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The 2008 Grote Reber
Medal is awarded to
Dr Sander Weinreb
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Dr
Sander Weinreb,
winner of the 2008 Grote Reber Medal
©Photo: Dr Sander Weireb
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The
2008 Grote Reber Medal
for lifetime innovative contributions to radio astronomy has
been awarded to Dr Sander Weinreb
of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the California Institute
of Technology. Dr Weinreb is being honoured for his pioneering
developments of novel techniques and instrumentation over
nearly half a century which have helped to define modern radio
astronomy.
'Sandy Weinreb's contributions to radio astronomy technology
are to be found throughout the radio observatories of the
world and have set the foundation for so many amazing astronomical
discoveries', said Dr Ken Kellermann of the National Radio
Astronomy Observatory in the USA.
Weinreb received his PhD degree in electrical engineering
from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1963.
While he was still a graduate student at MIT, he developed
the world's first digital autocorrelation spectrometer which
he then used to place a new upper limit to the Galactic deuterium-to-hydrogen
ratio. With Barrett, Meeks, and Henry, he detected the hydroxyl
molecule (OH); this was the first radio observation of an
interstellar molecule. His autocorrelation spectrometer technique
is now in use at virtually every major radio observatory throughout
the world and has been crucial in the subsequent explosive
growth of interstellar molecular spectroscopy.
In 1965 Weinreb went to the U.S. National Radio Astronomy
Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia where he became
Head of the Electronics Division and later Assistant Director
of NRAO. During his 23 years at NRAO, he pioneered the use
of low-noise, cryogenically cooled solid state amplifiers
which greatly enhanced the sensitivity of radio telescopes.
He was the architect for the electronic systems design for
the NRAO Very Large Array (VLA) in New Mexico and led the
group which developed the novel receivers and the data transmission,
acquisition, and monitor and control systems for the VLA.
Subsequently, Weinreb worked firstly at Lockheed Martin Laboratories
and then at the University of Massachusetts where he developed
various millimetre wave devices. He has also been a Visiting
Professor at the University of Virginia. Most recently he
has been a Faculty Associate at Caltech and a Principal Scientist
at JPL where he has continued his work on low noise amplifier
devices. He played a leading role in the electronics design
for a new Deep Space Network (DSN) space tracking array, and
he has been active in developing wideband feeds and front
ends as well as investigating cost effective designs for modest
size antennas, all of which will be important for the next
generation of radio telescopes such the Square Kilometre Array
(SKA). In addition he has been working with the Goldstone
Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT) program to develop a
34-metre radio telescope at Goldstone for use with schools
around the globe.
'For nearly five decades Sandy's innovative contributions
to radio astronomy have paved the way for an amazing array
of new and exciting discoveries about the nature and evolution
of the Universe', said Dr David Jauncey of the Australia Telescope
National Facility in Australia.
The 2008 Reber Medal will be presented to Dr Weinreb at the
International Radio Science Union (URSI) radio astronomy commission
meeting to be held on 13 August 2008 in Chicago. The Reber
Medal was established by the Trustees of the Grote Reber Foundation
to honour the achievements of Grote Reber, the world's first
radio astronomer, and is administered by the Queen Victoria
Museum in Launceston, Tasmania in cooperation with NRAO, the
University of Tasmania, and the CSIRO Australia Telescope
National Facility.
Nominations for the 2009 Medal may be sent to Martin George,
Queen Victoria Museum, Wellington St, Launceston, Tasmania
7250, Australia or by e-mail to martin@qvmag.tas.gov.au. Nominations
are to be received no later than November 15, 2008.
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About
Grote Reber
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Grote
Reber was born on 22 December 1911. Before he was 30 years
of age, he became the world's first radio astronomer. He opened
up a whole new window on the Universe through which astronomers
can study objects and processes quite different to those that
produce ordinary light. These include quasars and pulsars,
and the detection of atoms and molecules in the space between
the stars.
Before the 1930s, astronomers could study the universe only
in visible light—the radiation that our eyes, and ordinary
photographic film, can detect. That changed in two major steps.
In the early 1930s, Karl Jansky investigated radio interference
in transatlantic telephone links and, in the process, discovered
radio emissions from our Milky Way Galaxy. It was Grote Reber,
however, who decided that this was an important new way of
studying the Universe and decided to take some action. "I
consulted with myself and decided to build a dish," he
said!
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Grote
Reber in Bothwell in 1995
Martin George, QVMAG |
To
this end, Reber, in 1937, constructed the world's first purpose-built
radio telescope. He built it adjacent to his home in Wheaton,
Illinois, just west of Chicago, and it was of the now familiar
'dish' design. Reber's telescope was the forerunner of the classic
design of the world's famous radio telescopes (including the
famous 'dish' at Parkes, in Australia). The same principle is
used widely today in many other applications, including satellite
dishes in private homes.
Reber used his telescope, which had a diameter of 9.75 metres
(32 feet), to map the sky at a frequency of 160 MHz, or a wavelength
of 1.9 metres. This was the first detailed radio map of the
sky which showed the Milky Way and revealed for the first time
the presence of the Galactic Centre and the radio source known
as Sagittarius A.
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Reber's
Original Radio Telescope
constructed in 1937
Courtesy of Estate of G. Reber |
'His
work was a huge step forward for astronomy', said Martin George,
President of the International Planetarium Society. 'For the
first time, the Universe was being studied at wavelengths other
than those visible to our eyes.'
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Reber's Antenna Array in Bothwell, 1975
Courtesy of Estate of Grote Reber
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leaving Wheaton in the early 1950s, Reber conducted radio
astronomy experiments at the summit of Mount Haleakala, where
he was the first astronomer to build a high-altitude observatory
in Hawaii. Then, in 1954, he moved to Tasmania, Australia,
where he began observing at much longer wavelengths using
a quite different type of 'telescope': an array of dipoles,
which took the form of antennas strung between the tops of
poles.
North of his home in Bothwell, in southern central Tasmania,
Reber constructed such an array which was supported 20 metres
above the ground and operated at a frequency of 2 MHz, a wavelength
of 144 metres. This very low frequency radio telescope covered
an area of one square kilometre. It was, and still is, the
world’s largest single radio telescope in terms of collecting
area. In the 1960s, he mapped the southern sky with this telescope.
Reber involved himself in many other scientific pursuits.
Among his activities, he built an energy-efficient house in
Bothwell; he was fascinated by plants, and in particular the
direction in which beans entwined themselves around poles;
and he was particularly keen on studying energy-efficient
transport, being very proud of his electric car called Pixie.
Reber was well known for his independent thoughts and activities.
'He had no patience for negotiation or compromise, and was
forcefully direct in choosing his words. One always knew what
he was thinking about and what he wanted. Grote Reber believed
in himself!' said Dr Ken Kellermann of the National Radio
Astronomy Observatory in the USA.
Reber's views on various topics, especially his opposition
to the widely accepted Big Bang Theory of the origin
of the Universe. 'Grote and I would often chat about his ideas',
recalls Martin George. 'He was often heard to say that The
Big Bang is Bunk!'.
Although Reber's research and ideas often fell outside the
mainstream activities of other astronomers, his contributions,
especially in the early days of radio astronomy, were both
pioneering and critically important. He was awarded a number
of prizes, and an honorary Doctor of Science Degree from Ohio
State University in the USA.
Grote Reber died in Tasmania on 20 December 2002, two days
before his 91st birthday.
Images on this web page may be used freely provided the appropriate
credit is used.
For more information please contact
Martin George (Administrator, Grote Reber Medal)
Past President, International Planetarium Society
Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery
PO Box 403
Launceston, Tasmania 7250
Australia
martin.george@qvmag.tas.gov.au
Tel: +61-3-63233777
Mob: +61-437-688824
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