[ASA] First announcement: MWA Expression of Interest and pre-operations meeting

[John O'Byrne]

Dear ASA members,

As outlined in the recently distributed first Announcement of
Opportunity for the MWA
(http://www.mwatelescope.org/info/docs/MWA-AO-01.pdf), the project is
currently seeking Expressions of Interest (EoI) for science projects
that require an observing time allocation on the MWA.  The EoI step is
a precursor to the preparation of full observing proposals in the
March/April timeframe, anticipating the commencement of the first MWA
operations period from July 2013.

In order to help potential MWA users prepare for proposal writing and
the operations phase, a meeting will be held in Perth on February 25
and 26, 2013 (as flagged in the AO documentation).  The meeting will
be open to all potential MWA users, regardless of prior participation
in the EoI process (EoIs are due on February 1, 2013).  The goals of
the meeting are:

* To provide the most up-to-date information to the potential MWA user
community regarding the projected operational capabilities of the MWA;
* To describe the MWA operational model and operations team;
* To provide the most up-to-date advice on the timeline of project
activities leading up to the commencement of operations;
* To provide the most up-to-date information regarding scheduling and
data handling considerations for the operational MWA;
* To obtain feedback from the community on the EoI process and input
regarding the upcoming proposal preparation process;
* To discuss the results of the EoI process and provide visibility for
and discussion of the science programs likely to be proposed.

This will be an important meeting that will bring together the MWA
project staff and users, approximately four months before MWA
operations commence.  Attendance is strongly encouraged for anyone who
anticipates proposing for MWA observing time and/or working on MWA
datasets from the full array.

The meeting will be held at Curtin University, on February 25/26,
2013.  A registration page has been set up at:

http://www.mwatelescope.org/meetings/eoi-perth-2013/

This page currently supports registration and will also be populated
with a meeting agenda, local accommodation and travel information, and
further advice shortly.  The deadline for registration will be
February 20, 2013.

The MWA team looks forward to meeting with you in February in Perth,
to embark upon the final stage of activity prior to the commencement
of MWA operations.

Regards,
Steven

-- 
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Professor Steven Tingay

Premier's Fellow

Director, MWA

Director, Science and Operations
Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy

Deputy Director, ICRAR

Department of Imaging and Applied Physics
Curtin University of Technology
Bentley, Western Australia
Australia

Street address:
Brodie Hall building
1 Turner Ave
Technology Park
Bentley 6102
Western Australia

Email:  s.tingay at ivec.org OR s.tingay at curtin.edu.au

WWW: http://astronomy.curtin.edu.au

Phone: +61 (0)8 9266 3516

Mobile: +61 (0)425 771 856