The VLA

As we were going to San Antonio, NM, I mentioned to Don that the VLA (Very Large Array) is only an hour away and perhaps we should consider going there after the Trinity Site and lunch at the Owl Bar.  Katie and Teri thought it was a good idea, so after lunch, off we went.

What we didn't know is that the VLA holds an open house on the same day as the Trinity Site.  As we drove up and saw many cars, we commented that we had no idea the VLA was that popular.  It isn't, except on free Open House day.  But lucky for us!

We were just in time for a walking tour, and luckily we took it.  Our tour guide, Prashant - a PhD student on a felllowship from the University of Capetown in South Africa - provided interesting commentary that we could all understand.  He could have gotten very technical, but he didn't, which made the tour fascinating.  As a part of the Open House, we were allowed into the control center that houses the huge collating super-computer.  It collects 312,000 bits of data every second or a terrabyte an hour.  That's 24 terrabytes a day x 363 days (they are closed on two days)  . . for 30 years and counting.

The VLA collects radio waves (versus visible waves or gamma rays).  By doing so, astronomers are given another view of the universe that completes what can be seen with visual telescopes. With radio waves, gases can be detected that are not seen any other way.  Since the VLA is a global project, scientists from all over the world can make a proposal for VLA time.  The collection of data is free to those who have earned array time, and one does not have to be an astronomer to use it.  But a proposal must be very strong to earn time.  Guess I won't be applying.

By the time we left, our heads were exploding from all of the information we had picked up at the Trinity Site and the VLA.  And we understand better both the technology of the past and of the future.