The EDGES Analysis Pipeline: Description and Validation

TL;DR

This paper introduces an open-source analysis pipeline for 21-cm global signal experiments, detailing calibration methods, validating previous EDGES data, and providing tools for the community to improve measurement robustness.

Contribution

It presents a new open-source end-to-end analysis and simulation package that formalizes EDGES calibration methods and enhances data analysis reliability.

Findings

Calibration and analysis methods are validated against previous EDGES data.

The raw EDGES data are released publicly for scrutiny.

The pipeline improves robustness and accessibility of 21-cm signal analysis.

Abstract

The sky-averaged redshifted 21-cm signal from Cosmic Dawn is expected to provide a unique view of the first compact objects. However, its measurement remains daunting. Difficulties are driven by the large dynamic contrast between the intervening foregrounds and the signal-of-interest, which places extremely high demands on instrumental calibration and data quality measures. The ongoing debate within the field concerning the evidence of a potential first detection by the EDGES experiment highlights the need for a more robust set of analysis methods and tools that are reliable and accessible. In this paper, we detail for the first time the precise calibration and analysis methodology adopted in previous EDGES data releases. These methods are presented in the context of a new open-source end-to-end analysis and simulation package for 21-cm global signal experiments that both formalizes these methods and provides general tools for the broader community. Finally, we describe the raw data used in previous EDGES papers and release these data publicly for extended scrutiny.