In a milestone for radio astronomy, astronomers from the Chinese mainland and South Africa have teamed up to deepen our view of the Milky Way. Using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST) and the 64-antenna MeerKAT array, they completed high-precision mapping of globular clusters, those ancient star cities orbiting our galaxy.
Power Combo: FAST + MeerKAT
FAST excels at catching the faintest pulsar signals from millions of light years away, while MeerKAT scans a broader swath of sky. By synchronizing capabilities across the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the project more than doubled its observational sample.
“By combining equipment from different hemispheres, we have more than doubled our observational sample,” said Professor Li Di of Tsinghua University.
Uncovering Dust-Free Realms
The team measured polarization rotation from 43 pulsars in eight globular clusters, unlocking key data on cosmic magnetic fields. Surprisingly, seven clusters showed no detectable ionized gas, revealing exceptionally clean environments dubbed dust-free realms. Scientists now wonder why these clusters stayed so pristine over billions of years.
Looking to the Future
Building on this success, researchers plan to explore pulsar mutations, interstellar turbulence, and even possible signals from extraterrestrial civilizations. This cross-hemisphere collaboration marks a new chapter in unlocking the secrets of our galaxy.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
