JCMT Newsletter No. 11 (Director)
 Message from the Director
Since the last Newsletter a number of SCUBA observations have made front-page
news (at least in the USA) and have demonstrated the wonderful ability of the
instrument to revolutionise submillimetre astronomy in good weather conditions.
A lengthy period of exceptional weather since mid-December through May
resulted in a number of highlights which can be found elsewhere in this
letter. Most notable of these in terms of changing
our previous views of the topic were: dust disks around nearby main-sequence
stars (Holland et al. Nature, 392, 788, 1998), the amazing
dust disk around Epsilon Eridani
(Greaves et al., Ap.J. in press); a number of very deep
observations of what we believe to
be star-forming galaxies in the early Universe (e.g. Hughes et
al. Nature 394, 241, 1998,
Barger et al. ibid. p248). These latter results confirm the earlier
measurements of Smail,
Ivison and Blain (Ap.J., 490, L5, 1997) and show that optical-UV
data have seriously
underestimated the star-formation rate at redshifts beyond z=2. Although
continuing to work well, one or two niggling problems still remain with SCUBA
and pose a drain on staff effort for other projects.
With the arrival of RxW the JCMT is almost up to full strength of instruments
- we just await RxA3i and the upgrade to the D-band mixers for RxW. The ACSIS
project is going well and continues on-schedule.
Much work has been undertaken over the summer to prepare proposals for the JCMT
Advisory Panel and Board meetings in November for two main instrument
projects: the two heterodyne array cameras, currently called the HARP project
and slated to be at B-band (already agreed) and most probably D-band; and
a project to improve the sensitivity of SCUBA. The papers for the Advisory
Panel will be sent to members especially early this
time in order to give the community chance to comment on the above two (and
any other) proposals.
I am also hoping to get additional funding for further JCMT
instruments/developments
from the sale of unused JCMT Hale Pohaku rooms to other telescopes. If this
is
successful a call will go out through the JCMT Advisory Panel for
suggestions.
The telescope continues to operate well although very recently, following a
surface adjustment (which may or may not be related) there have been anomalies
noted in both the pointing and the beam pattern of the antenna. Adequate
calibration should ensure
these do not pose a problem for observers but work is in-hand to determine
their origins
and fix them. The central bearing replacement is scheduled for the spring of
1999.
One of the points that is apparent to me from personal experience is that it
is still very
difficult for both observers, TSSs and even support astronomers to select
backup
proposals when the weather is too poor for the primary SCUBA proposal. This
has been
apparent for some months and although we have put a significant effort into
its solution, I
am afraid we are still somewhat struggling to keep up with the book-keeping
task of
which observations have been done on a programme. There is also a very
distinct lack of
simple (but scientifically valuable) A-band backup proposals covering a wide
range of
RAs in the pipeline. A new project (Observing Management Project) designed to
utilise
the observing database is now in-hand. This will match the observations
undertaken at the
telescope with the approved programmes and observing templates and will give
an
automatic update of progress on the programmes. This will greatly assist in
the book-keeping of the use of telescope time and the selection of which
observations to undertake
in real-time at the telescope by observers who are undertaking backup
observations.
However, it is not scheduled for completion until sometime next year. In the
meantime, I
ask for patience from observers. We are well aware of the problem and are
working on it.
Software effort is, in general, in very short supply, but I am pleased to
announce that the
SCUBA pipeline processing has been tested and is about to be released to
users.
However, please note that there is a definite need for scientifically
exciting and
observationally easy-to-do A-band backup proposals that can be undertaken by
the TSSs
if necessary when the SCUBA (in particular) dry-weather programmes cannot be
undertaken.
Users should note that the past few months have been very difficult for the
JCMT.
Following the inability of the funding agencies to increase the JCMT
operations budget
in-line with inflation, the build-up of this problem over the last three
years came to a head
at the May Board meeting with the result of a number of non-voluntary staff
losses. Two
of these are in the support astronomer area and so it is with regret that I
must inform the
community that we will not be able to give as high a level of support as in
previous times.
However, with the Observing Management software system installed, the new
modes of
flexible observing using longer stays by visiting astronomers, and as more
users gain
experience with SCUBA and RxW, this should, in time, alleviate some of the
lost
capability.
The JCMT Review, looking at how the JCMT should develop in the latter half of
the next
decade, is now scheduled for either later this year or in the spring of 1999
with a report to
the May meeting of the Board. The Panel Members will be soliciting views from
their constituents.
Ian Robson,
Director JCMT
8th September 1998
Modification Author: Graeme Watt (gdw)
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