• C/2009 R1 McNaught
  • On July 4 it will be at 07h32m06s and dec 32d45m49s; possibly entering zero-crossover from emission to absorption
  • On July 5 it will be at 07h38m45s and dec 31h06m06s; strong absorption
  • Expect +1 to -6 mJy OH intensity

• ohconfig.py.txt: OH observations receiver and spectrometer setup script
• mcnaught04.py.txt: Example (for Comet C/2009 R1 McNaught) observing script
• Ephemeris files for each comet are in /users/alovell/summer09 and /users/alovell/summer10 and are called:
  • howell_jul5 (summer 2009)
  • howell_jul67 (summer 2009)
  • 07q3jul5 (summer 2009)
  • 07q3jul67 (summer 2009)
  • mcnaught_july04 (summer 2010)
  • mcnaught_july05 (summer 2010)

• SOURCES: C/2009 R1 McNaught (07:32:06, 32:45:49 on 2010/07/04)
• LST RANGE: (02:00-10:00)

ToDo Before the Comet Observing Run

1. Source positions (RA,Dec).
2. Receiver and correlator configuration required.
3. Antenna switching mode to be used.
4. Determine what signal-to-noise you want to ultimately derive from your measurements and estimate what combination of integration time and bandwidth you will need given an assumed system temperature. HINT: Use the "radiometer equation".
5. More...

Extragalactic HI

• Project Number: GBT10A-079-02
• Scheduled:
  • 2010/07/04: 16:30 - 19:30 EDT (10:00 - 13:00 LST)
  • 2010/07/05: 16:30 - 19:30 EDT (10:00 - 13:00 LST)
• Project Leaders: Andy, Abe, Gerald

1. measure the total hydrogen mass of the galaxy,
2. measure the redshift and distance to the galaxy,
3. get a measure of the rotation speed of the galaxy,
4. determine whether the gas in the galaxy is symmetrically distributed, and
5. more!

• Select a representative sample of galaxies with various Hubble types and compare the hydrogen content of those galaxies. (i.e. Do SA galaxies have more HI than SB of comparable luminosity? How about E galaxies?)
• Measure the redshift of a sample of galaxies using the HI line, and compare to optical redshifts. Is there a difference? Which is more accurate? Does it matter if the galaxy is an AGN?
• Select a sample of galaxies with a range of inclinations. How does the profile change with inclination, and why?
• How does the HI profile compare between isolated large disk galaxies, and interacting large disk galaxies?

  There are many possibilities. The students will have an opportunity to measure and compare basic galaxy properties. The observing modes and data processing techniques are thoroughly tested and well defined, and are also standard and instructive to understanding basic position-switched spectroscopy.

• The HI 21cm Line: A summary of how one can calculate HI column density from measurements of the HI 21cm line.
• NED: NASA Extragalactic Database
• T_REx.init: HI receiver and backend setup file
• T_REx.astrid: HI observing script

• SOURCES: (TBD)
• LST RANGE: Any yielding a total of 5 hours of telescope time

ToDo Before the Extragalactic HI Observing Run

1. Source positions (RA,Dec).
2. Receiver and correlator configuration required.
3. Antenna switching mode to be used.
4. Determine what signal-to-noise you want to ultimately derive from your measurements and estimate what combination of integration time and bandwidth you will need given an assumed system temperature. HINT: Use the "radiometer equation".
5. More...

Formaldehyde (H2CO) Emission Studies of Protostars

• Project Number: GBT10A-079-03
• Scheduled:
  • 2009/07/04: 23:00 - 2009/07/05: 01:30 EDT (16:30 - 19:00 LST)
  • 2009/07/05: 23:00 - 2009/07/06: 01:30 EDT (16:30 - 19:00 LST)
• Project Leaders: Buck Naked and Ura Belcher

• Wadiak et al. (1985) found one region of emission in Ophiuchus. Wadiak et al. (1985) mapped this line in the other region in Ophiuchus where it occurs in emission, the B1 core, and found two rotating elongated structures, which may represent evolutionary phases of a cloud core as it creates and nurtures the young stars.
• Another emission region is in Orion A-BN/KL. This line was mapped in continuum mode in the VLA-D configuration by Barvainis and Wootten (1986), who sought to place limits upon the polarization in the line. Weak emission at 2 cm is known to extend over a wide range in the OMC1 cloud (Bastien et al. 1985, map from Effelsberg antenna). Johnston, Wadiak, Rood and Wilson have mapped the formaldehyde distribution in the region 3' north of the dense core. The emission in the Effelsberg map is quite intense, with main beam brightness temperatures ranging from 0.2 K at the compact southern extreme of the map to 2K at BN/KL.

• H2COKuBandSetup.py.txt: H2CO 2(11)-2(12) receiver and backend setup file
• H2CO_6cmSetup.py.txt: H2CO 1(10)-1(11) receiver and backend setup file
• ObsScript.py.txt: H2CO sample observing script

• SOURCES: See the potential source observability chart. A good source for a mapping experiment would be the L1689N source described above.
• LST RANGE: 13-22h

ToDo Before the Protostar Observing Run

1. Source list positions (RA,Dec).
2. Receiver and correlator setup to use.
3. Determine what signal-to-noise you want to ultimately derive from your measurements and estimate what combination of integration time and spectral resolution you will need given an assumed system temperature. HINT: Use the "radiometer equation".
4. Which flavour of "switching" are you going to use? HINT: You want to choose an observing mode that is both efficient and allows you to make the measurements the way you want (i.e. lets you obtain the spectral resolution and bandwidth you desire).
5. Are you going to want to map the source? You will need to map a source if it is larger than the primary beam of the antenna at your observing frequency. Look at the data from last year and decide if you need to map the source, and if so which positions need to be measured.

Radio Recombination Line Emission in NGC7027 and DR 21

• Project Number: GBT10A-079-04
• Scheduled: 2009/07/06: 1:30 - 6:30 EDT (19:00 - 00:00 LST)
• Project Leaders: Phil McCrackin, Dufus McDufus

• The HI 21cm Line: A summary of how one can calculate HI column density from measurements of the HI 21cm line.
• recomb.init: Recomb project receiver and backend setup file.
• recomb.astrid: Recomb project observing script.

• SOURCES: NGC 7027 and DR 21
• LST RANGE: approximately 14 - 2 hours

ToDo Before the NGC7027 Observing Run

1. Source positions (RA,Dec).
2. Receiver and correlator configuration required.
3. Antenna switching mode to be used.
4. Determine what signal-to-noise you want to ultimately derive from your measurements and estimate what combination of integration time and bandwidth you will need given an assumed system temperature. HINT: Use the "radiometer equation".
5. More...