JLS/ACSIS DR telecon

Attendance: ACC, BEC, TJ, FE, JVB, RP, CW, JdiF
Date: 15 Oct, 2009

Minutes:
1. Review of actions from previous meeting:

1. i. JAC will provide information on how to rsync the starlink releases to get latest patches/fixes. Information will also include for which operating system these patches/fixes are available. – DONE
2. JAC to make a more compact and readable QA report format and make this log available to observers/co-Is following nightly reduction via the OMP (as a downloadable file). – ONGOING
3. For SLS to provide JAC (ie Brad) with list of statistics and requirements for their QA, and also what they want for their reduction recipes to do. – ONGOING. Material has been received from SLS (also available on SLS wiki) and Brad is working through it.
4. For JLS teams to provide JAC with images/data/log of spikes when they come across them in their data. – ONGOING
5. ACC to organise the production of pipeline documentation. – STARTED. ONGOING.
6. ACC to poll for a date and time for next telecon and make these meeting notes available – DONE

2. News from JAC

• Nightly reductions are now being carried out at CADC.
• There have been tweaks to raster maps production such that the pipeline trims off the tassled edges of maps. Note that this is only for the maps and not the cubes.
• We can now regrid to specific wcs coords (e.g galactic).
• The infrastructure for controlling the pipeline via a parameter system and a config file is in place. Now need to decide which parameters are to be accessible before implementing the system. JAC will come up with an initial list and then invite feedback from users.
• There will be two relevant newsletter articles in Autumn edition of JCMT Newsletter. One on JSA and another on the ORAC-DR pipeline.

ACTION : JLS teams to provide feedback on what should go in parameter file (once JAC have made initial list).

3. Updates from survey teams

• GBS : working towards getting a consistent reduction on the data set. Need QA format finalised first.
• NGS : data taking almost complete. Data is currently run through manual QA - flagging of bad data and receptors is critical and it’s subtlety requires human interaction. As the results of this is documented and the recorded state of the receptors isn’t going to change, we should be able to transfer that knowledge to an automated system in the future when we have a triggered re-reduction. Reduced products generated by NGS can be uploaded to the JSA. Improvements in moments maps: based on utilising SNR and noise maps. Good for data taken in different weather conditions.

ACTION : CW to pass on NGS QA and moment map making scripts to JAC.

• iii. SLS : biggest issue is manpower. GAF has sent information to us to kick off the SLS pipeline QA process. Meeting @ JAC with Paul Ruffle tomorrow to discuss SLS DR issues.

4. Designated DR contacts
JAC would like to have email contacts with individuals in survey teams who are regularly looking at data and have the time and inclination to correspond and work with JAC between meetings. It is important that these individuals do have the time available (e.g. students, post-docs) to run tests and feedback ideas and improvements. Although these telecons are proving useful, progress is slow if we wait for monthly meetings to get feedback on more minor (yet potentially critical) issues. Everybody agreed that this is a good idea.

ACTION : ACC to email coords asking them to provide email contacts of people who are reducing ACSIS data and are willing to act as ACSIS DR contacts.

ACTION : JLS coords to provide email contacts of people who are reducing ACSIS data and are willing to act as survey DR contacts (send to FE).