The LOFAR Transients Pipeline
release_una25urvbrghpcjl3ygcos6ev4
by
John D. Swinbank, Tim D. Staley, Gijs J. Molenaar, Evert Rol, Antonia
Rowlinson, Bart Scheers, Hanno Spreeuw, Martin E. Bell, Jess W. Broderick,
Dario Carbone, Alexander J. van der Horst, Casey J. Law, Michael Wise (+13 others)
2015
Abstract
Current and future astronomical survey facilities provide a remarkably rich
opportunity for transient astronomy, combining unprecedented fields of view
with high sensitivity and the ability to access previously unexplored
wavelength regimes. This is particularly true of LOFAR, a
recently-commissioned, low-frequency radio interferometer, based in the
Netherlands and with stations across Europe. The identification of and response
to transients is one of LOFAR's key science goals. However, the large data
volumes which LOFAR produces, combined with the scientific requirement for
rapid response, make automation essential. To support this, we have developed
the LOFAR Transients Pipeline, or TraP. The TraP ingests multi-frequency image
data from LOFAR or other instruments and searches it for transients and
variables, providing automatic alerts of significant detections and populating
a lightcurve database for further analysis by astronomers. Here, we discuss the
scientific goals of the TraP and how it has been designed to meet them. We
describe its implementation, including both the algorithms adopted to maximize
performance as well as the development methodology used to ensure it is robust
and reliable, particularly in the presence of artefacts typical of radio
astronomy imaging. Finally, we report on a series of tests of the pipeline
carried out using simulated LOFAR observations with a known population of
transients.
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