> Begin forwarded message: > > > You could have a consortium of educational telescopes where software is > common and anyone could add to that common code. > > There would be a standard way of moving each telescope and reading from it > (digitize); and each site would write glue code between their specific > hardware and the common batch of code. > > You could create a web browser user interface so that anyone in the world > with a web browser could access any of the telescopes. This would be password > protected so that each site controlled who accessed their gear. Each site’s > access policy would be TBD (to be determined). > > You could also have a standard computer setup at each site where the computer > hardware is the same (e.g. windows or linux computer, graphics card for > FFT’s, off the shelf pci express digitizer). Below is an example off the > shelf high speed digitizer. > > http://www.gage-applied.com/digitizers/12-bit/pcie/digitizer-compuscope-eon-express.htm > > <http://www.gage-applied.com/digitizers/12-bit/pcie/digitizer-compuscope-eon-express.htm> > > It would probably be better to use as much off-the shelf commercially > available gear as possible, since custom takes much time to build and > maintain. And if maintenance consumes too much time, a site can fall behind > -- and the end result is idle telescope. > > Nrao might be willing to dedicate a post-doc. They also might be willing to > create glue between education telescopes (ET’s) and their own large batch of > vla/gbt code for several reasons: > > n Help astronomers do test experiments with small educational telescopes > before taking up time on nrao telescopes > n Help train astronomers on their own code > > Nasa might be willing to dedicate a post-doc, since it would help education > in the usa. > > Perhaps a phd thesis could synchronize multiple ET’s and build an array? GPS > time could help, yet one might need some additional timing resolution to do a > decent job. I am not sure how one would build a PMA (poor man array). > > One of the first steps would probably be to do a survey of all the publically > available software used for radio astronomy; and think about how one might > glue together pieces to build a common batch of RAEC code. > > Also, one could do a survey of hardware used for radio astronomy and think > about what would be common at each site. > > One could also do a survey of commercially available receiver gear that has > not been used in the past, yet might be helpful. Below is an example. > > http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/212999 > <http://sine.ni.com/nips/cds/view/p/lang/en/nid/212999> > > http://www.ni.com/datasheet/pdf/en/ds-538 > <http://www.ni.com/datasheet/pdf/en/ds-538> > > Perhaps one could write a grant for a common batch of hardware (e.g. > computer, GPU, digitizer, receiver) for multiple sites (e.g. 5 sites * $15k > each = $75k), to get things started. Perhaps a wealthy person would write a > check for $75k without spending much time thinking about it? > > You could contact sites with idle telescopes and ask them if they would > participate if someone sent them free common hardware. You might be able to > get more people interested if you provided free gear. > > Another way to get more interested is if you have two computers at each site, > one common to each site, and one specific to each site. much complexity gets > offloaded to the common and the site does not need to touch it, other than > assemble and attach to internet. > > The common consortium computers (CCC) are totally identical at each site, > they are maintained remotely by one master remote operator (MRO) who loads > software and makes sure the versions are working well together. The CCC > computer would be connected to common receiver/digitizer hardware, it would > contain lots of software (some from nrao?), and users would interact with > this computer via a web browser. > > The second computer is specific to each site (i.e. site specific computer, > SCS). This would be maintained by each site and focus on things that are > unique to the site, such as moving the telescope. The CCC and SCS would talk > in a standard manner via Ethernet. > > If you make it easy for a site to participate, you would get more people to > jump in. Remote management of CCC with common digitizer/receiver and lots of > software would make it easy. > > Initial goals might be: > - spectrum > - build image > - remote connection > > You could call this “Radio Astronomy Education Consortium” (RAEC) and give it > a website. > > This is an example of a website created with wix.com <http://wix.com/> > software and is easy to maintain. Word press is good too. > > http://www.caltechmicrowave.org/ <http://www.caltechmicrowave.org/> > > Perhaps there are some retired radio astronomy people that would like to > donate their time, free of charge, where they work from home, and don’t need > to get out of their chair? They could help with surveys of existing software > and hardware, and help build the CCC. > > Perhaps retired nrao programmers would help adapt nrao code to the CCC ? If > you shipped them commercial 2meter steerable antennas and the $15k standard > hardware kit and tell them “don’t touch it”, they might not be able to > control themselves, and they might build this up without any encouragement or > direction. > > Food for thought .. > > Glenn Weinreb > > <> > > > From: Sander Weinreb [mailto:swein...@caltech.edu > <mailto:swein...@caltech.edu>] > Sent: Tuesday, August 18, 2015 1:23 AM > To: 'Alan Rogers' <a...@haystack.mit.edu <mailto:a...@haystack.mit.edu>> > Cc: 'carl heiles' <hei...@vermi.berkeley.edu > <mailto:hei...@vermi.berkeley.edu>>; 'Alan Rogers' <arog...@haystack.mit.edu > <mailto:arog...@haystack.mit.edu>>; 'Dave Deboer' <ddeb...@berkeley.edu > <mailto:ddeb...@berkeley.edu>>; 'Han' <st...@kasi.re.kr > <mailto:st...@kasi.re.kr>>; 'Steve Smith' <ste...@caltech.edu > <mailto:ste...@caltech.edu>>; 'Monroe, Ryan M (382F)' > <ryan.m.mon...@jpl.nasa.gov <mailto:ryan.m.mon...@jpl.nasa.gov>>; Gregg > Hallinan <g...@astro.caltech.edu <mailto:g...@astro.caltech.edu>>; Andrew > Janzen <ajan...@caltech.edu <mailto:ajan...@caltech.edu>>; Ahmed Akgiray > <ahmed.akgi...@ozyegin.edu.tr <mailto:ahmed.akgi...@ozyegin.edu.tr>>; > asoli...@caltech.edu <mailto:asoli...@caltech.edu>; Hamdi Mani > <hamdi.m...@gmail.com <mailto:hamdi.m...@gmail.com>>; Joe Bardin > <jcbar...@gmail.com <mailto:jcbar...@gmail.com>>; glenn.caltech > <glenn.calt...@gmail.com <mailto:glenn.calt...@gmail.com>>; GLENN WEINREB > <gwein...@gwinst.com <mailto:gwein...@gwinst.com>>; Anthony Readhead > <a...@astro.caltech.edu <mailto:a...@astro.caltech.edu>>; 'Shri Kulkarni' > <s...@astro.caltech.edu <mailto:s...@astro.caltech.edu>> > Subject: RE: Educational 6m Radio Telescope at Caltech > > Alan, > > WOW! Your letter is a gold-mine of links to extremely capable, low cost, > equipment and software to interest and educate a new generation. I knew > you had been working on educational projects but did not realize the extent > and capabilities. Great job! > > I was particularly impressed by: > 1) The beautiful 2007 Report on galactic rotation by the Harvard > students > 2) The low cost interferometry experiments > 3) Interesting solar measurements – limb brightening and time variation > 4) The Michigan summer physics “immersion” program. > 5) The “dongle” software-radio receiver and associated high resolution > spectrometer > 6) The software user interface. > > I will be thinking about how to implement some of this at Caltech. One > quick question: What language is used for the software for new SRT > telescope? Is it easy for me to run a simulation (or do I need to visit > Haystack) ? > > Congratulations on doing such a wonderful job over many years! > > Sandy > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Alan Rogers [mailto:a...@haystack.mit.edu > <mailto:a...@haystack.mit.edu>] > Sent: Monday, August 17, 2015 6:43 AM > To: Sander Weinreb <swein...@caltech.edu <mailto:swein...@caltech.edu>> > Cc: carl heiles <hei...@vermi.berkeley.edu > <mailto:hei...@vermi.berkeley.edu>>; Alan Rogers <arog...@haystack.mit.edu > <mailto:arog...@haystack.mit.edu>>; Dave Deboer <ddeb...@berkeley.edu > <mailto:ddeb...@berkeley.edu>>; 'Han' <st...@kasi.re.kr > <mailto:st...@kasi.re.kr>>; Steve Smith <ste...@caltech.edu > <mailto:ste...@caltech.edu>>; Monroe, Ryan M (382F) > <ryan.m.mon...@jpl.nasa.gov <mailto:ryan.m.mon...@jpl.nasa.gov>> > Subject: Re: Educational 6m Radio Telescope at Caltech > > Dear Sandy, > I can really only comment on the Small Radio Telescope (SRT) which uses > a 2.3 m antenna and 1420 MHz receiver. With this antenna the key experiment > is the measurement of Galactic rotation curve > > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Memos/011.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Memos/011.pdf> > > Here is report which includes Galactic rotation curve measured by Jim Moran's > students in 2007 > > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/pdf/haystack_FINAL_2_8.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/pdf/haystack_FINAL_2_8.pdf> > > I recently attended an ALphA immersion workshop by Prof. Carl Akerlof > <aker...@outlook.physics.lsa.umich.edu > <mailto:aker...@outlook.physics.lsa.umich.edu>> in which this experiment was > done by several University faculty members interested in a Radio Astronomy > > http://www.advlab.org/imm2015_michigan_radioastronomy.html > <http://www.advlab.org/imm2015_michigan_radioastronomy.html> > > The 2.3 m antenna has also been used to create a map the 21 cm hydrogen for > the entire visible sky. Other projects include measuring the solar flux > > Hiep, N. V., et al. "Radio Observation of Solar-Activity-Related mHz > Oscillations." Solar Physics 289.3 (2014): 939-950 > > There has been some SRT interferometry > > Here are some links: > > Modeling the Solar Limb Brightening at 21 cm Using Amplitude and Closure > Phase Measurements from a 3-Element Interferometer > > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Memos/023.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Memos/023.pdf> > > Cygnus > > www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/reu/2005/files/evarts.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/reu/2005/files/evarts.pdf> > > Oberoi, D., E. R. Evarts, and A. E. E. Rogers. "High Temporal and Spectral > Resolution Interferometric Observations of Unusual Solar Radio Bursts." > Solar Physics 260.2 (2009): 389-400. > > With a 6m antenna you should be able to observe the 21 cm line in Andromeda > and OH should observable. Also some of the strongest pulsars should be > observable > > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/materials/SSemission.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/materials/SSemission.pdf> > > As far a user interface the SRT has a display of the sky vs azimuth and > elevation. The objects displayed are those listed in a user catalog (which > includes the Sun, Galactic plane etc.). The antenna position is also > displayed. Clicking on a source moves the antenna to the source. Various > on/off and scan modes are provided. The antenna and radiometer can also be > run from a command file. > > Here is a very old manual > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Software/SRTManual.pdf > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/SRT%20Software/SRTManual.pdf> > > Recently a similar interface was written by a REU student to point the 37m > Haystack antenna for future radio astronomy observations. I don't necessarily > recommend the SRT software because I don't write good well structured code > but it can be downloaded and run in simulate mode to get a better idea of > what it does. The "New" SRT uses a TV dongle for a receiver and an Alfa radio > antenna controller. > > http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/index.html > <http://www.haystack.mit.edu/edu/undergrad/srt/index.html> > > best regards Alan > > On Sun, 16 Aug 2015, Sander Weinreb wrote: > > > > > Carl and Alan, > > > > > > > > I need some advice from old salts about how to demonstrate radio astronomy > > observing techniques to new graduate students. > > > > > > > > We are paying some attention to the 6m telescope on the roof of the > > EE building at Caltech and are trying to make it into a good > > teaching instrument. The front-end covers 1.3 to 1.7 GHz with about 100K > > Tsys on two linear polarizations and we recently installed a Roach 1 > > spectrometer with two 500 MHz bandwidth channels and 60 kHz resolution. > > There is much RFI and a lesson we want to teach is how to work around it. > > > > > > > > Our weakest link is the software to integrate telescope pointing with > > receiver output. We are working on developing a convenient system but I > > wonder if it already exists on other small telescopes. Do you have any > > suggestions for integrated telescope and data taking control system we > > should look at? > > > > > > > > A second topic is what to observe with the telescope as > > educational demonstrations. We can certainly map galactic hydrogen and > > look at the stronger continuum sources. The spectrometer can cross > > correlate the two linear polarizations and we could get into polarization > > measurements. Do you have suggestion for observations? > > > > > > > > I would like to observe OH (again, since I have not observed it or > > followed what has been done since 1963 !). Where is a good summary of > > the observations? I think our 60 KHz resolution is too broad and we > > will need to improve it by a factor of 10 or more. > > > > > > > > Sandy > > > > > >
