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100 YEARS OF THE IAU

Tuning in to the cosmic dawn

Nature Astronomy volume 3, pages 298–299 (2019)Cite this article

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In 1951, three separate research groups established radio astronomy as a contender to the dominance of optical astronomy. Using the interstellar 21-cm line, they provided a method to look deeper into our own Galaxy and back in time to the birth of all galaxies.

In 1951 radio astronomy was a very new field, having been born out of the development of radar during World War II. Radar allowed the detection and subsequent destruction of enemy planes and submarines, but there were unexplained echoes in the signals. English physicist Stanley Hey had begun to realize that interference was coming from solar flares and meteorite reflections1,2, but it was not until after the war that physicists could move to actively detect the astronomical radio signals and not just see them as a nuisance. Motivated to explain the source of these radio waves of extraterrestrial origin, Hendrik van de Hulst was the first to suggest the possibility of a 21-cm Galactic line in 19453 (although he was not quite sure whether the line would be in emission or absorption), and the 1951 Nature papers (which all appeared in the same issue, in the space of 2.5 pages) showcased the first observational confirmation.

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Fig. 1

NRAO/AUI/NSF

References

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  1. Department of Physics, Imperial College, London, UK

    Emma Chapman

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  1. Emma Chapman
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Correspondence to Emma Chapman.

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Chapman, E. Tuning in to the cosmic dawn. Nat Astron 3, 298–299 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-019-0752-9

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