• Prowess – A Software Model for the Ooty Wide Field Array

• # Fulltext

https://www.ias.ac.in/article/fulltext/joaa/038/01/0012

• # Keywords

Instrumentation: interferometers; methods: analytical, numerical, statistical; techniques: interferometric.

• # Abstract

One of the scientific objectives of the Ooty Wide Field Array (OWFA) is to observe the redshifted Hi emission from $z \sim 3.35$. Although predictions spell out optimistic outcomes in reasonable integration times, these studies were based purely on analytical assumptions, without accounting for limiting systematics. A software model for OWFA has been developed with a view to understanding the instrument-induced systematics, by describing a complete software model for the instrument. This model has been implemented through a suite of programs, together called Prowess, which has been conceived with the dual role of an emulator as well as observatory data analysis software. The programming philosophy followed in building Prowess enables a general user to define an own set of functions and add new functionality. This paper describes a co-ordinate system suitable for OWFA in which the baselines are defined. The foregrounds are simulated from their angular power spectra. The visibilities are then computed from the foregrounds. These visibilities are then used for further processing, such as calibration and power spectrum estimation. The package allows for rich visualization features in multiple output formats in an interactive fashion, giving the user an intuitive feel for the data. Prowess has been extensively used for numerical predictions of the foregrounds for the OWFA \HI~ experiment.

• # Author Affiliations

1. National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Post Bag 3, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411 007, India.

• # Journal of Astrophysics and Astronomy

Current Issue
Volume 40 | Issue 2
April 2019

• # Continuous Article Publication

Posted on January 27, 2016

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