Very Large Array

The Very Large Array is a radio astronomy observatory near Socorro, New Mexico, with 27 movable antennas that combine their signals as an interferometer.

Radio interferometry: A technique that combines signals from multiple radio telescopes to measure fine angular detail. The array uses this technique to act like a much larger telescope.
National Radio Astronomy Observatory: A United States research center that operates major radio astronomy facilities. The NRAO developed and operates the Very Large Array.
Cassiopeia A: A young supernova remnant in the constellation Cassiopeia and a bright source of radio emission. The array has mapped its radio structure in detail.
Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array: An interferometric observatory in Chile that observes millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths. ALMA uses an array design like the VLA’s but observes at shorter wavelengths.
VLA Sky Survey: A survey using the Very Large Array to map radio sources across much of the sky. Its large catalog makes the observatory’s survey impact concrete.
Aperture synthesis: A method for reconstructing an image from measurements gathered across different telescope baselines. Earth’s rotation and antenna positions let the array sample many spatial frequencies.
Barry Clark: An American radio astronomer known for methods of radio-image reconstruction. His work on image reconstruction helped make interferometric observations scientifically useful.
Protoplanetary disk: A rotating disk of gas and dust around a young star, where planets can form. The array detects radio emission from cold dust and molecular gas in these disks.
Allen Telescope Array: A radio observatory in California designed for both astronomical surveys and technosignature searches. It is another multi-antenna array, built with a different scale and observing strategy.
Radio galaxy: A galaxy whose radio emission is dominated by energetic jets and lobes powered by its central black hole. VLA imaging exposed the extended structures that define many radio galaxies.

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