Amateur radio astronomy
Amateur radio astronomy is a sub-area of amateur astronomy that deals with the observation of astronomical objects in the radio sector.
Instruments
Amateur radio astronomers usually manufacture their instruments themselves. In doing so, they often use components available from other areas of technology, such as satellite parabolic antennas , LNBs or amateur radio receivers. A radio telescope for observing the sun can be made from simple building blocks . The American aerospace authority NASA is also providing corresponding hardware and software as part of the Radio JOVE project .
Observations
Due to the comparatively small parabolic antennas used by amateur radio astronomers, usually less than 3 meters, and the resulting low resolution and sensitivity, the possibilities are limited to the observation of objects in the solar system (e.g. Jupiter bursts ) and brighter objects within the Milky Way. Some amateur radio astronomers have already succeeded in detecting pulsars .
Observation of the sun
An example is an eruption of the sun on August 30, 2002, which was measured on two frequencies simultaneously. The blue curve shows the intensity at the frequency of 430 MHz (that is a wavelength of 70 cm) and the red curve at 2400 MHz (13 cm wavelength). The maxima of the two signals coincide exactly with the recordings of the solar satellites GOES 8 and 10.
A four-fold Yagi antenna with a gain of 21 dBd was used as the antenna for the 430 MHz range and a parabolic antenna with a diameter of 136 cm and a gain of 25 dBd for the 13 cm range . The antennas were tracked by means of a self-made mount with stepper motor control.
Amateur radios were used as receivers, which were modified accordingly.
