Project Title

Cosmological research with the 10-meter South Pole Telescope

Summary

Event Number:
A-379-S
NSF/OPP Award 1852617

Program Manager:
Dr. Vladimir Papitashvili

ASC POC/Implementer:
Paul Sullivan / Sheryl Seagraves / Leah Street

Principal Investigator(s)

Dr. John Carlstrom
jc@kicp.uchicago.edu
University of Chicago
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Chicago, Illinois

Location

Supporting Stations: South Pole Station
Research Locations: Dark Sector Lab (DSL) located in the Dark Sector.

Description

The South Pole Telescope (SPT) aids cosmological research by measuring the intensity and polarization anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation. The project's goal is to detect all galaxy clusters in this region of the sky through the spectral distortion they impart on the CMB. Called the Sunyaev- Zel'dovich effect, it has the remarkable property of being independent of the distance to the cluster. The second key project started in 2012 with the installation of an ultra-sensitive polarization receiver. Through measurements of the polarization, researchers can determine the sum of the masses of the neutrinos and either detect or set stringent upper limits on the energy scale of inflation.

Field Season Overview

During the 2020-21 summer and winter austral seasons, two winter over grantees will deploy along with the machinist to perform routine maintenance on the telescope and perform machine shop services. The reduced numbers are in response to NSF guidance limiting personnel due to the COVID-19 virus. The current winter overs will remain on station to train the arriving personnel. A maximum of six SPT grantees will be on station.

Deploying Team Members