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operations:documentation_austral15day_overview

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AUSTRAL 15-day Session, Sep 2014

The AUSTRAL schedules are named A14nn where (nn = 01, 02, 03, … , 15).

Interleaved with the AUSTRAL sessions are APSG34 and R1653.

Important! Before starting your shift, please make sure you know answers to the following questions (find answers with the help of the tables below):

  1. Do you have a schedule changeover?
  2. Are there telescope checks scheduled during your shift?
  3. If answer to any of these is YES , then: will Mark5 banks be swapped (happens on schedule change) or modules moved (happens during system check time) during your shift?

Schedules

All schedule files for the period from A1401 to A1415 should already be prepared and ready to use before your shift. However, if you are starting APSG34 or R1653, you will need to make the usual schedule file preparations.

The schedule files are written such that the same source is observed at the same sidereal time every day, so the actual schedule changes are NOT at the same UT every day and do not exactly match the IVS schedule. In order to facilitate smooth transition, each schedule must be modified well before its start to accommodate automatic start of the subsequent schedule. For that, a line must be added in the end:

Below is a table summary of all schedules with start/stop times, module changes (for AuScope antennas) and system checks over the 15 days of AUSTRAL observing. Note that bank swaps are done by operator after the corresponding experiment has finished, and module changes are performed by local staff during the corresponding system check time.

Operators, if during your shift a module change occurs, please call the local staff a bit in advance and agree on exact time.

More about system check times and protocol and module changes can be found in the corresponding section below.

Schedule Start DOY UT Start UT Stop System checks?
A1401 247 04 Sep, 04:00:00 05 Sep, 03:51:00 Hb, Ke, Yg
A1402 248 05 Sep, 03:56:04 06 Sep, 03:47:04 Ht
A1403 249 06 Sep, 03:52:08 07 Sep, 03:43:08 Hb, Yg
A1404 250 07 Sep, 03:48:12 08 Sep, 03:39:12 Ke, Ht, Ww
A1405 251 08 Sep, 03:44:16 09 Sep, 16:00:00 Ke, Hb, Yg, Ht
APSG34 252 09 Sep, 17.30.00 10 Sep, 18.59.00
A1405A 253 10 Sep, 19:00:00 11 Sep, 03:27:24 Ke, Hb, Yg
A1406 254 11 Sep, 03:32:28 12 Sep, 03:23:28 Yg, Ht, Ww
A1407 255 12 Sep, 03:28:32 13 Sep, 03:19:32 Ww, Hb, Yg
A1408 256 13 Sep, 03:24:36 14 Sep, 03:15:36 Yg, Ke, Ht
A1409 257 14 Sep, 03:20:41 15 Sep, 03:11:41 Ke, Hb
A1410 258 15 Sep, 03:16:45 15 Sep, 16:00:00 Yg, Ht
R1653 258 15 Sep, 17.00.00 16 Sep, 18.59.00 Ww
A1410A 259 16 Sep, 19:00:00 17 Sep, 03:03:49 Ke, Hb
A1411 260 17 Sep, 03:08:53 18 Sep, 02:59:53 Yg, Ht
A1412 261 18 Sep, 03:04:57 19 Sep, 02:55:57 Hb
A1413 262 19 Sep, 03:01:01 20 Sep, 02:00:00 Yg, Ke, Ht
A1414 263 20 Sep, 02:57:05 21 Sep, 02:48:05 Ww
A1415 264 21 Sep, 02:53:09 22 Sep, 02:44:09

Module usage

Please pay particular attention to when the modules need to be changed at each station as they are not all the same.

The “Swap?” column means you need to swap the module at the end of that schedule. For example, at Hb, at the end of A1403, it says 'yes' in the column. At the end of A1403, you need to change the module (usually just swap banks)

When you change the module, please put the VSN of the new module and your name in the corresponding column. If you need to change modules unexpectedly, please also put the VSN you use for the corresponding experiment so Imogen knows where the data is and can rearrange the module schedule to compensate.

To edit this spreadsheet, please log in to hbobserver@gmail.com and edit it through the Google Drive

Monitoring observations

Please carry out the regular two-hourly checks as normal during the observations.

It is also possible to monitor the 15m telescope at Hartebeeshoek and you may be asked to respond to problems when local staff are unavailable.

It may also be possible to monitor the Warkworth 12m antenna. Details to follow if this becomes possible.

Schedule Changeover

The last line of each schedule contains a command to start the next one (unless the next one is not an AUSTRAL experiment) so it should happen automatically. Once the new schedule has started:

System checks and module changes

About an hour every few days at each antenna are planned for system checks and module or bank swaps. IMPORTANT! These have not been put in the schedule so if you miss a check, the schedule will continue as normal. However, you do need to interrupt the schedule to do the check. The procedure for the check is the same as for CONT14.

IMPORTANT! When stopping for system checks, please be ultra-paranoid to make sure recording has stopped after typing ‘halt’ and that the disks are idle. Check if the recording is running, for example, with the command

 mk5=dot?

If responce to the command contains 'FHG_on', recording is active, terminate with

 disk_record=off

and check again. 'FHG_off' indicates that recording is off.

The safest way to resume the schedule after the checks (or module swaps) is with either:

 schedule=<schedule_name>

which will execute the next schedule command that’s at least 5 min into the future, or, if you know which line of the snap file to start on (N):

 schedule=<schedule_name>,N

Suggested times for the check are listed in a table below:

Important! all times and dates are given in UT, please check local time! UT midnight is 10AM local time for Hobart.

Important! System check times vary when there is no module change in order to preserve data quality during those hours. “Unusual” times are marked in bold. Be carefu!

Date DOY Site Check time (UT)
04 Sep 2014 Ke 23.30 - 00.30
05 Sep 2014 248 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
07 Sep 2014 250 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ke 04.00 - 05.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
08 Sep 2014 251 Ww 03.00 - 04.00
Ke 23.30 - 00.30
09 Sep 2014 252 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
10 Sep 2014 Ke 23.30 - 00.30
11 Sep 2014 254 Hb 02.00 - 03.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
12 Sep 2014 255 Ww 03.00 - 04.00
13 Sep 2014 256 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ke 04.00 - 05.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
14 Sep 2014 Ke 23.30 - 00.30
15 Sep 2014 258 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 04.00 - 05.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
16 Sep 2014 259 Ww 03.00 - 04.00
Ke 23.30 - 00.30
17 Sep 2014 260 Hb 01.00 - 02.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
19 Sep 2014 262 Hb 02.00 - 03.00
Yg 03.00 - 04.00
Ke 04.00 - 05.00
Ht 07.30 - 08.30
20 Sep 2014 263 Ww 03.00 - 04.00
/home/www/auscope/opswiki/data/attic/operations/documentation_austral15day_overview.1410407559.txt.gz · Last modified: 2014/09/11 03:52 by Imogen Jones