Parameters

Continuum centre frequency:	MHz
Specific zoom frequency:	MHz
Maximum baseline and configuration:	Please select... East-West 6km East-West 3km East-West 1.5km East-West 750m East-West 367m Hybrid 214m Hybrid 168m Hybrid 75m
Include CA06?:	Yes No
Number of 4cm receivers:
CABB frequency resolution:	Please select... 1 MHz continuum, 0.5 kHz spectral 4 MHz continuum, 2 kHz spectral 16 MHz continuum, 8 kHz spectral 64 MHz continuum, 32 kHz spectral
Zoom channels to concatenate:
Source Declination:	degrees
Integration Time:	minutes
Elevation Limit:	degrees
Hour-angle Limit:	hours
Line Rest Frequency:	GHz
	HI: 1.420405752 GHz OH: 1.6122310 GHz OH: 1.6654018 GHz OH: 1.6673590 GHz OH: 1.7205300 GHz H2CO: 4.829660 GHz CH3OH: 6.668518 GHz HC3N: 9.098332 GHz CH3OH: 12.178593 GHz H2CO: 14.488490 GHz C3H2: 18.343145 GHz H20: 22.23507985 GHz NH3: 23.694506 GHz NH3: 23.722634 GHz NH3: 23.870130 GHz SiO: 42.820570 GHz SiO: 43.122090 GHz SiO: 43.423853 GHz CS: 48.990964 GHz DCO+: 72.039331 GHz SiO: 85.640456 GHz SiO: 86.243442 GHz H13CO+: 86.754294 GHz SiO: 86.846998 GHz HCN: 88.631847 GHz HCO+: 89.188518 GHz HNC: 90.663574 GHz N2H+: 93.173809 GHz CS: 97.980968 GHz C18O: 109.782182 GHz 13CO: 110.20137 GHz CO: 115.271203 GHz Set
Image Weighting Scheme:	Natural Robust=2 Robust=1 Robust=0 Robust=-1 Robust=-2 Uniform Superuniform
Smoothing filter width:
Discard self-generated birdies?:	Yes No
Discard known RFI frequency bands?:	Yes No
Number of edge channels to discard:
Calculate Sensitivity
Reset to Defaults	Save as Defaults

This is the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) sensitivity calculator. It provides a means of estimating the characteristics of ATCA observations with the Compact Array Broadband Backend (CABB) system. The calculator allows both available and planned CABB modes to be selected: please check the CABB webpage for the modes that have been implemented.

The pre-CABB sensitivity calculator is still available and may be useful for those considering archival ATCA data.

This page is specifically built to give fast access to all the available input parameters, but uses the same calculator as the user-friendly calculator found here. Users who require extra assistance may choose to use the alternate page.

This calculator stores the parameters as part of the address bar, allowing the user to bookmark this page and keep the calculation.

The calculator includes the theoretical RMS noise in a resultant image/cube (Stokes I, Q, U or V). The corresponding brightness temperature sensitivity is also calculated. These estimates are based on the expressions appearing in the ATNF technical document AT/01.17/025, the calculations of antenna efficiency as a function of frequency, revised (CABB era) measurements of system temperature as a function of frequency, and simulations of the effects of different weighting schemes on images made with different ATCA configurations. In calculating the effects of weighting, 30 second samples and Miriad default cell and image sizes were assumed.

It is assumed that the nominated integration time is evenly spread over the period the source is above the set elevation limit. Note the time given is the integration time: this does not account for overheads involved in calibration. Depending on the calibration scheme used, these overheads might vary between 5% for simple 16cm observations, to 50% for 3mm observations.

Questions, comments and issues should be addressed to Jamie (dot) Stevens (at) csiro (dot) au.