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Most observations used to be conducted from CSIRO ATNF HQ but since COVID remote observing has become the norm. We use SSH tunnels - basically secure connections between my computer and the control room computer - to remotely control the telescope #ssh #remotework #virtual

Once connected the 1st step is to calibrate the #radiotelescope array. This involves observing well-known sources of #radio light which are bright and don't change too much. We also need to calibrate the #signals between the 6 different dishes of the array 📡 📡 📡 📡 📡 📡

Calibrations are critical because the #radio waves are arriving at each #antenna at a slightly different time, which would lead to garbage #data if we didn't correct for it 🗑️ The colours show us the signal between a pair of radio antennas and how their amplitudes, phases, and delays line up 🏳️‍🌈