National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.
School of Environment and Society, Tokyo Institute of Technology.
Proc Jpn Acad Ser B Phys Biol Sci. 2022;98(8):439-469. doi: 10.2183/pjab.98.023.
The establishment of the Nobeyama Radio Observatory (NRO) in 1982 was an important event that greatly influenced the subsequent development of Japanese astronomy. The 45 m radio telescope and the Nobeyama Millimeter Array (NMA) pushed Japanese radio astronomy to the forefront of the world. As a plan beyond the Nobeyama telescopes, the Japanese radio astronomy community considered a large array to achieve unprecedented resolution at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths under the project name of the Large Millimeter and Submillimeter Array (LMSA). After long and patient discussions and negotiations with the United States and Europe, the LMSA plan eventually led to the ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) as an international joint project, and the ALMA was inaugurated in 2013. This paper reviews the process from the establishment of the NRO to the realization of the ALMA, including planning of the LMSA, international negotiations, site survey, instrumental developments, and initial science results.
1982 年，野边山无线电观测站（NRO）的建立是一个重要事件，极大地影响了日本天文学的后续发展。45 米射电望远镜和野边山毫米波阵列（NMA）将日本射电天文学推向了世界前列。作为野边山望远镜的后续计划，日本射电天文学界考虑建造一个大型阵列，在毫米和亚毫米波段实现前所未有的分辨率，项目名称为大毫米波和亚毫米波阵列（LMSA）。经过与美国和欧洲的长期耐心讨论和谈判，LMSA 计划最终促成了作为国际合作项目的 ALMA（阿塔卡马大型毫米波/亚毫米波阵列），ALMA 于 2013 年落成。本文回顾了从 NRO 的建立到 ALMA 的实现的过程，包括 LMSA 的规划、国际谈判、选址调查、仪器开发和初步科学成果。
