MMA Imaging and Calibration Group

Minutes for meeting Tuesday, 27 Aug 2002 at 12:00pm EDT.

Date: 27 Aug 2002

Time: 4:00 pm EDT (2:00 pm Socorro, 1:00 pm Tucson)

Phone: (434)296-7082 (CV SoundStation Premier Conference phone 3rd floor).

Past minutes, etc on MMA Imaging and Calibration Division Page
 

Agenda


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News. -Wootten

News from my point of view.
 The VertexRSI antenna continues to rise.
 
  • NSB approves full ALMA Project.
     Dear Colleagues,
      I just received the very good news that the National Science Board at today's session of its August 14-15 meeting approved the full ALMA Project and a construction funding profile for the years FY 2003 - FY 2010.
      We are very gratified at having received this final formal approval for U.S. participation in the Bi-lateral ALMA Project.
      Congratulations are in order to all those from NRAO and AUI who have worked extremely hard, some for a very many years, to bring this Project (which was originally conceived as the Millimeter Array) to this time of great satisfaction.
      While many challenges are still ahead, this great achievement is cause for celebration.
      Best regards,
      Riccardo
     
  • JAO News - Who knows?
      Configuration Final Review -- Grenoble 30 Sept - 1 Oct 2002.
      Budgets 2003 and beyond due 15 August
     ALMA Site Infrastructure Requirements Review 2002 October 22-24 NRAO Tucson
     ALMA Antenna Transporter Requirements Review 2002 October 22-24 NRAO Tucson
     
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    Calibration - All

      Bryan held an ALMACal meeting.
     
     
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    AIPS++ - Holdaway

      Tim Cornwell has written new software in AIPS++ for simulation and imaging of INT and SD data jointly. I have inhaled the latest software and will give this a go.
     
     
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    Configuration - Conway

      Johns says: I have been beam optimising the most compact arrays talking into account shadowing, access and proximity constraints.
      I am now working again on the terrain mask, and optimising the outer spiral - unfortunatley the orientation of the inner array depends on the exact intermediate array chosen - which depends on the mask etc etc. All the software and methodology is there to come to that final design for <4km just need to apply it all at once, I really hope to finsh it by the end of this week/middle of next.
      I have tried optimising the uv coverage for the first NS array using my own software and that of Boones - still this does not allow joint optimisation of arrays, so I just adjust the pads which are only in the NS array. A joint optimisation would be better - so it would great to get the Boone software working with different decs for different arrays.
      I'm concious that time is diappearing fast. We definitely need eveying sorted out in the next few weeks before the formal Project office decision on configs at end of Sept. If I can complete the inner 4km soon this only gives you a little time to work of the 4-14km array, unfortunatley my fault.
      Probably the 4km-14km will still end up being somewhat preliminary since the terrrain is uncertain in some places - but Simon needs an ALMA spec document with 230-250 pads on to give to the 3 weeks orior to the Tuscon site meeting -so we have to provide him with that - hopefully fairly final for <4km, less so beyond that.
     
     

    Meetings Past and Future - Wootten


     
  • Agenda for ASAC Face-to-face. The Charges from the Alma Board are of special interest, here shown with Cox's plan for addressing them. There was an Early Science telecon today to discuss Stephane's draft points.
     
      Early Science Sensitivity Comparisons
      CARMA Sensitivity Comparisons
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    Calibration--Butler, Mangum


     
     
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    Other


      Monthly report for Jun-Jul is now due!
     SMA News...
     
     
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    Upcoming Meetings - Wootten

    AUG 17/24 URSI General Assembly, Maastricht, the Netherlands Butler attending

    AUG 22/28 SPIE Symposium on Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation, Waikoloa, Hawaii. Brown, Wootten attending; Text of ALMA article.

    SEP 9-13 Winds, Bubbles and Explosions

    JAN 5/9, 2003 201st Meeting of the American Astronomical Society

    JUL 13-26, 2003 Twenty-Fifth General Assembly of the IAU

    JUL 22/25, 2003 IAU Symposium (221): Star Formation at High Angular Resolution, Sydney, Australia. Tyler Bourke is a co-chair of the scientific organizing committee. Good opportunity to show ALMA capabilities.

    SEP 22-26, 2003 4th Cologne-Bonn-Zermatt-Symposium on The Dense Interstellar Medium in Galaxies

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    Travel

     Oh, always

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