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Australia Telescope: Parkes Telescope
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Parkes Schedule File Creator: Tracking (MX Mode or Frequency Switching)
To refresh the screen using the default entries, press SHIFT and click
the 'reload' button simultaneously.
This output should be saved on your local computer (.sch) and then uploaded to the Parkes
system upon your arrival.
The project number assigned to your proposal.
Example: P345
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Initials or short name of the observer(s).
Example: ZOZ
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Select either MX or Frequency Switching Mode. MX Mode is for Multibeam receivers (MULTI and METHMB) only.
Each beam of the receiver observes the source in turn.
Example: MX
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The shift (in MHz) used to define to offset frequency. Be careful not to choose a value
that falls outside the band. Both positive and negative shifts are allowed.
Example: -4.5
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Select a correlator configuration from the menu. Only a few are listed and if yours is not
listed, select NULL and enter it once you arrive at the observatory. A full list of supported
modes is available from the Parkes
Correlator Guide.
DFB3/DFB4 configurations with "tb" indicate time-binning modes. For these, the number of time bins
(set on the TCS GUI) must be at least 4 and at most 32. As an example, if you want 1 second sampling
with sdfb3_tb16_16_8192, you would set the number of time-bins to 16.
Other DFB3/DFB4 configurations are "spectrometer" modes and require a cycle-time more than 4s
and the number of time-bins set to 1.
Example: sdfb3_64_1024
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Select the number of seconds per correlator cycle. If using the Multibeam Correlator, the
default is 5 seconds per integration. If using DFB3 or DFB4, the cycle time depends on the
configuration, (especially if you are using a time binning mode) but must be at least 4s.
Example: 5
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Enable frequency switching, with the switched IF separated from the main IF
by some number (+ and - signs acceptable). Be aware not to have an offset
switch out of band.
Example: enabled, -4.5
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The reciever and centre frequency of your observations. If Doppler tracking is enabled, the frequency
here will be interpreted as the rest frequency of the observed line. If Doppler tracking
is disabled the frequency here would be the actual observing frequency (sky frequency).
Make sure your frequency is within these limits (in MHz):
| H-OH | 1090 | 2000 |
| MULTI | 1250 | 1550 |
| GALILEO | 2000 | 3000 |
| METHMB | 5800 | 7000 |
| MARS | 7900 | 9100 |
| 13MM | 16000 | 26000 |
Example: MULTI, 1420.405
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Enable/disable Doppler tracking. Note that this only adjusts the
centre frequency, it does NOT continuously track the Doppler shift during
an observation.
Example: disabled
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Choose the reference frame, LSR (local standard of rest) or barycentric. The
radial velocity information provided in the source list (see below) will be ignored if
Doppler tracking is disabled.
* Note: If Doppler tracking is disabled and no radio velocity is
specified (also recommended) then you must adjust your sky frequency to account for
the velocity of both the source (LSR or barycentric) and the velocity of the observatory relative
to the rest frame. An online tool is available
Frequency Calculator
to calculate this adjustment.
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Integration time on your source in seconds. For MX mode, this represents the
integration time per beam.
Example: 60
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The coordinate system of your coordinates. You may choose between
equatorial (J2000 or B1950) or Galactic coordinates. Please take care
of the format: Equatorial, RA: hh:mm:ss DEC: dd:mm:ss, Galactic
GLON: ddd.xxxxx GLAT: dd.xxxxx. It is your responsibility to
input the coordinates in the right format.
Example: J2000
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Specify your source list here, one per line. Format is Name, RA/GLONG, DEC/GLAT and VELOCITY.
For coordinates, ensure you select the appropriate Coordinate system above. If using
doppler tracking (i.e., your velocities are non-zero), ensure you set the correct frame above.
Example: AG356.48+0.19 17:36:13.8088 -31:49:06.713 -50
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Original: Juergen Ott (11-July-2005)
Modfied: Kate Brooks (10-Mar-2009)
Adapted for Parkes: Stacy Mader (17-July 2009)