中国天眼FAST2024年度观测季自由观测项目申请通道于4月6日0时向全球开放。在中国天眼FAST的总控室，科研人员正在通过全球最大单口径球面射电望远镜进行脉冲星搜索观测，旁边的电脑上正在不断刷新数据，这就是此时此刻FAST正在接收的来自太空的天体信号。据了解，自运行以来，FAST每年的观测时长不低于5000小时。目前，FAST正在进行脉冲星搜寻、脉冲星测时、中性氢巡天以及快速射电暴等科学目标的观测任务。凭借超高灵敏度，截至今年年初，中国天眼FAST累计监测到的脉冲星数量已超890颗，是同一时期国外同类型望远镜监测数量总和的3倍以上。4月6日0时，中国天眼FAST面向全球公开征集2024年8月至2025年7月之间的自由观测项目，相关申请可以通过中国天眼官网提交。China's Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST), the world's largest single-dish and most sensitive radio telescope, opened global applications for free observation projects on Saturday, according to the telescope's official website.The telescope, located in a naturally deep and round karst depression in southwest China's Guizhou Province, has observed celestial phenomena for no less than 5,000 hours per year since it started operation in January 2020.Currently, FAST is conducting scientific observation missions including pulsar search, pulsar time survey, neutral hydrogen survey and fast radio bursts.As of the beginning of this year, the total number of pulsars observed by FAST has exceeded 890 with its ultra-high sensitivity.FAST has received applications from 15 countries and approved a total of nearly 900 hours of observation access for foreign research teams since March 31, 2021.The telescope is currently accepting global applications from August 2024 to July 2025, with the deadline for submissions set for May 15, 2024, at 16:00 UT, said its website.