Astronomers at the National Center for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA) based in Pune have identified eight stars that belong to the rare category of Main Sequence Radio Pulse Emitters or MRPs.
Important Current Affairs Points
- The MRPs were discovered using the Giant Meter-Wave Radio Telescope (GMRT) based in Pune.
- A group of scientists have discovered rare types of radio stars that are hotter than the Sun. They have extraordinarily strong magnetic fields and even stronger stellar winds. As a result, these stars emit radio pulses that glow like a lighthouse.
- The team had previously detected three similar stars using the Giant Meter-Wave Radio Telescope (GMRT).
- Thus, there are 15 MRPs known so far.
- 11 MRPs were detected using GMRT. In 2021 alone, eight MRPs were detected.
Discovery of the first MRP
The first MRP was discovered in 2000. This was found to be the result of the high sensitivity of the GMRT.
National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA)
NCRA is a research institute working in the field of radio astronomy. It is located on the University of Pune campus. The NCRA has an active research program in many areas of astronomy and astronomy, including studies of the Sun, pulsars, interplanetary scintillations, active galaxies, and interstellar media.
Giant Metro Wave Radio Telescope (GMRT)
GMRT is located at Khodad near Pune. This is an array of thirty fully stearable parabolic radio telescopes. It has a diameter of 45 meters and is observed at a wavelength of meters. The telescope is operated by the National Center for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA), part of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. It was conceived and built between 1984 and 1996. GMRT was recently upgraded with new receivers, later renamed the Giant Metro Wave Radio Telescope (uGMRT).
