[asac] copy of letter/NSF budget

[Ewine van Dishoeck]

Dear ASAC members,

Below please find a copy of the final version of our letter as sent to the ACC
early this morning European time. Thanks to everyone for their constructive
inputs, and especially to Christine for improving the flow of the sentences.

Yesterday night, the bad news about the NSF budget for FY2002 was released,
including the lack of any new starts in FY2002. A copy of the message from
Paul Vanden Bout to the NRAO staff is included below. As Paul states, the
community will need to work together with NRAO to inform the Federal
government of the importance of ALMA and the need to get at least continued
D&D funding for 2002 to keep ALMA moving forward. The consequences
for the project is obviously something we will need to discuss further in our
March 14 telecon.

With best wishes,

Ewine

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To:   ALMA Coordinating Committee

From: ALMA Science Advisory Committee


                                                           February 28, 2001

Dear ACC members,


     In early February 2001, the ASAC learned with dismay of further financial
pressures on the ALMA project that could impose a budget limit of $663M on the
three-partner project. At its previous meeting in Berkeley in September 2000,
the ASAC (including informally its new Japanese members) outlined a plan for
the enhanced ALMA. This plan included: a new compact array (the ACA), which
would enable new science and enhance the capability for wide field imaging; a
suite of ten receivers, which would enable a rich astronomical program over
all of the available millimeter/submillimeter atmospheric bands; and an
enhanced correlator, which would significantly increase the speed and
sensitivity of the system.  In October 2000, we learned of a proposed 10% cut
in the budget, and we began planning to discuss accommodation of that reduction
during our February 23-24 2001 meeting in Florence.  With the proposed further
reduction, the new budget limit of $663M results in only a modest increase
over the original $552M budget of the combined European/American partners,
despite the joining of our Japanese colleagues in the project. Further, some
of this increase must go to the additional overhead of a larger organisation.
Since the observing time is now divided three ways, the advantage to each of
the partners of combining the LMSA/LSA/MMA projects is considerably diluted.


     The impact on the science program from this proposed further reduction is
considerable, as little more than the ACA and one additional receiver band
(band 10, for a total complement of five receiver bands) can be added. The
ASAC has become convinced of the importance of the ACA through imaging
simulations presented at the Florence meeting. At the 10% cut level, a total
of 8-10 receivers could be included in addition to the ACA. With the proposed
20% cut, the loss of bands 1, 4, and 8 eliminates substantial and important
science. Band 1 at a wavelength of 7 mm offers unique capability for studying
large scale structures forming in the denser parts of the early universe and
for investigating the innermost parts of disks forming around young stars. It
would bring a whole new user community - the microwave background astronomers -
to ALMA. Band 4 at 2 mm is important for the study of the formation of massive
stars, in particular as signatures of distant (early) galaxy formation. It is
also rich in molecular lines which are important for astrochemistry. Band 8 at
0.6 mm contains significant continuum emission from newly forming low mass
stars and the emission from ubiquitous atomic carbon in nearby galaxies,
important for galactic structure studies.  In addition, the loss of the next
generation correlator implies a decrease in observing speed for some of the
highest ranked scientific programs by up to a factor of two. Together with the
loss of the receiver bands, this implies a substantial decrease in the
opportunities for serendipitous spectral discoveries.


     ALMA is a unique project, the first true world observatory and the only
major telescope planned in the next few decades at millimeter and
submillimeter wavelengths. This plan for a single instrument stands in sharp
contrast to the situation in ground-based optical and infrared astronomy,
where there are many instruments in both the public and the private sector,
including the dual Gemini 8 m telescopes, the Japanese Subaru telescope, the
VLT system of ESO, and the dual 10 m Keck telescopes.  The ALMA project is the
top priority major new initiative in astronomy in many countries. It is an
exciting new instrument, full of the promise to answer many fundamental
questions in astrophysics.  It deserves the fullest support.

Sincerely,


         The ALMA Scientific Advisory Committee 


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MESSAGE TO NRAO STAFF

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget released today the budgetary
outline of the FY 2002 requests for federal agencies and programs that
President Bush will send to Congress [see
http://www.gpo.gov/usbudget/index.html].  This plan includes a request
for the NSF that would increase its FY 2002 funding by only 1% relative
to the FY 2001 appropriation.  Targeted increases for a very few NSF
Divisions would consume this modest increase, and more, and would leave
all other NSF activities, including Astronomy, to share a proposed FY
2002 funding level less than that realized in FY01.  In addition to the
unfortunate consequences for virtually all of NSF science, no new starts
for NSF facilities are proposed in FY 02.

Beyond the implications for Observatory operating funds, the lack of new
starts is particularly regrettable for the NRAO because it appears to
mean that the construction phase of ALMA will not begin in FY 2002 as
had been anticipated.  Clearly, the absence of new starts is not
specifically focused on ALMA.  Rather, it reflects the President's
desire to freeze agency programs for a time while he and his staff can
review the plans, organization, progress and priorities of current
initiatives.   However, in the specific case of ALMA this order has the
consequence of interrupting a program that has its international
agreement forged, its design and development phase milestones achieved,
and its recommendations from the NSF oversight body all in place for FY
2002 construction.  Given the high importance of the ALMA scientific
program, the timing of the restriction against FY 2002 new starts for
the ALMA Project is extremely unfortunate.

The President's FY 2002 budget will be under review and discussion in
Congress for the next several months.   During this time, we intend to
work with the community to inform the Federal government of the
importance of ALMA and of the need for the project to move to
construction expeditiously.  At the same time, we will work to preserve
the momentum of the project at the NRAO and internationally by securing
adequate FY02 funding for a fifth year of design and development should
it not be possible for construction to begin in FY 2002.

Another item of note to astronomy in the FY 2002 Budget Plan is the
announcement that NASA and NSF are to form a Blue Ribbon Commission to
consider the pros and cons of giving NASA the responsibility for all
astronomy, both ground- and space-based.  The Commission is to report by
September 1, 2001.

Paul Vanden Bout
28 February 2001