Patrick Taylor (AUI) Planetary Radar with the Green Bank Telescope
Abstract: The Green Bank Telescope (GBT) has been involved in planetary radar efforts since its inception. Much of that history has been as a receiver of echoes transmitted by the Arecibo and Goldstone high-power radars. Recently, a low-power prototype was used to make the first planetary radar observations with the GBT as the transmitter with elements of the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) receiving the echoes. A project is now underway to study the design of a high-power radar transmitter for the GBT. We will discuss the history of planetary radar with the GBT as a receiver, current work on the GBT as a radar transmitter, and the future of the GBT (and VLBA/ngVLA) as a world-leading planetary radar system.
