Abstract Details
| Name: Pradeepta Kishore Mohanty Affiliation: RAD@home Astronomy Collaboratory, India Conference ID: ASI2016_823 Title : Reporting Discoveries from GMRT by RAD@home citizen-scientists using complete TGSS DR5 data Authors and Co-Authors : Ananda Hota (UM-DAE CBS, Mumbai & RAD@home, India), Chiranjib Konar (Amity University, Noida, India), Pradeepta Mohanty (RAD@home, India), Megha Rajoria (RAD@home, India), Pratik Dabhade (RAD@home, India), Sravani Vaddi (RAD@home, India), Alakananda Patra (RAD@home, India), Sagar Sethi (RAD@home, India), Charitarth Vyas (RAD@home, India), Arpita Misra (RAD@home, India), Lavanya Nemani (RAD@home, India), Chhaya Verma (RAD@home, India), Anjali Amesh (RAD@home, India), Shilpa Dubal (RAD@home, India), Karuna Gamre (RAD@home, India), Mitali Damle (RAD@home, India), Akash Mantri (RAD@home, India), Vrunda Maniya(RAD@home, India) et al. Abstract Type : Poster Abstract Category : Extragalactic astronomy Abstract : The geographical non-uniformity of astronomical research institutes suggests an unequal opportunity in accessing those central facilities when we consider students and citizens not pursuing PhD. Public outreach programmes and undergraduate projects are only ways to inform and inspire students. One powerful way to alleviate such socio-economic and geo-political constraints on inclusive growth with equal opportunity to all citizens is use of Internet. Three years ago (April 2013) RAD@home (#RADathomeindia #ABCDresearch), first Indian Citizen-science research project in astronomy was launched in Google and Facebook asking science-educated citizens (any BSc/BE) irrespective of their status, student/employed/unemployed, to participate by making UV-Optical-IR-radio multi-wavelength RGB color images of galaxies and radio galaxies using NASA Skyview which were shared and discussed by all participating members (over 1600 strong till date) on Facebook. Those found good were declared RGB-qualified and further called to get trained in one week RAD@home Discovery Camps, held at various host institutions all over India namely IOP (Bhubaneswar), HRI (Allahabad), UM-DAE CBS (Mumbai), Nehru Planetarium-Vigyan Prasar (Delhi)). During the camp, apart from normal astronomy lectures, citizen-scientists discover potentially new radio sources seen in the TIFR GMRT Sky Survey (TGSS) images. As TGSS images at 150 MHz were of the best resolution and sensitivity at such low radio frequencies, in every camp they have discovered cosmic sources that is worth follow up investigation by professional astronomers. GMRT Time allocation Committee (GTAC) has awarded observing time, going through standard international competition, for three cycles in a row. This programme named, GOOD-RAC: GMRT Observation of Objects Discovered by RAD@home Astronomy Collaboratory, has been appreciated by SKA-India consortium as a successful model and RAD@home appeared in the international ARAA-review paper on citizen-science in astronomy. The e-Astronomers (approx 50) trained during the camps continue to work from home, facilitated with three hours of online class a week across the country. Observational results so obtained by these e-astronomers will be presented in this meeting. Our results include, several new episodic radio galaxies, Speca-like spiral-host star-forming exotic radio galaxies, bent-lobe radio galaxies sitting in new galaxy filaments, dead-lobe radio galaxies, relic/halo diffuse radio emission in clusters of galaxies. The list of each type of objects has grown up significantly since last ASI meeting in Pune. Now, we have completed analyses of TGSS(DR5) image files and our journal paper is getting ready for submission, certainly before the meeting. Since characterizing diffuse emission in multi-frequency and angular-scale-sensitive interferometric images can be better done by human than computer algorithm, RAD@home will continue to compliment professional research in TMT-SKA era. |