TGBT14A_912_07 - Comprehensive RRL astronomical tests

Goals

  • Goal is to run TP and FSW observations on W3 and a flux calibrator for as many modes as possible within the eight hours available.
  • Estimate 15 mins for a TP observation, 10 mins for a FSW observation, 5 mins for calibrator, 5 mins to point (rough numbers).
  • Use target source W3, and flux calibrator 3C147 (0542+498), 3.7cm = flux = 4.84Jy
  • Say we do:
    • peak + 5 modes in TP = 1hr 20 mins
    • peak + 5 modes in SP = 55 mins
    • peak + 5 modes on calibrator = 30 mins
    • total = ~ 3 hours
    • Can do ~ 13 modes total (26 currently available)
    • Do four modes at a time.
  • So:
    • 20,24,25,29
    • 15,16,17,18
    • 10,11,12,13
  • Then switch to ripple tests
  • The ripple scripts are in TGBT13B_502 and called RippleQbandmode1, 2, 3, etc

Details

W3 - 18th

  • start at 12:25pm. Weather overcast
  • try and get RRLAllModes.sb to work. Validates, but won't save into database. Give up on it.
  • Scans 1-5 Peak Focus
  • Scans 6/7 Mode 25 TP
  • Scan 8 Mode 29 TP - IF levels have jumped up to -16dBm, down to -24 dBm - abort This was within one scan, so must be bogus
  • Scans 9/10 Mode 29 TP - IF levels now stable. 4dB jump from Off to On - must be continuum emission?
  • Scans 11/12 Mode 20 TP - in Scan 11, total power drops to -26dB - was this just slewing to off source after the balance?? see if this is in the data
  • Scans 13/14 Mode 24 TP - power levels look ok.

  • Scan 15-19 Peak Focus
  • Scan 20/21 Mode 15 TP
  • Scan 22/23 Mode 16 TP - Fails to balance one polarization of Bank H (J16)
  • Scan 24/25 Mode 17 TP
  • Scan 26/27 Mode 18 TP 8dB short upward spikes in one polarization (red = J2) in Bank A during scan 26 (~ 300 secs into scan). Is this in the data?

  • Scan 28-32 Peak Focus
  • Scan 33/34 Mode 10 TP
  • Scan 35/36 Mode 11 TP scan 36 still not balancing Bank H pol J16. Converter rack CM16 attn is at 0dB (c.f. ~10-15dB for others)
  • Scan 37/38 Mode 12 TP
  • Scan 39/40 Mode 13 TP - Astrid hangs between Off and On scans.... Need to edit Mode 13 back to how it was before

  • weather is getting more overcast

3C147 - 18th

  • Switch at ~ 4:12pm
  • Slew to 3C147
  • Scans 41 - 46 Peak Focus
  • Scans 47/48 Mode 10
  • Scans 49/50 Mode 11
  • Scans 51/52 Mode 12
  • Scans 53/54 Mode 13
  • Scans 55/56 Mode 15
  • Scans 57/58 Mode 16
  • Scans 59/60 Mode 17
  • Scans 61/62 Mode 18

  • Scans 63 - 67 Peak Focus
  • Scans 68/69 Mode 20
  • Scans 70/71 Mode 24
  • Scans 72/73 Mode 25 Bank H has recovered again
  • Scans 74/75 Mode 29

Q-band ripple tests - 18th

  • Scan 76-78 Attempt to peak - fails. Tsys ~ 220K
  • Scan 79 - RippleQbandmode1 - abort - wasn't balanced
  • Scan 80 - RippleQbandmode1
  • Scan 81 - RippleQbandmode2
  • Scan 82 - RippleQbandmode3
  • Scan 83 - RippleQbandmode4 - HUGE
  • Scan 84 - RippleQbandmode6 - HUGE

  • End of Scan 84 / Start of Scan 85 get a whole slew of VEGAS messages -
  • fault in Bof File, gbe_info, dest_ip, dest_port, master_slave_sel, lbw_gain, roach_state for all four banks in use. activate failed.
  • resubmitting SB doesn't help. Turn Manager OFF and ON again
  • Same again - try one more time, no joy.
  • Dave tries something ... restarts the VEGAS coordinator
  • Get two MMCM errors for hpc5 and 8 (banks E and H, even though they are not in use)
  • Try scan again - same set of error messages appear...
  • Called everyone, no-one home. Dave does a TaskMaster kill everything....
  • Try again - same set of error messages appear
  • Jason reboots roaches, doesn't clear errors so Donna does a TaskMaster reset again...Doesn't clear the messages, but Off/On does.
  • Scan 85 mode 1 works ok... abort and try again,
  • Mode 7 won't work - same problem
  • Can't recover just by turning off and on again - it is trying to come up in mode 7.
  • Why does TaskMaster only do A and B?
  • This puts it back into Mode 1
  • Try Mode 2 - Ok
  • Try Mode 6 - Ok
  • Try Mode 7 - Failed - TaskMaster and Off/On seems to be needed to clear the fault
  • Jason tells us there is a typo in the filename for mode 7
    • "in the file it says "l1_ver116_800_Jul_16_0616.bof" and it should be "l1_ver116_800_2014_Jul_16_0616.bof"
    • same for mode 9
  • Try Mode 9 - Failed Try just an off and On again. Doesn't work
  • Try Mode 10 - : configures ok, so that must have been the problem.

W3 switched power tests - 18th

  • Scans 86-90 Peak / Focus - system temp now 50K c.f. 31 earlier W3 is at lower culmination
  • Scan 91 RRLMode10SP
    • Samplers have lots of -20dB drop outs, but not at the same time in all banks, or the same time in both polns of a single bank. Is this blanking?
  • Scan 92 RRLMode11SP
  • Scan 93 RRLMode12SP
  • Scan 94 RRLMode13SP - note Bank G didn't show any (or very few) drop-outs, but now it is again
  • Scan 95 RRLMode15SP
  • Scan 96 RRLMode16SP
  • Scan 97 RRLMode17SP
  • Scan 98 RRLMode18SP
  • Scan 99 - 103 Peak Focus
  • Scan 104 - RRLMode20SP
  • Scan 105 - RRLMode24SP
  • Scan 106 - RRLMode25SP
  • 8:45pm - Finito

W3 total power 19th - keep using same directory so everything can be filled to the same SDFITS file

  • Start at 4:35pm. Weather is very poor - overcast and slight drizzle
  • Start at scan 200
  • Scan 200 - 204 Peak Focus - two scans are very poor. System temperature is very bad - ~ 75k. Repeat
  • Scan 205 - 209 Peak focus - much better - Tsys around 55K
  • Scan 210 - mode 4. for some reason, bank A is off - abort. Vegas Manager Terminated Abnormally - signal = 11
  • Scan 211/2 - mode 4 - upward going spike in Bank D about 300 secs before end of Scan 212 - accidentally done with 1 sec integrations
  • Scan 213/14 - mode 5 - accidentally done with 1 sec integrations - why is this? Change to 30.
  • Scan 215/6 - mode 6
  • Scan 217/8 - mode 7
  • Scan 219/220 - mode 8
  • Scan 221/222 - mode 9

Q-band ripple tests

  • Scan 223 - Ripple Mode 7 - seems to have a huge number of integrations!!! 7800 and counting!
  • Scan 224 - Ripple Mode 9 - so does 224??
  • Scan 225 - Ripple Mode 20
  • Scan 226 - Ripple Mode 22
  • Scan 227 - Ripple Mode 24
  • Scan 228 - Ripple Mode 25 Scan 228 - 2014_07_19_22:37:13A.fits has 7ms integrations - what is going on? - EXPOSURE = HWEXPOSURE
  • System gets stuck in stopping....

  • _ All of these have file sizes between 0.4 and 8.5 Gb long_

3C147 TP

  • Scan 229 - 233 Peak Focus Tsys now 40K
  • Scan 234/5 3C147 Mode 1
  • Scan 236/7 3C147 Mode 2
  • Scan 238/9 3C147 Mode 3 - IF Manager was screwing up in here - some data seems to be missing...., these scans may be no use
  • Scan 240/241 3C147 Mode 4 - Also, sdfits/gbtidl is hopelessly sluggish, so I am flying blind
  • Scan 242/243 3C147 Mode 5
  • Scan 244/245 3C147 Mode 6 - W3 by mistake
  • Scan 246/247 3C147 Mode 6
  • Scan 248/249 3C147 Mode 7
  • Scan 250/251 3C147 Mode 8
  • Scan 252/253 3C147 Mode 9

W3 deep integration

  • Scan 254 - 258 Peak / Focus
  • Scan 259 - RRLMode29Deep two hours total, 6 min scans, 10 sec integrations. should last two hours
  • leave running with Donna.
  • Only data in window 1 looks any good! Other system temperatures are way high!

W3 deep integration - mode 9 (L1 mode) July 20th

Scan 300 - 304 Peak / Focus Scan 305 - Had 1 sec integrations Scan 306/7 RRL Mode 9 Deep - W3 Scan 207/8 RRL Mode 9 Deep - NCP - Note: still called W3!!!!! Scan ... RRL Mode 29 Deep - NCP Auto Peak Focus Mode 9 TP Deep Leave running with Rob

3C two minute integrations - July 24th data taken into TGBT14A_912_7

  • 3C348 Peak / Focus - 400 - 404
  • 405-406 RRLMode3TP - Almanac value 7.19 Jy looks seriously screwed up
  • 407-408 RRLMode4TP - Also seriously screwed up
  • 409-410 RRLMode10TP - Same
  • Turn VEGAS Managers off and on again

  • 411-412 RRLMode10TP - looks ok. Seems to be about 2Jy - should be 7Jy?
  • 413-414 RRLMode3TP - problem
  • 415-419 Auto Peak Focus on 3C348 - extended source!!!!
  • 420-424 Auto Peak Focus on 3C295 - point source
  • 425-426 RRLMode4TP
  • 427-428 RRLMode3TP - this one is screwed up again!!
  • finito
Topic revision: r10 - 2015-01-27, RichardPrestage
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