The Black Hole Explorer: Instrument System Overview

Published

June 14, 2024

Author(s)

Daniel P. Marrone, Janice Houston, Kazunori Akiyama, Bryan Bilyeu, Don Boroson, Paul Grimes, Kari Haworth, Robert Lehmensiek, Eliad Peretz, Hannah Rana, Laura Sinclair, Sridharan Tirupati Kumara, Ranjani Srinivasan, Edward Tong, Jade Wang, Jonathan Weintroub, Michael D. Johnson

Abstract

The Black Hole Explorer (BHEX) is a space very-long-baseline interferometry (VLBI) mission concept that is currently under development. BHEX will study supermassive black holes at unprecedented resolution, isolating the signature of the "photon ring" — light that has orbited the black hole before escaping — to probe physics at the edge of the observable universe. It will also measure black hole spins, study the energy extraction and acceleration mechanisms for black hole jets, and characterize the black hole mass distribution. BHEX achieves high angular resolution by joining with ground-based millimeter-wavelength VLBI arrays, extending the size, and therefore improving the angular resolution of the earthbound telescopes. Here we discuss the science instrument concept for BHEX. The science instrument for BHEX is a dual-band, coherent receiver system for 80-320 GHz, coupled to a 3.5-meter antenna. BHEX receiver front end will observe simultaneously with dual polarizations in two bands, one sampling 80-106 GHz and one sampling 240-320 GHz. An ultra-stable quartz oscillator provides the master frequency reference and ensures coherence for tens of seconds. To achieve the required sensitivity, the front end will instantaneously receive 32 GHz of frequency bandwidth, which will be digitized to 64 Gbits/sec of incompressible raw data. These data will be buffered and transmitted to the ground via laser data link, for correlation with data recorded simultaneously at radio telescopes on the ground. We describe the challenges associated with the instrument concept and the solutions that have been incorporated into the baseline design.

Conference Dates

June 16-21, 2024

Conference Location

Yokohama, JP

Conference Title

SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2024

Pub Type

Conferences

Keywords

very long baseline interferometry, VLBI

Citation

Marrone, D. , Houston, J. , Akiyama, K. , Bilyeu, B. , Boroson, D. , Grimes, P. , Haworth, K. , Lehmensiek, R. , Peretz, E. , Rana, H. , Sinclair, L. , Kumara, S. , Srinivasan, R. , Tong, E. , Wang, J. , Weintroub, J. and Johnson, M. (2024), The Black Hole Explorer: Instrument System Overview, SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2024, Yokohama, JP (Accessed October 14, 2025)