Array simulator
Here you find a script that help you to simulate a radio observations with an array of your choice.
Before you are going to simulate, please make sure that you have the following software installed.
Obit
ParselTongue
AIPS-classical
this is only optional you DO NOT NEED AIPS to be installed. Instead the simulator script are using the AIPSLite modules from Stephen Brouke.
The following python modules you need to run your simulation:
SKADS_SIMULATOR.py
AIPSLite.py
AIPSLiteTask.py
The simulator script needs an image (this could also be a cube) and a antenna configuration file as inputs. Examples are shown are here:
1sqdeg_all_1.4fits
Image input from e.g. the S3 - Sky simulation page or wahtever image you would like to use.
The script is based on the AIPS task UVCON and therefore relies on the
format of the Antenna configurations file required by this task. Here
are some listed you may find useful:
SVT.UVCON
Versions of the current SKA configurations:
SKA_AA_1.UVCON
SKA_AA_2.UVCON
SKA_DISK.UVCON
Some array configurations you would like to play with:
ASKAP36.UVCON
MEERKAT.UVCON
EMERLIN.UVCON
VLA_A.UVCON
VLA_B.UVCON
VLA_C.UVCON
VLA_D.UVCON
VLBA.UVCON
Here is a tar-ball including all the files:
SIMHRK.tgz
You are running the script like:
python SKADS_SIMULATOR.py AIPSNUMBER IMAGEFILENAME UVCONFILENAME
OPTIONAL:
#CLEAN Components in the image OBSERVATION[hrs] INTEGRATIONperVisibility[min] IMAGE WEIGHT[-5 pure uniform, 5 natural]
So a possible input would be: python SKADS_SIMULATOR.py 555 1sqdeg_all_1.4.fits VLA-D_UVCON
The script tries hard to figure out some of the nessesary stuff to
handle the aips task, however one of the more common errors you may
encounter is that your pixel resolution in the image does not match
the resolution required by the longest baseline of your array. So be
aware that you need e.g for the VLA-A sub-arcsecound resolution!!!
and hopefully you find this useful and enjoy to work with it. In case you have trouble I'm happy to help and just send me an e-mail.
09.03.09 will not be updated.