[mmaimcal]Re: [Almasci] Telecon today

[John Conway]

>
> Conway reported on configurations.  The reconfiguration plan
> A plan for the Early Science Array will be formulated.  There will
> need to be some iteration between
> this, the Operations Plan, and the Early Science DRSP but a
> plan for the first array stations will
> help get the process started.  ACTION: Conway.
>

The best way to start the ball rolling on this I belive is if I  produce a
set of configurations using 6 antennas and the inner 172 pads, with say
a factor of two in resolution between each configuration. This will be
a useful resource to have even if in the end we only use a few of them.
The early science DRSP can proceed in parallel deciding what resolutions
are most favoured. The alternative of waiting for a final consensus on
exactly which resolutions are wanted might delay the process.

I think any useful intermediate 6 antenna onfiguration needs ratios of
shortest to longest  baseline in the range 10-20. Assuming long tracks
are  going to be more common in the early scince phase, arrangements
which are close to EW linear or  T shaped (like existing
mm-interferometers) might be preferable, but we are of course limited
by the pad distribution designed for  a 2D array of 64 antennas.

  John