The 256-antenna Coherent All-Sky Monitor

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Connor, Liam, Ravi, Vikram, Sanghavi, Pranav, Balakrishan, Vishnu, Chung, Luke, Daghlian, Saren, Dunn, Liam, Griffin, Anthony, Harnach, Charlie, Hodges, Mark, Jameson, Andrew, Gutierrez, Michael, Leung, Calvin, Lin, Mei, Mehla, Advait, Modilim, Obinna, Patel, Nimesh, Smith, Kendrick, Zeng, Lingzhen
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Connor, Liam
Ravi, Vikram
Sanghavi, Pranav
Balakrishan, Vishnu
Chung, Luke
Daghlian, Saren
Dunn, Liam
Griffin, Anthony
Harnach, Charlie
Hodges, Mark
Jameson, Andrew
Gutierrez, Michael
Leung, Calvin
Lin, Mei
Mehla, Advait
Modilim, Obinna
Patel, Nimesh
Smith, Kendrick
Zeng, Lingzhen
author_facet Connor, Liam
Ravi, Vikram
Sanghavi, Pranav
Balakrishan, Vishnu
Chung, Luke
Daghlian, Saren
Dunn, Liam
Griffin, Anthony
Harnach, Charlie
Hodges, Mark
Jameson, Andrew
Gutierrez, Michael
Leung, Calvin
Lin, Mei
Mehla, Advait
Modilim, Obinna
Patel, Nimesh
Smith, Kendrick
Zeng, Lingzhen
contents Radio astronomy is uniquely coupled to exponential trends in computation because the optics (cross-correlation, beamforming, and imaging) and spectrometry (i.e. channelization) can now be done digitally. Inexpensive analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) can sample signals from large numbers of antennas and graphics processing units (GPUs) allow us to coherently process wide-field radio data in real time, motivating large-$N$ aperture arrays at moderate cost. We describe the 256-antenna Coherent All-Sky Monitor (CASM-256), a dense aperture array operating at 375-500\,MHz, currently being deployed at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) in Big Pine, California. The large field-of-view (FoV$\sim10^4$\,deg$^2$) and point-source sensitivity of CASM-256 will allow it to detect local Universe fast radio bursts (FRBs). The nearby sample is ideal for unveiling the physical origin of FRBs, measuring the baryonic content of nearby galaxy halos, and discovering prompt multi-wavelength and multi-messenger counterparts to FRBs. CASM will search for fast transients in the Milky Way such as FRB analogs, pulsar giant pulses, and the new source class known as long-period radio transients. We describe the instrument and present on-sky data from the first two dozen antennas, including an operational real-time GPU based FRB search pipeline. We emphasize the scalability of the concept and describe paths to a future CASM array with tens of thousands of antennas that could detect one million FRBs.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_13903
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The 256-antenna Coherent All-Sky Monitor
Connor, Liam
Ravi, Vikram
Sanghavi, Pranav
Balakrishan, Vishnu
Chung, Luke
Daghlian, Saren
Dunn, Liam
Griffin, Anthony
Harnach, Charlie
Hodges, Mark
Jameson, Andrew
Gutierrez, Michael
Leung, Calvin
Lin, Mei
Mehla, Advait
Modilim, Obinna
Patel, Nimesh
Smith, Kendrick
Zeng, Lingzhen
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Radio astronomy is uniquely coupled to exponential trends in computation because the optics (cross-correlation, beamforming, and imaging) and spectrometry (i.e. channelization) can now be done digitally. Inexpensive analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) can sample signals from large numbers of antennas and graphics processing units (GPUs) allow us to coherently process wide-field radio data in real time, motivating large-$N$ aperture arrays at moderate cost. We describe the 256-antenna Coherent All-Sky Monitor (CASM-256), a dense aperture array operating at 375-500\,MHz, currently being deployed at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) in Big Pine, California. The large field-of-view (FoV$\sim10^4$\,deg$^2$) and point-source sensitivity of CASM-256 will allow it to detect local Universe fast radio bursts (FRBs). The nearby sample is ideal for unveiling the physical origin of FRBs, measuring the baryonic content of nearby galaxy halos, and discovering prompt multi-wavelength and multi-messenger counterparts to FRBs. CASM will search for fast transients in the Milky Way such as FRB analogs, pulsar giant pulses, and the new source class known as long-period radio transients. We describe the instrument and present on-sky data from the first two dozen antennas, including an operational real-time GPU based FRB search pipeline. We emphasize the scalability of the concept and describe paths to a future CASM array with tens of thousands of antennas that could detect one million FRBs.
title The 256-antenna Coherent All-Sky Monitor
topic Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.13903