Current status of Shanghai VLBI correlator

TL;DR

The paper reports on the upgrade and operational status of the Shanghai VLBI correlator, highlighting its enhanced capabilities, international collaborations, and successful astrophysical and astrometric observations since 2015.

Contribution

It details the hardware upgrades, operational achievements, and future plans of the Shanghai VLBI correlator, marking significant progress in VLBI data processing.

Findings

Successful correlation of high-frequency fringes at X/Ka and Q bands

Operational integration with international VLBI networks

Planned platform enhancement for higher data rates

Abstract

Shanghai Astronomical Observatory has upgraded its DiFX cluster to 420 CPU cores and a 432-TB storage system at the end of 2014. An international network connection for the raw data transfer has also been established. The routine operations for IVS sessions including CRF, AOV, and APSG series began in early 2015. In addition to the IVS observations, the correlator is dedicated to astrophysical and astrometric programs with the Chinese VLBI Network and international joint VLBI observations. It also worked with the new-built Tianma 65-m radio telescope and successfully found fringes as high as at X/Ka and Q bands in late 2015. A more powerful platform is planned for the high data rate and massive data correlation tasks in the future.