Towards the e-APT

Tasso Tzioumis

ATNF

Email: apt@atnf.csiro.au

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CSIRO.

Asia Pacific Telescope (APT)

• Aim: (from the APT website)

• The APT network aims to provide a forum to discuss issues of compatibility, sharing resources such as correlators and recorders and other equipment needed for VLBI observations. The ultimate aim of the network is to coordinate and schedule VLBI observations involving telescopes in the Asia-Pacific region.

• Importance: (from Australian Academy of Science report, 1995)

• "VLBI is one of the best examples of international collaboration in all of science. It involves not only collaboration but complex operational procedures to use telescopes all over the world simultaneously and compatibly. A specific example is the Asia Pacific Network (APT), a network of radio telescopes including Australia, Japan, China, the United States of America (Hawaii), India and others. …. Globally it complements the VLBA (North America) and the European VLBI Network (EVN) networks. ….."

CSIRO.

VLBI Arrays (c. 1995)

CSIRO.

APT History

• Established 1991• Space VLBI workshop in Sydney, Australia, April 1991• 1st meeting at IAU GA, Buenos Aires, August 1991

• Workshops:

• VLBI'93 Congress workshop Kyoto, Japan, September 1993

• VLBI Compatibility workshop Urumqi, China, October 1994

• APT'95 workshop at ATNF, Sydney, 4-7 December 1995

• Technical Workshop, Kashima, Japan, 10-13 December 1996• APT and APSG (Asia-Pacific Space Geodynamics) Project

• Brief side-meetings (at related meetings/workshops):• AP-RASC meeting in Tokyo, August 2001• IVS General Meeting in Tsukuba, Japan, February 2002• New Technology in VLBI meeting in Korea, November 2002• IAU General Assembly, Sydney, July, 2003• 3rd e-VLBI Workshop, Makuhari, Chiba, Japan, October 2004

CSIRO.

APT people

• 1991-2001:• co-chairs: Prof Ron Ekers (ATNF) and Mdme Shuhua Ye (CAS)

• Secretary: Dr. Tasso Tzioumis (ATNF)

• 2001- present• co-chairs: Prof. Hisashi Hirabayashi (ISAS) and Dr David Jauncey

(ATNF)

• Secretary Philip Edwards (ISAS ---> ATNF)

• Technical Working Group (TWG) coordinator: • Paul Harbison (Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex)

till ~1998?

• No coordinator since…

CSIRO.

APT Homepage

• APT Definition and Aims

• Brief APT history

• APT meetings and workshops

• APT science

• Various APT status reports

• APT contacts ** Needs updating **

• Information on APT antenna systems & receivers ** Update **

• APT proposals

• APT observing sessions

• APT technical working group (TWG)

• Links to APT telescopes

• Other VLBI networks and sites

• the Asia-Pacific Space Dynamics (APSG) website

CSIRO.

CSIRO.

APT status

• Very Active 1991-1996• Workshops and meetings

• Support for VSOP mission (1998-2005)• Extensive Ground Telescope support

• Coordinating role

• Telescopes with most observations with VSOP:• 1. Shanghai• 2. Mopra

• Recently:• Relatively “Dormant” (but not quiet dead….)

• Proposal:• “Re-invigorate” the APT• Move towards e-VLBI (e-APT)• Prepare for VSOP-2 support

CSIRO.

VLBI Arrays (c. 2008)

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CSIRO.

Developments in APT area

• New antennas:• VERA in Japan - +4 antennas• KVN in Korea - +3 antennas• Chinese network +2 (Beijing, Kunming), ++? (FAST)

• + pre-existing antennas (> 5+) East Asia VLBI Network (EAVN) - 17 antennas!

• (see Kawaguchi talk)

• Australia - NZ - new antennas• 3 x 12m AuScope antennas in Australia (funded)• 12m antenna in NZ (install in ~2 months) (see Gulyaev talk)

• ASKAP - SKA pathfinder (45 x 12m) - in construction• (see Tingay talk)

• SKA in Australia-NZ - up to 6000 km baselines• Will cover whole Oz-NZ continent

CSIRO.

E-VLBI in APT region

• Japan • Pioneered real-time VLBI (~1995?) with special network in Tokyo• Always involved in e-VLBI tests

• Kashima - Haystack successful demonstrations

• E-VLBI within Japan - Geodesy and astronomy

• China• Internal e-VLBI network - rapidly developing

• Australia• Internal e-VLBI network - to 1 Gbps (see C. Phillips talk)• Software correlation (DiFX)• Rapidly developing• ASKAP developments (Tingay talk)

• Multinational - EXPReS project• Aug 07 - Mopra, Shanghai, Europe --> JIVE correlator (256 Mbps)• Oct 07 - Mopra, ATCA, Parkes --> JIVE correlator (512 Mbps)

• Used 1 Gbps dedicated lightpaths Oz - JIVE (provided by NRENs)

CSIRO.

E-APT demonstration

• Demonstration TODAY!!!

• Shanghai, Kashima, Parkes, Mopra, ATCA• All at 512 Mbps• Dedicated lightpaths (AARNet, CENIC, CSTNet,…)• Scheduled for most of the day (~12 hrs)• All telescopes and correlator controlled from Shanghai !!

• Correlation at Parkes • DiFX software correlator• New APSR cluster at Parkes (from Swinburne)• A few scaling problems…. (Phillips talk)

• Multiple data formats• K5, Mk5a, Mk5b - converted on-the-fly• Correlator input as Mk5b - Standardise??• (EXPReS experience invaluable)

• See demonstration at 1:30pm today!!

CSIRO.

Press - release

• Press - release tomorrow• Coordinated - Australia, Japan, China

• Possible headline:

“Astronomy without borders” on show in China

• A great example of the power of e-VLBI• Collaboration between observatories• Collaboration with NRENS ****

• Symbiotic relationship - Astronomers & Networkers

CSIRO.

Conclusions

• The APT is poised for a resurgence !!!• New telescopes• New fast networks• New correlators - hardware and software• VSOP-2 is coming !!

More coordination & collaboration - APT

• E-VLBI is the path to explore for the future !!

• e-APT to play a key role in developments

• APT meeting in 2009 ??

• Get ready for the SKA !!

CSIRO.

APT Contacts

• APT is in transition

• Email contact: apt@atnf.csiro.au

• Website(s):• http://www.vsop.isas.jaxa.jp/apt/ and/or• http://www.atnf.csiro.au/apt/

• Some restructuring in next 12 months

• Please send updates• Telescope characteristics and capabilities• Contact people and addresses for each observatory.