next up previous contents
Next: Service observing Up: Call for Observing Proposals Previous: Applications

Observing time estimates

Observing time estimates must take into account:

The total integration time should be derived using the standard formula:

displaymath896

where tex2html_wrap_inline898 and tex2html_wrap_inline900 are the telescope forward and main beam efficiencies, tex2html_wrap_inline902 is the system temperature above the atmosphere (in the antenna temperature scale), B the channel noise bandwidth, and t the total (ON + OFF) integration time. tex2html_wrap_inline902 should be estimated for an `average' winter humidity for 3mm, 2mm and 1.3mm observations (4 mm of precipitable water, or tex2html_wrap_inline910 at 230 GHz) and for `good' winter conditions (1.5 mm of water, or tex2html_wrap_inline1105 at 345 GHz) for 0.8 mm observations.

We ask you to specify in your proposal the parameter values ( tex2html_wrap_inline914 total integration time, overheads and dead times) adopted in your calculation of the needed telescope time.

A technical report explaining how to estimate the telescope time needed to reach a given sensitivity level in various modes of observation was published in the January 1995 issue of the IRAM Newsletter [9] gif. It has been included in the 30-m telescope Manual [10]. You are asked to follow the guidelines given in this report (or to justify particular requirements) in your proposal.



lucas@iram.fr