Meeting Information

• 1600 UT (1000 MDT)
• AOC 317; IP: 146.88.16.8; phone: +1 575-835-7370

Agenda/Minutes

News, Travel, Visitors (McMullin)

• Overall status: In A configuration (ending 12 Sep); Correlator hardware (64 BlB) available. Realized improvements in peak data rates. New OPT release today. Maintenance day today (due to fixed-date daytime observing tomorrow).
• Key dates:
  • 08 Jun - 12 Sep: A configuration (move from 31 May - 08 Jun).
• Staff Travel:
  • RP: 09 Aug - 21 Aug (URSI)
  • FO: 12 Aug - 12 Sep
  • RP: 10 Sep - 16 Sep (Brazil)
• Visitors:
  • Michiel Brentjens: 11 Jun - 11 Nov (Holography; characterizing polarized beams)
  • Dave Roberts: 10 Aug - 20 Aug (SS433 Demo science)

Hardware status and updates (Langley, Perley, Rupen)

• Array (Perley/Langley):
  • Antennas: EA25 out; EA23 on MP.
  • Receivers: EA23 gets outfitted last week in August.
    • Perley: RF Switch testing ongoing.
  • Calibration (Perley): Gain compression/expansion ongoing (Hayward).
  • Brentjens: Holography readiness/status.
• WIDAR (Rupen):
  • Notes (Rupen/Sowinski): BlB's fully populated; StB rack fully populated (less deformatters). Data rate work now supports the most challenging RSRO programs (just over 25 MB/s). Pushing to faster dump times (120 ms sustained for OSRO configurations). Pushing to improve configuration times, resolve remaining missing BDFs (1-2 times/night).
• Computing (Robnett):
  • Notes: Issues with lustre filling.

Software status and updates (Butler)

• Links:
  • Software versions/updates: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/EVLASoftwareVersioning?sortcol=table;up=#Current_Software_Versions_in_Use
• OST v1.11 released today; features the new OSRO mode; graphical tools for placing sub-bands within baseband; see: https://staff.nrao.edu/evla/sss/opt/testingTips.1.11.00.html
• CASA Update (new functionality available/issues/enhancements):Notes: 3.3 development upcoming; current test/stable version status
• AIPS Update (new functionality available/issues/enhancements): Notes:
• SDM Update: Notes: Still waiting on mosaic document (Butler).

Commissioning Group Reports and Test Planning

• Key link: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/EVLACommissioningOrganization

• NOTE: Please cc me on submitted tests so that it can be assigned the appropriate priority!

Commissioning priorities for the week (McMullin, Chandler)

• Mon
  • 1000-1700: Testing/software development time
  • 1800-0900: Science operations and testing
• Tue: Maintenance day
  • 0630-1700: Maintenance operations
  • 1800-0900: Science operations and testing
• Wed:
  • 0930-1730: 11A-229
  • 1800-0900: Science operations and testing
• Thu:
  • 0900-1700: Testing/software development time
  • 1800-0900: Science operations and testing
• Fri (not-yet-a-holiday):
  • 0900-1700: Testing/software development time
  • 1800-0900: Science operations and testing
• Sat-Sun
  • Science operations + planned testing

Issues Affecting Science Observing:

• Quick summary:
  • Good weekend; stabilized data acquisition software issues for the weekend. Some outstanding development items below; some suspected hardware issues, some puzzles.

• Correlator: [Rupen/Carlson w/ Momjian/Sault] V stokes issues.Identified possible issues in the noise related to the 3-level phase rotator. Water maser data taken.
• Correlator: [Pokorny/Rupen/McMullin] time mislabeling in SDM data (non-synchronous operation between correlator dumps and CBE can require additional 1/2 integration time padding for online flags). .Needs close-out testing.
• Correlator: [Clark/Carlson] Delay rocking across bands. Ongoing discussion of implementation; pending Bryan's return
  • Array: [All] Zoo of other effects (some data are very good, some still seeing antenna-based IF/Polarization issue).
  • Array: Hunter: OPT testing revealed some oddities with North Arm antennas (status)?
  • Array: Chandler: Stepped (asymptotic) gain changes on some antenna IFs (status)?
  • Array: Hughes: Rapid phase changes at L band
  • Array: EA17 IFC amplitude jumps
  • Array: EA15 B/D not fringing
  • Array: EA10 SPW9 IF B/D phase drifts

Testing This week/soon

• [Sowinski et al]; Executor update testing
  • Phased array testing
• [Pokorny et al]; CBE data rate testing (fast dumps); configuration timings
• Planetary tracking tests
• Holography scanning tests
• [Goss et al]; Sub-band edge effects testing.
• [Owen]: L band deep field study
• [Carlson et al]; V Stokes follow-up.
• Subarrays: cleanup.
• 3-bit sampler testing; automatic gain setting.
• Stage 2 mixer testing to relax sub 128 MHz BW grids
• astrometry mode testing.
• Correlator: Rupen: S-band shadow testing
• Spectral line: Roy/Dhawan: HI High resolution bandpass testing
• Baseband edge/filter rolloff.
• Sub-band dependent fshifts.
• Array: *; Individual issue sleuthing.

Commissioning Groups

• Correlator(Rupen):
  • Notes: Testing as above.
• OSRO User Support (van Moorsel): Link: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/OSROTests
  • Notes: Workshop update

• • Adv: Low band (Owen):
    • Notes:

• Observing Modes
  • Spectral Line (Goss/Ott): Link: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/SpectralLineModes
    • Draft User Documentation: http://evlaguides.nrao.edu/index.php?title=Category:SpectraLine
    • Sub-band edge effects [Goss] - update

• • Planetary (Butler):
    • Notes: * Scheduling/Rapid Response (Claussen/McMullin): Link: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/RapidResponseObserving
    • Notes: Simulation tool nearly ready to be deployed - Aug 16
  • Adv: Phased array/VLBA/VBLI (Deller, Lazio): Link: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/PhasedArray
    • Draft User Documentation: http://evlaguides.nrao.edu/index.php?title=Category:PhasedArray
    • Update to executor needs testing; watching clash of schedules for end of September follow-up with Pulsar group.
  • Adv: Solar (Perley):
    • Notes: Recent test results at: https://bugs.nrao.edu/browse/ECSV-167; first L-band deployed; Bastian et al arriving mid September for work.
  • Adv: Pulsar (Brisken): https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/Pulsars
    • Draft User Documentation: http://evlaguides.nrao.edu/index.php?title=Category:Pulsar
    • Notes: As above.

• • Adv: Astrometry (Mioduszewski):
    • Notes: Preliminary results from Vivek/Andreas. -- follow-up
• Calibrator Models
  • Notes: Reduction underway.
• HPC (Bhatnagar/Owen/Golap):
  • Notes: ~500 GB data set obtained; status; talk this Thursday at 1000.
• Imaging (Ott/Golap):
  • Notes:
• Algorithm (Bhatnagar, Owen):
  • Notes: Calibration discussion this week (Moellenbrock)
    • Tracking for MS-MFS: https://bugs.nrao.edu/browse/CAS-2480
    • autoflag task: tfcrop ready for internal testing. Algorithm details, how to run/use it, parameter options and a fewsample plots are listed on:
      • http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/~rurvashi/TFCrop/TFCrop.html Updates to this; please review.
      • The relevant JIRA ticket is : https://bugs.nrao.edu/browse/CAS-2676

RSRO/ECSO Reports

RSRO A configuration status: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/2011BRSROStatus

Individual reports (updates)

Misc:

• RSRO A config status: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/2011AConfiguration
• Test Project Codes == *TRSR*
• Guidelines for RSRO observing: https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/RSROObservingPreparationGuidelines
• Notes:

Demo Science Status

• https://safe.nrao.edu/wiki/bin/view/EVLA/EVLADemoScience

AOB