gemmaanderson
commented
1 month ago This links strongly with #7 and fits in nicely with the all-sky multi-messenger story.
- Follow-up of CTA transients will need to be conducted with the smaller scale, existing radio instruments #17
- This can also be linked with the Australian Gravitation Wave observatory #14 and the Australian all-sky radio monitor #20
GavinRowell
CTA is the next major step in TeV gamma-ray astronomy. For the first time, CTA will offer sub-arcminute resolution in gamma-ray astronomy and a wide energy coverage (~20 GeV to 300 TeV) overlapping the space-based Fermi-LAT mission. CTA's vastly improved performance will offer a flux sensitivity 1,000x or more better than that of Fermi-LAT in the multi-GeV energy domain for transient sources. As a result, CTA is expected to provide a paradigm shift in the transient gamma-ray CTA Website.
CTA is now under construction (and fully funded) at Northern and Southern sites with full operations expected from about 2029. Australia currently has seven institutions involved and makes contributions to construction via LIEF and AAL/NCRIS funding AAL+CTA.
CTA's potential for transients studies will provide significant new opportunities for Australian radio and optical facilities. More than 1000 hours per year of global coverage in these bands will be needed to support many of CTA's Key Science Projects involving transient and variable sources. Australia's unique longitude in the Southern hemisphere perfectly places it to contribute significantly to these radio and optical needs. Some key areas of focus include high-frequency monitoring of AGN and GRBs (e.g. with ATCA), and the development of new optical polarimetry capabilities for the ANU 2.3m telescope. CTA's science potential with transients is outlined here CTA Science.