[mmaimcal] Re: THE NECESSITY OF N > 4 SUBARRAYS FOR ALMA

[Larry D'Addario]

Steven T. Myers writes:
 > However, the cost-benefit in the end is for the ASAC to
 > decide.

Now just hang on a minute there.  It is for the engineers to determine
the cost, and for the ASAC to determine the benefits.  It is then up
to the management (not the ASAC!) to balance these and decide what to
do.

I apologize for not being able to be accurately quantitative about the
cost just yet; this will take some work.  But neither have you been
quantitative about the benefits.  Until you are, your desires cannot
be properly evaluated.  One way to do this is to produce a
hypothetical observing schedule for a complete season on the
assumption that the maximum number of subarrays is (say) 3, and
another for (say) 6.  Does the latter provide a significant increase
in overall throughput (number of observing projects completed)?

--Larry