The beginnings of decameter radio astronomy: pioneering works of Semen Ya. Braude and his followers in Ukraine

摘要

S.Ya. Braude (1911-2003) was the well-known radio astronomer, one of the founders of low-frequency astronomical research in the world, in particular in the former Soviet Union. He began to work in this field of science in 1957, in Kharkiv city (Ukraine), from the design and manufacturing small decameter interferometer ID-1 and ID-2. Since that time Braude and his team have developed more sophisticated radio decameter telescopes as UTR-1 and UTR-2 (the largest in the world till now) as well as the first decameter VLBI network URAN. They have obtained some important pioneering results about low-frequency radio emission of objects in our Solar system, Galaxy and Metagalaxy by means of these telescopes. In this paper the key events of early history of decameter radio astronomy research in the former USSR are mentioned with emphasizing the role of S. Braude. For the period of 1957-1962, the quotations of Braude's Personal Diary (2003) are first laying open to the public. The most important results obtained by S.Ya. Braude and his followers as well as perspectives of decameter radio astronomy in Ukraine and in the world are highlighted briefly. (c) 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim