Background

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Background

• RadioNet FP6 runs until 31/12/08, 20 months
• proposal for RadioNet FP7 is being prepared
• must be submitted by December 2007?
• delayed from original plan by a number of months
• RadioNet FP7 can be an I3 with same instruments
• And maybe a bit larger envelope (more money)
• And new (relaxed?) rules to spend it
• 3-4 JRAs like ALBUS, 5-6 potential areas
  identified
• pre-selection assigned people to expertise areas
  (Huib for software)
• in an awkwardly enforced collaboration scheme
• to produce an initial document
• to be selected for the actual proposal writing
  stage
• Depends all on the assignment of overall
  coordinator
• selection committee appointed
• expect need to write initial proposal in
  September
• which is a very bad time

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Some general remarks
Software development deserves a place in RadioNet
FP7

• It is the interface to the user and his/her
  science
• And it is still not up to speed with the
  instruments available
• Proposal must focus on the existing
  infrastructure
• Can have importance for new instruments (LOFAR,
  SKA)
• Advantage relevant across many RadioNet
  facilities eEVN, eMERLIN, single dishes, WSRT,
  APERTIF, mm-VLBI network, even ALMA
• But generally speaking these JRAs are modest
  size
• Compared to the investments in AIPS, AIPS,
  CASA, Miriad
• And they force distributed effort, often with
  temporary staff
• Having done ALBUS in FP6 has some consequences
• Some of the proposed topics are not so new
• Even though we cannot claim everything is solved
• Like to keep some of the efforts alive
• And the expertise around
• We have only just started

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What we have learned from ALBUS

• We can do software projects
• Even when they are necessarily distributed
  between partners
• They can be fun, despite the boundary conditions
• Some (few) of the rules enforce some
  professionalism
• There is enough potential in RadioNet partners
• Software can reach the user community
  (eventually)
• But for success I think it is important that
• Overall aim is focused, realistic and concrete
• We take incremental steps to reach intermediate
  functionality
• Workpackages match local ambitions and are
  self-contained
• EC funded positions come in 2 or 3 manyear
  chunks, not smaller
• Some of this concern is lifted in FP7
• Have a strong link to scientists with a direct
  application in mind
• e.g. students who need it for their project
• There is a PI that has time for the management
  overhead
• was Huib, proposed to be Cormac

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Our user community in the ALMA/LOFAR age

• Starting point
• Control the loop gain on their clean run
• Do some special tricks or non-standard processing
• Or for teaching and instruction, train new
  experts
• Data from classical radio instruments
• Upgraded considerably (eVLBI, eMERLIN, eVLA)
• New telescopes with new software tools
• And different, pipelined data products, often
  calibrated and imaged
• ALMA, LOFAR, SKA pathfinders
• Two scenarios
• use the new software for traditional cm data?
• or the old software to access the new
  instruments?

There will be radio-astronomers in 2010 who want
to take control over calibration imaging
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Things we know for sure

• Some people still want to use AIPS (or Miriad)
• Because they are good, conservative scientists
• Who trust the embedded algorithms
• Or are just busy and not committed to learn
  something new
• AIPS cannot survive with current data access
  methods
• Python is the interface for more than one package
• We like to continue ParselTongue support (AIPS,
  maybe Miriad)
• We hope to have done some high level
  parallelization
• One could develop a high level user interface
• ALMA ( eVLA) will be using casa
• And LOFAR software is based on same environment
• Hardware capabilities will scale up (SKA)
• Improves to processing capacity
• As well as the data volumes
• I believe there is no limit to what people would
  like to do if the resources were available

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Where we want to go
Port existing algorithms to the casa
era Preparing the cm user community for SKA

• Port traditional algorithms to casa/LOFAR
  environment
• Focus on global fringe fitting, important for all
  long baselines
• And improve the algorithm if possible
• This is a way to continue support for recent (or
  upcoming) ALBUS algorithms
• Interested to extend wide field to mosaicing and
  maybe focal plane arrays
• Build on the ParselTongue layer
• Run various packages from one interface
• Extend the user interface, context sensitive, GUI
• Task parallelization and workflow management
• Work towards interoperability
• Investigate access methods Obit/AIPS vs casa MS
• Compare calibration model

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Workpackages

• ParselTongue
• Common invocation methods AIPS/casa/LOFAR/(Miriad)
  
• Interactive user interfaces
• Distributed computing
• High level/task parallelization
• Transforming ALBUS work to casa/LOFAR
• Mosaicing, maybe focal plane arrays
• Global fringe fitting
• Algorithm research
• Common implementation, more than one platform
• Interoperability
• Exercises in data access methods
• AIPS methods on MS structures
• Calibration model transformations

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How does this fit?

• Participants contacted and positive
• ALBUS group ASTRON/WSRT, JBO, MPIfR, JIVE
• ALMA group NRAO, IRAM, ESO
• LOFAR
• This looks like 2 x ALBUS in size
• 40 man-years of which 20 contributed
• Could have 6-8 partners
• Including some in non-EC countries
• Amounts to 1.6 2.0 M
• Several scaled down options possible
• But then also scale down number of partners
• Overlap with some of the other software proposals
• ATNF on parallelization and focal plane arrays
• Oxford and Cambridge on parallelization
• Can we also agree on the form of the software
• But then there was also a proposal for astrometry
  software
• Very sympathetic, but quite disjoint

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What is needed?

• Need a project summary by September
• Additional ideas to Cormac and Huib
• Order your work-package now!
• We need to think about new partners
• Are there more links with potential new
  contributors?
• Get the support from your local director
• Make friends with the coordinator
• Include prospective coordinator interests
• Make ALBUS (appear to be) a success
• In an international context, need to push
  ParselTongue
• Maybe get AIPS/NRAO on board for VLA community
• Progress reports including pretty pictures!
• Publications including pretty pictures!
• Presentations including pretty pictures!
• Give credit to RadioNet in your acknowledgements