Regularization methods in radio interferometry

The problem of image retrieval in radio interferometry is a classical example of an ill-posed problem. In this paper, we consider a new approach to the radio-interferometric imaging based on regularization, which is computationally more flexible. A new type of a weighting function suitable for managing the interferometer antenna pattern is obtained. The regularization procedure was implemented in the VLBI-image processing software developed at the Astrospace Center of the Lebedev Physical Institute (ASC LPI). It is shown that the joint use of the developed regularization methods with traditional deconvolution algorithms such as CLEAN and self-calibration improve the quality of images of cosmic radio-emission sources. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 50, No. 6, pp. 453–460, June 2007.