[daip] draft quarterly report

[Eric Greisen]

AIPS:  2004 Quarter 2

Key Developments

1.   Updated the CookBook and created fully cross-linked html and pdf
representations.  This was made possible in part by restoring the AIPS
script that converts help files to html and then improving its
capabilities.

2.   The task that converts solution tables into the full calibration
table was given a more powerful method to determine calibrations
applying sources only to themselves.  The calibration table correction
task was given new options to shift the source mean rather than
apparent coordinate and to apply total atmospheric delay models.

3.   Source models for four string calibrators at the three highest
VLA frequencies are now included with the AIPS distribution.  The new
task CALRD reads them into a user's data area and the new verb CALDIR
shows what is available.  Work to extend the selection of models has
begun.

4.   A new task was written to use nearly simultaneous observations
of multiple calibrators to determine a more precise calibration for
the target source.  While less efficient in terms of time on the
target source, this method will improve those observations that are
limited by the atmosphere rather than simple signal-to-noise ratio.

5.   The automatic update scripts (the "midnight job") was improved to
perform several of the chores previously assigned to local AIPS
managers to do by hand.  This includes updating the vocabulary of
known verbs and adverbs, rebuilding the AIPS TV, and rebuilding
certain fundamental control scripts.

6.   A surprisingly powerful verb was added to AIPS to allow users to
run non-AIPS commands directly on their computers while remaining
inside AIPS.  Another new verb to generate random numbers was written
and changes were made in the print tasks to make it easier to use AIPS
print files in other programs.

7.   A new task called FLAGR was created to introduce various methods
of editing data automatically.  It is still in the preliminary testing
stages with more algorithms still to be written.

8.   In the first half of 2004, 141 sites downloaded the 31DEC03
(frozen) version of AIPS and 466 downloaded the 31DEC04 (development)
version.  A total of 471 different sites (separate IP addresses) made
some use of the AIPS cvs facility, either during installation of
31DEC04 or running the "midnight job" to update their copy of 31DEC04.


Goals for the Third Quarter 2004

1.   Continue user support and bug fixes, as the major portion of AIPS 
effort.

2.   Provide support for pipeline data reduction, especially new
automatic editing algorithms.

3.   Add weight-based flagging to be able to use flag tables.

4.   Produce more source models to include with AIPS distributions.

5.   Test and implement binary distributions using the IBM Fortran
compiler for Mac OS/X computers.

6.   Improve atmospheric opacity modeling in VLBI calibration.

7.   Work on solving positional errors in VLBA observations of
satellites, beginning with correcting for gravitational bending in the
Solar system rather than from infinity.

8.   Begin investigations of new/improved imaging algorithms,
including those dealing with spectral index and multiple pointings.