GBD-DART-I : Pulsars and transient source observation between 130 MHz and 350 MHz at Gauribidanur

TL;DR

The GBD-DART array at Gauribidanur is a low-cost, small radio telescope designed to observe pulsars and solar transients between 130-350 MHz, demonstrating successful detection and operational capabilities over seven months.

Contribution

This paper introduces a new 64-dipole LPDA array with a diamond configuration for low-frequency pulsar and solar transient observations, including design, commissioning, and initial results.

Findings

Successfully detected strong pulsars and solar flares

Array operates remotely with 16 MHz bandwidth

Provides a platform for low-cost radio astronomy training

Abstract

Gauribidanur Diamond Array Radio Telescope (GBD-DART) is a new small LPDA antenna array consisting of 64 short dipoles and associated receivers that has been custom developed and deployed at the Gauribidanur observatory (13.604 N, 77.427 E) to study bright Pulsars and Solar transients in the frequency range of 130-350 MHz. The LPDAs are arranged in a checkerboard layout, with opposite pairs combined to enable dual-polarised operation. A diamond-shaped (tilted square) array configuration was chosen to achieve high sidelobe suppression in the East-West and North-South directions. The tile measures 5.9 meters by 5.9 meters, with diagonals along both the North-South and East-West directions, each measuring about 8.4 meters. The LPDA array with one diamond-shaped tile has been fully commissioned and is operating in transit-observing mode, successfully detecting strong pulsars and solar flares over the last seven months. The present digital backend restricts the instantaneous bandwidth for observations to 16 MHz. The array operations are streamlined to facilitate remote operations. Apart from investigating Pulsar and Solar phenomena at low radio frequencies in selected sources, this work aims to provide a training platform for radio astronomy through simple-to-construct, low-cost radio telescopes. In this paper, we present details of the array, including antenna and array response studies, brief descriptions of front-end and backend instrumentation, and illustrative results from observations of both pulsars and solar flares. It will also provide brief details of future upgrade plans, particularly for the tiles and digital backend, to facilitate the observation of additional sources.