!
Welcome!
Welcome to issue 11 of the e-
MERLIN newsletter. If you would
like to contribute to the e-MERLIN
newsletter, please get in touch at:
emerlin.support@jb.man.ac.uk "
Rendering BLOBS of X-ray binaries
X-ray binaries (XRBs) are one of the best laboratories for
studying a wide-range of astrophysical phenomena:
from the connection between accretion and the ejection
of jets, to the resulting shock physics as these jets
interact with the interstellar medium (ISM). However,
understanding the interaction of the jets with the ISM
and extracting useful parameters like the density and
energy input is very difficult without high resolution
simulations and well sampled datasets. "
Observations of the 2018 outburst of the XRB MAXI
J1820+070 were used to inform the initial conditions of
relativistic hydrodynamical simulations. These
simulations showed the ejecta must be significantly
less dense than the surrounding ISM environment,
which was created by previous ejecta evacuating a
low-density cavity. Continued…
User Newsletter
Issue 11 23 October 2025!
Left: Prediction of the BLOB-RENDER simulation at three
time steps. Above: Comparison of the blob
displacement plotted against positions of the jets in
MAXI J1820+070
ACME opens the
virtual access platform
and announces hands-
on virtual sessions
The Astrophysics Centre for
Multimessenger Studies in
Europe ACME EU-funded
project has officially launched its
online platform for virtual access
to multi-messenger expertise to
support end-to-end data
reduction of radio (and multi-
wavelength) data, help with
proposal submission and
theoretical expertise and
analysis tools to help interpret
the data. Click here for further
information."
In addition, a set of virtual
hands-on sessions have been
announced by ACME to help
users with common data
reduction packages and
support. Click here for further
information."
The results of these simulations were then included
into BLOB-RENDER, a tool created to generate
pseudo-radio images which can then be used to
model the expected sizes, shapes and fluxes of the
ejecta. By incorporating the uv coverage of the
MeerKAT and e-MERLIN arrays, it was possible to
simulate the original observations together with a real-
sky background. The use of this tool enables more
direct understanding and interpretation of the
simulations, whilst also providing potential uses for
predicting future array capabilities of e-MERLIN and
other telescopes. "
Read the full paper here (Savard et al. 2025, MNRAS,
540, 1, 1084)"
Introducing Polaris - the new proposal
submission tool for e-MERLIN
As part of Cycle 21 of the e-MERLIN call for
proposals, software developers at Jodrell Bank have
created a new proposal software tool designed to
replace the current NorthStar proposal tool. The new
tool, named Polaris, was developed as part of the
Opticon RadioNET Pilot (ORP), an EU Horizon 2020
project to facilitate collaboration between existing
optical and radio astronomy groups across Europe. "
To help support users transition to using the new tool,
we will be running a Polaris online webinar on
Wednesday 12th November 2025
at 1300 GMT. More details on
this webinar will be distributed in
early November. "
This project has received funding
from the European Union’s
Horizon 2020 research and
innovation programme under
grant agreement No
101004719."
e-MERLIN Cycle 21 call for proposals
The e-MERLIN cycle 21 call for proposals has been
announced. All information can be found here. The
deadline for proposals has been extended to 13:59
UT on Thursday 20th November 2025 Click here to
get to the submission portal.
Click above to access
Polaris
e-MERLIN/ALMA/UKSRC stall
at the NAM (Photo: Andrew
Gordon)
www.e-merlin.ac.uk
Hunting for hyperactive FRBs with
PRECISE
An important way to study fast radio bursts (FRBs) -
extragalactic flashes of radio emission - is to
determine from what type of galaxies they originate
and what their local properties are. To do this, highly
precise localisations are needed using the EVN with
extra sensitivity provided by e-MERLIN."
The hyperactive FRB 20240114A, was localised as
part of the PRECISE project using the EVN, and was
found to reside in a low-metallicity star-forming dwarf
galaxy at redshift z~0.13. This discovery supports the
diversity of hosts found thus far for repeating FRBs,
especially for `hostless’ or offset FRBs."
Read the full paper here (Bhardwaj, Snelders et al.
2025, Accepted to ApJL)."
!
Announcements!
EAVN Call for Proposals.
Deadline 3 November 2025.
Click here for further information"
EVN Call for Proposals.
Deadline 1 February 2026. Click
here for further information%
Meetings/Workshops!
SPARCS XIII Cairns, Australia,
3-7 Nov 2025, Click here for
more details"
Annual UK SKAO Science
Committee Town Hall Cardiff,
UK, 17-18 Nov 2025, Click here
for more details"
BlackHolistic 2026 Oxford, UK,
23-27 Mar 2026, Click here for
more details
Localisation of the FRB 20240114A with the EVN+e-MERLIN
e-MERLIN at the NAM
In July, members of the e-
MERLIN support team joined
colleagues from the UK SKAO
regional centre and the ALMA
ARC node at the National
Astronomy Meeting in Durham,
representing Jodrell Bank
Centre for Astrophysics.
