These minutes are available at https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/ALMA/NaascMinutes2010Aug04

Meeting Logistics:

  • Call date: Wednesday, Aug 04, 2010
  • Call time 13:00 ET or 17:00 UT
  • Duration: 1.0 hr
  • Locations: CV-ER230/TUC-N525/Soc280(SO-conf2)/JAO-Alsacia/JAO-OSF(Science)/NRC
  • Connection for Video:
    • From NRAO select "CV-ER230"
    • hub ip=192.33.117.16
    • alternative ip for Chile only, if above drops: 192.33.117.17
  • USA toll-free Number: 866-675-5385
  • Outside USA Number: +1 517-444-6916
  • Passcode: 8445333#
  • Leader: Hibbard

Attendees:

  • CV: MH, KS, AW, HL, JB, ML, RP, MAd, CV, JH, TH, AE, RF, DH, DM, JM
  • TUC: DE
  • Socorro: None
  • Canada: GS, SS, DJ
  • Chile: None
  • Other: CL

Action Items from past meetings (RED=OPEN)

  • ACTION: Look into documentation solutions (single system that produces both web and hardcopy documents). Define requirements and ask CIS to recommend solutions
    • WHO: JHibbard/MAdams/DHalstead
    • DUE: July 2
    • DONE: Requirements defined by June 16. Systems need to be evaluated - new AI?
    • NOTES: htlatex preferred to latex2html. Used for CASA, AIPS, GBTIDL cookbooks/user guides. Other alternatives have been posted by staff. Update Jul: no time to investigate solns, so each ARC will use whatever they are using so far. Have asked project for guidance on logos, acknowledgements etc.
  • ACTION: Post Charter, Mission Statement from Retreat
    • WHO: Harvey, Aaron
    • DUE: Aug1
    • DONE: July 30
  • ACTION: Assign tasks and staff to groups
    • WHO: John, Crystal, Mark, Carol, Al
    • DUE: July 28
    • DONE: July 28
    • NOTES: Presented results at July 28 group meeting. Minutes and Document posted to basecamp
  • ACTION: Post Simdata walkthrough and 6 recipes
    • WHO: Remy -> D-C. Kim
    • DUE: Jan03 -> June2 -> Sept2
    • DONE: 3 posted; 3 more needed
    • NOTES: ACTION MOVED TO DataServicesGroup; will be removed from here
  • ACTION: Post FAQ for new hires
    • WHO: H. Foster with input from Kartik, Mark L., Aaron, other recent hires
    • DUE: Jan 1, 2010 -> ???
    • DONE:
    • NOTES: ACTION MOVED TO MANAGEMENT GROUP; WILL BE REMOVED FROM HERE
  • ACTION: Develop & deploy staff pages for the NAASC (http://science.nrao.edu/alma/ALMApeople/naascstaff.shtml)
    • WHO: Shanika/Aaron -> C. Lonsdale/D.C. Kim
    • DUE: preliminary page ready Nov13; new scope: include non-CV sites?
    • DONE:
    • NOTES: Carol needs to decide how to incorporate all the different sites & advise Aaron (CV/Soc/Tuc/NRC/Chile)
    • NOTES: ACTION MOVED TO MANAGEMENT GROUP; WILL BE REMOVED FROM HERE
  • ACTION: Lead group to improve Technical Assessment form for OT
    • WHO: HLiszt
    • DUE: Aug1
    • DONE:
    • NOTES: ACTION MOVED TO JAOSupportGroup; WILL BE REMOVED FROM HERE

Action Items from this meeting:

  • ACTION: Solicit ANASAC travel information
    • WHO: Management Group
    • DUE: ASAP
    • DONE:
    • NOTES:
  • ACTION: Send out pre-registration announcement for meeting
    • WHO: Management Groupp/SciComm
    • DUE:
    • DONE:
    • NOTES:

Agenda

  • Project News (APeck/RHills or CSV Liaisons)
  • Group Reports
    • Management Group (Carol)
      • Will hold weekly meetings on Mondays at 1000-1100 ET
      • NAASC retreat was July 09. William Slebos will has a follow-up visit next Wed, Aug 11.
      • NAASC Admin Holly Foster started July 1
      • ANASAC (AWootten)
        • Last telecon: July 23 Agenda.
        • ANASAC f2f meeting Sept 13-14 in Charlottesville; ASAC meets Oct 13-14 in Santiago. Johnstone attending SciOps f2f and CSV review; Baker attending ORR review.
      • Upcoming NAASC Science Visitors: None (see google calendar NAASC Visitors)
      • Science Communications (Mark Adams)
      • EPO (John Stoke)
    • News from NRC (Schieven)
      • DJ: AI on Management: Have Holly solicit travel info from ANASAC ASAP
      • Gerald reported that meeting preparations are going well. Can handle ~90 attendees.
      • Need email announcement for pre-registration starting. AI on Science Communications (M.Adams): send out email announcing opening of pre-registration
    • User Support Group (Crystal)
      • Created group wiki at UserSupportGroup
      • Will hold weekly meetings Tuesdays at 4pm in CV-ER209
      • Next tuesdays meeting will concentrate on Primer. Send email and attend.
    • Data Services Group (Mark)
      • Working on spectral line data queries for ASA developers group
    • JAO Support Group (John H)
      • Created group wiki at JAOSupportGroup
      • Will hold weekly meetings Mondays at 2pm in CV-ER331
      • Current NA CSV turnos: Manuel Aravena July 9-Aug18, followed by Tony Aug 7- Oct 16 (see NAASC2Chile)
      • Darrel is going down Aug 11-25 for "fast mapping" tests
      • Ed Fomalont joins NAASC this month as CSV liaison, taking over from Kartik so he can concentrate on User Support
      • 2nd Integrated test (Aug 24-Sept 22)
        • See ALMALookingAhead for staged timeline
        • NA Testers:
          • Full test: JH, HL, EF, AE, KS, AR, ML, BK
          • Through Sept 9 (TA): CB, TH, RF, AW
          • Through Sept 2 or 3 (OT-ph1/Load test): BM, SS
      • OT/PHT report (Harvey)
        • No public preview. R7.1.1 will be used for integrated test
        • Harvey has generated improved templates for OT; will be available in next integrated test
  • Main Event: Al's email on "Science Verification Data Tiger Team" (see email appended below)

Additional Supporting Material

NAASC items submitted to JAO for June Monthly report

Hiring activities
NRAO astronomer Ed Fomalont transfered into NAASC effective August 1. A third offer for a NAASC scientist was made. Administrative Assistant Holly Foster joined the team on July 1.

JAO support
NRAO postdoc Manuel Aravena is serving a tour for CSV support from July 9 - Aug 18.

Software Development & testing
Work continued on integrating the ALMA helpdesk with Single Sign-on, in preparation for the 2nd integrated test, including a successful test of the High Availability service that will be used to support the helpdesk. The website for CASA was redesigned (see http://casa.nrao.edu). Crystal Brogan gave a CASA tutorial for JAO staff on July 19. Progress was made on CASA tools for image analysis (imcollapse & specfit). NAASC staff created a "Data Range Query" for the ASA development team.

Conferences and workshops
Pre-registration opened and planning continues for the NAASC/NRC workshop to be held Jan 15-17 2011 in Victoria, BC (see http://www.almatelescope.ca/Spectroscopy2011/). Planning continues for NAASC participation in the January AAS in Seattle WA, including an ALMA Special Session: "Observing with ALMA" on Jan 12.

Other
NAASC staff participated in a retreat on July 7, generating a Mission Statement and Charter and new organizational structure with three main groups: User Support Services (group head: Crystal Brogan), Data Services (group head: Mark Lacy), and JAO Support (group head: John Hibbard). The NSF review of the proposal for "NA ALMA Operations and the NAASC" took place at the OSF and Santiago from July 13-18, with participation from key members of the JAO. The review was considered an unqualified success.

NRAO CIO David Halstead met with NOAO/LSST/Reuna/RedClara/FIU/ALMA representatives to finalize plans for a Gigabit network from Santiago to the U.S.. The NAASC archive group successfully loaded Oracle data from Chile (May 2010 data) into the NAASC NGAS system.

Email from A. Wootten on "Science Verification Data Tiger Team" (8/3/2010)

The team consists of: Scott, Stuartt, Ed, John, Crystal, Todd, Amy, Remy, Kartik, Nuria (NB Scott, Stuartt, Amy and Nuria are not yet 'in house'; I cc'd Stuartt but not the others yet)
a) Interaction with JAO/feedback QA3
b) Web-ready scripts and guides
c) Interaction with Pipeline testing

Item a)
Last week Halstead, Lacy and I discussed availability of ALMA data. There is some data in the archive but access is not yet straightforward. The idea has been to assess data to assist the CSV team in understanding of the data, along the lines of our eventual QA3 task. See location of datasets at Science Verification Data Tiger Team on basecamp. Not a permanent place yet.

I think it would be useful to have some illustrative pre-SV data available. I propose to put a few small datasets at a place to be determined for analysis and discussion. At this point I am aware of very few five antenna datasets which might be appropriate, and none yet with six antennas. I suppose the most useful format for datasets would be in ms format. I believe we do not have asdmbrowser installed, though it could be and could be useful for diagnosing asdm<->ms problems. Those problems would seem to me very much before QA3 though. For now, data is in ms format.

Item b)
At the moment there are some scripts and guides. I'd call them 'boutique' as for most of them the detailed description is applicable to only a small number of datasets. Not ready for prime time but they provide a start. I have linked these together on a twiki at: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/ALMA/AlmaTiger That public site does not have data on it.
Phase 2 Schedule Blocks: Mark Rawlings wrote a useful guide, which can be found at http://jira.alma.cl/browse/CSV-127 but it may be that many of you don't have permissions there. Fear not, a copy is on the twiki along with a sample Orion SiO SB set.

Some data reduction hints are collected at: http://wikis.alma.cl/bin/view/AIV/ToolsForMakingPrettyPicturesWithALMAData, which is linked from the twiki.

Item c)
According to Lacy's plan, a local pipeline may appear in mid-2012. Specs are to be developed during 2011, along with the software.

Clear skies, Al

-- JohnHibbard - 2010-08-07
Topic revision: r2 - 2011-01-05, JohnHibbard
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