CALLISTO

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CALLISTO
Compound Astronomical Low frequency Low
cost Instrument for Spectroscopy
and Transportable Observatory
Double - Heterodyne - Frequency Agile - Radio -
Spectrometer
EuroSETI Symposium Heppenheim March 2628th
2004 Christian Monstein ETH Zürich
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Directory

• Instrument comparison
• Usage sites
• Basic schematic diagram
• Focal plane unit FPU
• Double heterodyne receiver
• Receiver control unit RCU
• First solar radio noise
• Overall bandwidth
• Overall dynamic range
• Philips tuner noise figure
• Allen variance, measuring rate
• First results
• Field test at HB9XMs QTH
• Team members
• Material costs production time
• URLs

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Instrument comparison
Parameter ARGOS PHOENIX-2 CALLISTO Receivertype
FFT Frequency agile Frequency agile Frequency
range 1290-1570 MHz 100-4000 MHz 47-862
MHz Obs.-bandwidth 250 MHz 3900 MHz 815
MHz Resolution (FD) ? 250 MHz i 1, 3, 10 MHz 65
KHz Resolution (TD) gt 66 msec 500 µs...1sec i 2
msec Polarization linear (vertical) L, R, I,
V L, R, I, V Sampletime/pixel 2 nsec 0.5
msec 2 msec Channels 1...50000 1...2000 1...1
3120 500 System temp. 250/530 K iii 950
K TBD RMS noise 300/800 Jansky 1000
Jansky TBD Dynamic range 50 dB gt 40 dB gt 50 dB
i depending on number of channels iii
without/including calibration unit
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Usage sites
5m antenna Bleien 300 MHz - 3 GHz 80 cm-SAT 10
GHz - 12 GHz
5m antenna Zürich 1 GHz-2.6 GHz (system tests
only)
7m antenna Bleien 100 MHz - 4 GHz
Planned Green Bank Observatory West Virginia
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Basic schematic diagram
Antenna feed (s)
FPU focal plane unit
Low noise preamplifiers
Optional calibration unit
Twin channel receiver for two polarizations
Callisto-frame
Synthesizer Tuner 1 I2C-bus
Down converter 37,7MHz? 10,7MHz
Logarithmic Detector 1
Synthesizer Tuner 2 I2C-bus
Down converter 37,7MHz? 10,7MHz
Logarithmic Detector 2
Standard PC
Optional FPU controller Power- supply
Control data
Integration units (low pass filters)
Data aquisition unit
Drivers, Buffers I2C-interfacing
PSU
Power source
FPU control out
Control path Signal path Control- data link
Callisto/Host-controller
Frequencyrange 45MHz...870MHz Frequency
resolution 62,5KHz Bandwidth 300KHz
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Focal plane unit FPU
Relay-switch SPDT K1...K7
K1
A1
A1
1
2
2
K3
To
90-Hybrid
Preamp
Rf out-L
1
Isol
Left
-10dB
K5
K6
K7
1
1
1
-3dB
Noise Source
2
ENR35dB
2
2
1
Inp
Right
Preamp
Rf out-R
To
2
2
K4
Main features dual feed (circular L and R
no linear) very low noise low cost 3 point
calibration - reduced bandwidth due to 1
hybrid
A2
1
K2
Power supply 15V, 28V, 5V, -15V Surveillance
electronics Peltier cooler/heater Humidity/thermal
sensors
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Double heterodyne receiver
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Receiver control unit RCU
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First solar radio noise
5m parabola at Bleien observatory With linear
vertically polarized feed HL-040
RohdeSchwarz 400MHz3GHz
Sun is 500mV 10dB hotter than
background level.
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Overall bandwidth at 150.000MHz
BW( -3dB) 299KHz, BW(-10dB) 378KHz
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Overall dynamic range
Detector AD8307 dynamic range gt 50dB
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Philips tuner noise figure
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How long am I allowed to integrate?
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How fast am I allowed to measure?
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Callisto as a backend
Callisto as a backend to a commercial S-band LNB
Callisto as a backend to a commercial Ku-band
LNB misused as an X-band downconverter
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First results 1
Short, intensive event
Long, intensive event
Sun passage on 7m
T0 applied
22dB ENR applied
32dB ENR applied
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First results 2
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First results 3
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First results 4
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Fieldtest at HB9XMs QTH
Passage through the sun in azimuth
Note the counter balance (petrol can) on the left
side of antenna/FPU
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Team members
Responsible budget requirements Prof. Arnold
Benz Mechanical design manufacturing Frieder
Aebersold Software RISC processor (C) Hansueli
Meyer Software preprocessing (C) Christian
Monstein Software postprocessing
(Pearl/IDL) Peter Messmer Manufacturing focal
plane unit FPU Pascal Behm Manufacturing
receiver RX Pascal Behm Manufacturing receiver
control unit RCU Pascal Behm Conceptual
hardware design Christian Monstein
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Material costs production time
Dont forget an appropriate antenna, a focal
plane unit, a power supply and some cables
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Callisto related URLs

• http//www.astro.phys.ethz.ch/rapp/
• http//www.astro.phys.ethz.ch/instrument/callisto/
  callisto_nf.html

ETH Astronomical Institute Christian
Monstein Scheuchzerstrasse 7 CH-8092
Zürich monstein_at_astro.phys.ethz.ch