Project Title

Imaging the Beginning of Time From the South Pole: Completing the BICEP Array Survey

Summary

Event Number:
A-149-S
NSF / OPP Award 2220444

Program Director:
Dr. Marion Dierickx

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

Principal Investigator(s)

Dr. Clement Pryke
pryke@physics.umn.edu
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota

Project Web Site:
http://bicepkeck.org

Location

Supporting Stations: South Pole Station
Research Locations: South Pole (Dark Sector)

Description

This project continues the highly successful Background Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic Polarization (BICEP) program to measuring polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). These observations include operation of the BICEP3 stand-alone telescope and the phased installation of the new BICEP Array receivers. This upgrade follows the tradition of improving on previous generations of receivers in the mount installed on the tower (adjacent to the Martin A. Pomerantz Observatory [MAPO]) that was originally built for the Degree Angular Scale Interferometer (DASI) then used by the QUaD telescope (aka Q and U extragalactic survey telescope [QUEST] and DASI), and then the Small Polarimeter Upgrade for DASI (SPUD; aka Keck Array). This project provides excellent training for undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in laboratories that have exceptional track records in this regard. Both cosmology and research in Antarctica capture the public imagination, making them a remarkably effective vehicle for stimulating interest in science. In addition to the development of the BICEP Array, we are continuing observations with the BICEP3 telescope. The sustained campaign at 95 gigahertz (GHz) enables our dataset to build sensitivity at frequencies where the contribution from galactic dust is lower and the signal from the CMB is strongest.

Field Season Overview

Critical BICEP tasking for 2025-26 will include winter-over turnover and training, detector module upgrades to the third BICEP Array receiver, maintenance and upgrades to BICEP3 receivers, and standard on-mount calibration activities for both BICEP3 and the BICEP Array. Radio frequency monitoring will continue in collaboration with other Dark Sector projects and the Antarctic Support Contract (ASC). ASC support will be provided for snow maintenance around the Dark Sector Laboratory and MAPO facilities, cargo and compressed gas deliveries, machine shop resupply, and general station and information technology support. Shared workspace and remote access will also be provided to BICEP grantees as needed while they are in transit through McMurdo Station.

Deploying Team Members