From nch@roe.ac.uk Fri Apr 13 12:23:46 2012 Date: Fri, 13 Apr 2012 12:12:32 +0100 From: Nigel Hambly To: Nicholas Cross , Eckhard Sutorius , Mike Read , Ross Collins , Rob Blake , Clive Davenhall , Mark Holliman Cc: Jim Emerson , Lorenzo Rimoldini , Stelios Voutsinas , Keith Noddle , Mike Irwin , Tom Shanks , Andy Lawrence at ROE , Norman Gray , Tom Kerr , Bob Mann , Stephen Warren Subject: WFAU VDFS Science Archives project team meeting minutes, 13/4/2012 Present: NCH, MAR, RPB, NJC Apologies: RGM, JPE, AL, KTN, NG, RPB, ETWS, STV, ACD, MSH, RSC DoNM: 10am Friday April 27th 2012 in the VH (MAR in the chair) Actions discharged this time: ----------------------------- None this time. Actions partly discharged but continuing: ----------------------------------------- ACTION: RPB to roll out latest curation client / DB server share configuration for routine ops use. Continues; ETWS has nearly finished modifying the ingester to work with new shares. ACTION: MAR to update VSA pages with details of public survey releases. Continues, waiting on further releases. Actions carried forward from 23/03/12 meeting --------------------------------------------- ACTION: RPB to set up WSA mirror/sync for flat file DBs using MS SQL replication. Continues. ACTION: ETWS, with RPB, to develop an automated helper script to keep release DB files links updated. Continues; this one still has low priority. ACTION: RPB to complete the LTO-5 tape backups of VVV and SSA DBs and SSS flat file datasets. Continues; RPB noted that the LTO-5 drive needs a particular kind of SAS interface card that we don't appear to have, so one needs to be sourced. Specific points and new actions: -------------------------------- Project management: NCH noted that Board reports (WSA and UKIDSS) are due soon; MAR and KTN are looking after the WSA one; NCH is doing a GCS one. Most of this week's meeting was taken up with discussions concerning the recent call for delivery of advanced catalogue products as part of ESO phase III for the VISTA surveys. Code is in place to generate the tile-based FITS catalogues required, although some low-level adjustments will be required. Whether to provide a subset of attributes, or everything in the VSA tables, remains TBD. The main concern was that this detailed(ish) specification has arrived rather suddenly, with a rather tight schedule, and contains some specifications that seem poorly thought-out to say the least - requirements for dereddened photometry and variability classifications in particular are frankly ridiculous. Anyway, the discussions resulted in the following actions: ACTION: NCH to contact VIKING PI to clarify what needs doing by when, noting that we may struggle a bit on the list-driven aspects ACTION: NJC to contact VMC PI stating WFAU's position on dereddening abd variability classification in ESO phase III deliveries ACTION: NCH to contact VVV PIs to discuss requirements for the phase III deliverables ACTION: NJC to contact VIDEO PI to clarify what (if anything) needs to be done for their phase III deliverables. WFCAM, VISTA and VST updates: News from Tom Kerr at JAC: "UKIRT's engineering and maintenance shutdown period (planned for 21st May - 6th June) is when we plan to switch over from UKIDSS to UHS. But just to be clear that doesn't mean we stop UKIDSS, we can still do some clean-up but we do have to push the UHS. The dates are driven by the new Korean group as they need a new filter installed and their targets are up in June/July. In any case, the engineering needs to be done to help ensure WFCAM remains reliable." Comments and issues arising from CASU minutes: The team noted the minutes of the meeting of 26/03/2012. It was noted that the VST-ATLAS standard catalogue products will include list-driven photometry for the U band. Networking: Nothing of note this time. WSA/VSA/OSA/GES Operations: RPB reported: -Almost finished creating VHS P87 release. -Amending minor problems with the data noticed in VIKINGDR2. -Creating VIKING Eso release. Code slipped over agonisingly close to the finish line, but NJC should be up to the job. -VVV variability over 90% done after 1.5 months. Should finish next week when we can begin the epic CU19 release procedure. Hardware and Systems: Nothing of note other than the LTO-5 interface card issue reported above. Survey Data Release: UKIDSS releases required were noted as follows: ACTION: RPB to put UKIDSS DR8 world-public, sans GPS and UDS. ACTION: RPB to activate GPS access in world-public UKIDSS DR7 MAR and NCH noted some communications with UKIDSS boss SJW, namely that discussions are on-going concerning the schedule of releases up to the end of the programme. Presently, the plan as we understand it is for a DR10 (incorporating 11A+11B) for sometime in the summer (tentative schedule is for eyeball QC to be complete by the end of May, but it is still TBC whether GPS will want to catch up into synchronicity with the LAS/GCS/DXS in which case the schedule may slip a little). Following this, a final DR11 release is even more tentatively planned that will include (?) a grand reprocessing/recalibration along with a vast array of minor bug fixes/tweaks that have been amassed to date. NJC raised the subject of UHS and it's curation in the WSA. As noted above, the plan is for observations to start very soon, and we should try to clarify how the programme is to be curated wrt UKIDSS in the WSA asap. ACTION: NJC to contact UHS survey scientist Simon Dye to open up discussions as to requirements for UHS curation/dissemination. NCH noted that this will be the subject of much discussion at the UKIDSS IV workshop in Edinburgh at the end of May, and that all should register for this (25 quid for a slap-up dinner and special commemorative whisky tumbler thrown in - not bad!). Software: Nothing of note this time. Non-survey Data Release: Nothing to report this time. Astrogrid deployment & Data Analysis services: Nothing to report this time. Miscellaneous: NJC's VSA paper is ready for submission; final comments are required within the next couple of weeks. Science from UKIDSS IV registration is now open - please register asap at http://www.roe.ac.uk/ifa/Meetings/UKIDSS12/ ============================================================= Nigel Hambly Tel: +44-131-668-8234 Institute for Astronomy Fax: +44-131-668-8416 School of Physics and Astronomy University of Edinburgh Email: nch@roe.ac.uk Royal Observatory Blackford Hill Edinburgh EH9 3HJ The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336. ============================================================= -- Scanned by iCritical.