GBT26A-588
Probing the dynamic magneto-Ionic environment of FRB 20121102A
Abstract
The origin of fast radio bursts (FRBs), the brightest cosmic explosions in radio band, is yet unknown. The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) has conducted a long-term monitoring results of FRB 20121102A spanning from March 2020 to April 2023. Our monitoring program on FAST presents the first robust evidence of the time evolution on a decadal scale of a FRB source. We observed this source highly active again on January 29, 2026, with a burst rate of ~100 burst/hr. This proposal advocates for a GBT S-band observation of the repeating FRB 20121102A. The objective of our proposal is to obtain cross-validation of the temporal evolution in DM and RM observed by FAST and monitor the following evolution of the propagation parameters (DM, RM and sigma_RM ) of FRB 20121102A. The observations of GBT with the S-band receiver will undoubtedly deepen the understanding of the environment, periodicity, and the complex origin of FRB 20121102A.
Investigators
| Name | Institution |
|---|---|
| Junshuo Zhang * | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Jinhuang Cao | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Yi Feng | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Yongkun Zhang | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Dengke Zhou | Zhejiang Lab |
| Chao-Wei Tsai | California at Los Angeles, University of; Jet Propulsion Laboratory ; California Institute of Technology; National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Yidan Wang | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Wanjin Lu | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
| Pei Wang | National Astronomical Observatories, CAS |
* indicates the PI