NOEMA (NOrthern Extended Millimeter Array) is part of a completely new generation of radio telescopes: it consists of an array of several movable telescopes placed on tracks, equipped with state-of-the-art reception systems which combine to form the equivalent of a single, giant telescope. With outstanding sensitivity and resolution, NOEMA permits to explore the cold universe at temperatures very near absolute zero at -273.15 degrees Celsius, unveiling objects impossible to observe using optical instruments because they are hidden by interstellar clouds of cosmic dust.
One of the most important missions of the NOEMA project is the exploration of interstellar gas clouds and the birth of stars in our own Galaxy and in galaxies observed at a state just after the Big Bang. Scientists hope to find answers to the most fundamental questions of modern-day astronomy: How did the first generation of stars emerge after the Big Bang? How did the first big structures in the universe evolve towards galaxies like our Milky Way? How does the cosmic cycle of interstellar matter work, whereby dying stars eject matter at the end of their lives and potentially give birth to new stars? How do new planets and planetary systems take shape and how do newly formed planets get enriched by prebiotic molecules which could be fundamental for the emergence of life?
In the future, a total of 12 antennas will scan the sky in the service of the researchers, currently ten antennas have already been constructed on the Plateau de Bure in the French Alps. During the extension of the observatory, scientific operations are ongoing and have provided the first scientific results: Along with the discovery of a particularly spectacular, active star-forming region filled with prebiotic molecules, NOEMA has recently produced an image of unrivalled precision showing the distribution of dust clouds in a big spiral galaxy in the Camelopardalis constellation.
In addition, NOEMA will be an important part of a larger, global network of telescopes. As the most powerful radio telescope in the Northern hemisphere, NOEMA will play a key role in the exploration of ultra-massive black holes by the global network Event Horizon Telescope. This project combines several radio telescopes across four continents to a worldwide telescope with the goal to image the black hole in the centre of our galaxy for the very first time, amongst other scientific aims.
The equipment of all ten antennas with completely new and highly sensitive reception systems has been crucial for these achievements and the completion of the first project phase. This cutting edge technology permits scientists to take measurements with outstanding sensitivity and at the same time, to analyse a much larger range of wavelengths.
During observations, the ten antennas interact to build one single telescope, a technique called interferometry. However, observations with so many antennas at the same time require the development of a supercomputer, with a power of 20,000,000,000,000,000 operations by second. This device, called a correlator, is able to analyse numerous simultaneously incoming signals. IRAM engineers have worked for seven years to complete this innovative correlator. A digital wonder equipped with cutting edge technology, it is able to calculate approximately five million times faster than a conventional computer.
The second project phase will last until 2021 and foresees, besides antennas 11 and 12, the extension of the track system which will allow to place the antennas at a distance of 1.7 kilometres, increasing tenfold the sensitivity of measurements compared to what has been possible until now.
Background information
IRAM, the Institute for Radio Astronomy at Millimeter wavelengths was founded in 1979 by the German Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (MPG) and the French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). The Spanish Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN) joined the partnership in 1990. With its headquarters in Grenoble, the institute operates two observatories: The 30-meter telescope on the Pico Veleta near Granada in Spain and the NOEMA observatory (currently ten antennas) on the Plateau de Bure in the French Alps.
The overall budget for the NOEMA project is estimated at 51 million euros. It is supported and financed by the IRAM founding institutions: the Max-Planck-Society and the CNRS.
In cooperation with the Max-Planck-Institute for Radioastronomy and the European Research Council Projekt BlackHoleCam, NOEMA is being prepared for its key role in the future Event Horizon Telescope observations.
