ATNF Telescope Proposals for 2026OCT

Dear ATNF user,

Proposals for observing time are now invited for the 2026OCT semester for the:

·       ASKAP radio telescope;

·       Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA);

·       Murriyang, the CSIRO Parkes Radio Telescope 

·       Tidbinbilla 70-m and 34-m antennas; and

·       Long Baseline Array (VLBI).

The deadline for all proposals is 07:00 UT (17:00 Sydney local time) on Tuesday, 16 June 2026. 

All proposals must be submitted using the online proposal application system, OPAL (http://opal.atnf.csiro.au/). 

Significant changes for the 2026OCT semester are detailed here and include: 

• Near the end of the 2026OCT semester we expect that the ultra-wide-bandwidth mid and high frequency receivers (UWM/H) will be being commissioned on Murriyang. As part of this upgrade the ultra-wide-bandwidth low (UWL) will not be available for a period of 6 to 8 weeks in the second half of the semester (Feb/Mar – Apr). Engineering commissioning for the UWL/M/H would follow this and be at the very end of the semester and likely into the start of the 2027APR semester. After the commissioning of these new receivers the legacy receivers may not be available. 

• ATNF proposals are fully anonymised. Proposals that reveal applicant identities will be penalised by a reduction of scores or outright rejection for blatant breaches of anonymity (e.g. self-citations where the first author is listed by name). Please check our Proposal Guidance page.

• We strongly encourage proposers to use this LaTeX template for ATNF scientific justifications (with appropriate BibTeX setup to support anonymisation). This template is also now available in the Overleaf template gallery.

• For teams with approved Long Term Projects, a cover sheet and observation table should be submitted if observations are required in the 2026 October semester. A progress report will be requested at the next (December) deadline.

Details of these changes and other important information on the current status of ATNF telescopes are provided at https://www.atnf.csiro.au/observers/apply/avail.html.  Note that details for each individual telescope have now be separated into a separate page available from that link.

For information on how to apply for ATNF telescope time see http://www.atnf.csiro.au/observers/apply/applications.html

For enquiries related to the proposal process or telescope availability, contact: george.hobbs@csiro.au

For problems with proposal submissions, contact atnf-opal@csiro.au

George Hobbs

ATNF Head of Science