the team plans to confirm and apply their analysis techniques using the ALMA images.

This work is schedule to be published in the Astrophysical Journal.

Ueda et al. “Unveiling the physical properties and kinematics of molecular gas in the Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038/9) through high resolution CO (J = 3-2) observations”

Links

]]> Solar Images from Taisho Period - Approximately 60 Years of Digitized Calcium K-line Solar Images Publicly Shown - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.164 2011-11-21T01:13:46Z 2011-11-22T05:32:11Z The Solar Observatory, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) has digitized calcium K-lin... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/ The Solar Observatory, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) has digitized calcium K-line solar images on photographic plates/films, which had been observed between 1917 and 1974. Since long-term fluctuations in solar activity have become a topic of debate, and in order for many people to be able to utilize the approximately 60 years of accumulated data, we decided to publish the data on the website.

There is an absorption line (393.3nm), called “calcium K-line,” in the purple wavelength range of the solar spectra. It is known that solar images in this wavelength clearly indicate solar magnetic activity and the amount of ultraviolet radiation reaching the earth.

The Tokyo Astronomical Observatory, one of the predecessors of NAOJ took solar images in calcium K-line from 1917 to 1974, using an instrument called a “spectroheliograph.” Observation began at the observatory located in Azabu Ward (present Minato Ward, Tokyo) in 1917. After the Great Kanto Earthquake, the observatory was relocated to Mitaka Village (present Mitaka City, Tokyo), and observation was continued. A total of 8,500 days of observation data, which are recorded on photographic plates/films, has been accumulated.

The Solar Observatory has opened the digitized data to the public so that many people can utilize this valuable, long-term data. In addition to our data, there is also calcium image data recorded since the early 20th century in India and the United States. Through this combination of data, it is possible to know detailed solar activity for the past 100 years. Sunspot observation with it 400-year history and other findings indicate that there are long-term fluctuations in solar activity. It has not been long since modern observation of solar magnetic fields started, so it is very significant to be able to know solar magnetic activity over the past 100 years through the calcium images when studying how the fluctuations affect the earth.

Figure: Calcium K-line images (false color) representing cyclic variations of solar activity in the early 20th century. The structure of the portion called the “chromosphere,” which is above the sun's normally-observed surface, is indicated. Solar activity rises and declines repeatedly in an approximately 11-year cycle. When there is greater activity, there is an increased appearance of areas called “plage” which look bright (white) in pictures because their temperature is higher than that of surrounding areas. Plages indicate what kind of activity exists in particular areas of the sun's surface, and can be used as good indicators of overall solar activity.

Figure (siderostat and spectroheliograph): Pictures of a siderostat (which tracks the sun and brings light to an observation room using mirrors) that had been used for observation and a spectroheliograph (which records images in a very short range of wavelength by combining observation results from a slit spectroscope and scanned solar images), when they were in operation at the Mitaka campus.

Solar Activity Database
- Calcium K-line Full-Disk Spectroheliograms -

Link

]]> Ultra Bright Submillimeter Galaxy “Orochi” - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.163 2011-11-18T04:13:01Z 2011-11-18T04:36:10Z Multi-wavelength images of Orochi. Orochi is located at the center of each image. The bright sour... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Multi-wavelength images of Orochi.

Multi-wavelength images of Orochi. Orochi is located at the center of each image. The bright sources on radio, millimeter and submillimeter wavelength images thought to be Orochi. On the other hands, the source at the center of optical and near-, mid-infrared images thought to be the foreground source.

An international team discovered an ultra bright submillimeter galaxy in the Subaru/XMM-Newton Deep Field by using a submillimeter telescope, ASTE operated by mainly National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) and University of Tokyo. This galaxy is more than 10 times brighter than usual submillimeter bright galaxies. Naming this source after a monster in a Japanese old legend, we nicknamed this source “Orochi”.

The research team observed Orochi by other instruments such as the Submillimeter Array in Hawaii, the Combined Array for Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy in California, and the Caltech Submillimeter Observatory in Hawaii. Combining existing data taken by the Spitzer Space Telescope, the Very Large Array, the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope and the Subaru Telescope, the team revealed that Orochi was detected on all of these multi-wavelength data from optical to radio. The detailed analysis of these data indicates that some of the bright submillimeter flux from Orochi is probably gravitationally lensed by a foreground galaxy.

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]]> Subaru's 3-D View of Stephan's Quintet - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.161 2011-10-27T05:19:28Z 2011-10-27T05:26:23Z Composite tricolor images of Stephan's Quintet using Hα filters with a recession velocity of 0 (le... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Composite tricolor images of Stephan's Quintet using Hα filters with a recession velocity of 0 (left image) and a recession velocity of 4,200 miles per second (right image).

Composite tricolor images of Stephan's Quintet using Hα filters with a recession velocity of 0 (left image) and a recession velocity of 4,200 miles per second (right image).

Subaru Telescope has added another dimension of information about one of the most studied of all compact galaxy groups―Stephan's Quintet. Located within the borders of the constellation Pegasus, Stephan's Quintet consists of a visual grouping of five galaxies, four of which form an actual compact group of galaxies; one additional galaxy appears in images of the group but is much closer than the others. Refinements in observations of the quintet are revealing more about its members. A comparison of images compiled by using a suite of specialized filters with Subaru's Prime Focus Camera have shown different types of star-formation activity between the closer galaxy NGC7320 and the more distant galaxies in Stephan's Quintet. They show the quintet in 3-D.

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]]> Increasing the Power of Subaru's Adaptive Optics System - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.160 2011-10-27T05:15:11Z 2011-10-28T00:30:04Z Dr. Yosuke Minowa, a Subaru Support Astronomer, is giving a presentation about Subaru's adaptive o... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

Dr. Yosuke Minowa, a Subaru Support Astronomer, is giving a presentation about Subaru's adaptive optics.

Dr. Yosuke Minowa, a Subaru Support Astronomer, is giving a presentation about Subaru's adaptive optics.

On September 8th and 9th, Subaru Telescope hosted a workshop focused on Subaru's next-generation adaptive optics system, a successor to the present system. More than 70 astronomy researchers interested in adaptive optics, including some who participated via videoconferencing, gathered at the Osaka University Nakanoshima Center to attend the workshop.

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]]> It Takes a Community to Support a Telescope - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.159 2011-10-27T01:57:10Z 2011-10-27T05:15:04Z Astronomer Dr. Tadayuki Kodama answers a question from a member of the audience during his Mauna K... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

August 6th, 2011 at 12:20, Subaru Telescope.Finally, HSC has safely arrived at Subaru Telescope.

Astronomer Dr. Tadayuki Kodama answers a question from a member of the audience during his Mauna Kea Skies presentation in `Imiloa's planetarium.

Subaru Telescope is truly an international enterprise, but it is also an important part of the fabric of the local community. As a Japanese facility and organization situated on U.S. soil, Subaru Telescope is grateful for the support of the local community and shows its appreciation in a variety of ways: hiring local residents as staff, making a substantial donation to the University of Hawaii each year, providing free public tours, and participating in outreach and community events. Public speeches and participation in AstroDay are two major examples of how Subaru staff contributes to the local community.

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]]> HSC Wide-Field Corrector Arrives at Subaru Telescope - release tag:www.nao.ac.jp,2011:/E/release//2.158 2011-10-27T01:46:25Z 2011-10-27T05:29:32Z August 6th, 2011 at 12:20, Subaru Telescope. Finally, HSC has safely arrived at Subaru Telescope... NAOJ http://www.nao.ac.jp/

August 6th, 2011 at 12:20, Subaru Telescope.Finally, HSC has safely arrived at Subaru Telescope.

August 6th, 2011 at 12:20, Subaru Telescope. Finally, HSC has safely arrived at Subaru Telescope.

The wide-field corrector of Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) arrived on August 6, 2011 at Subaru Telescope atop Mauna Kea. HSC is a huge digital camera that will be mounted at prime focus, which is at the top of the Subaru Telescope. HSC's field of view is seven times larger than that of the Subaru Prime Focus Camera (Suprime-Cam), the current instrument for use at prime focus. The wide-field corrector is part of the fundamental technology of HSC that corrects for optical aberration and atmospheric dispersion of the prime focus.

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