Abstract
MERLIN1 (the Multi-Element Radio-Linked Interferometer Network) at Jodrell Bank and the VLA2 (the Very Large Array) in New Mexico are complementary instruments, representing the latest generation of aperture-synthesis radio telescopes; the VLA comprises 27 antennas, which, in the A-configuration, provide spacings of 0.6–36 km, whereas MERLIN is an array of six antennas with spacings of 6–134 km. Thus, MERLIN provides a factor of four greater resolution than VLA, whereas the shorter spacings of the latter provide essential information on large-scale structure. We present here the first map to be produced by combining data from MERLIN and the VLA. The new map, of the quasar 3C179 (redshift, z=0.846), is a considerable improvement on maps made from the individual arrays and reveals greater detail, particularly in the quasar's jet, which seems to be splitting or disrupting.
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Shone, D., Porcas, R. & Zensus, J. Combined MERLIN/VLA observations of the superluminal quasar 3C179. Nature 314, 603–604 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/314603a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/314603a0
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