First Space VLBI Image

The right-hand panel shows the active galaxy PKS1519-273 as imaged with HALCA satellite in conjunction with the VLBA and VLA ground-based radio telescopes. The left-hand panel shows the same active galaxy as seen with ground-only radio telescopes. This image is to the same scale as the space-ground image, showing the drastic improvment in resolution provided by the addition of an earth-space baseline. This is the first image ever made using a space-based radio telescope. The observations were conducted on May 22, 1997, approximately three months after the launch of the HALCA satellite. Astronomers and computer scientists used a special-purpose computer, the VLBA Correlator, to digitally combine the signals from the satellite and the ground telescopes to make them all work together as a single, giant radio telescope.

Legacy Astronomical Images

NRAO/AUI/NSF does not hold full copyright for this image. Contact the archivist for details.

Legacy Astronomical Image

PKS 1519-273

H. Hirabayashi, the VSOP team, Jim Ulvestad, Jon Romney

Very Large Array (VLA)

Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA)

HALCA

1997-05-22

continuum

L

18 cm

1.6 GHz

RA 15:22:37.670, Dec: -27:30:10.780 (J2000)

0.000017 x 0.000017 degrees

Contact the archivist for a high resolution tif of this image.

Active Galactic Nuclei Series

Other Active Galactic Nuclei Unit