Observing time on the VLA is available to all researchers, regardless of nationality or location of institution. There are no quotas or reserved blocks of time. The allocation of observing time on the VLA is based upon the submission of a VLA Observing Proposal using the on-line Proposal Submission Tool available via the NRAO Interactive Service web page, at http://my.nrao.edu/. The on-line tool permits the detailed construction of a cover sheet specifying the requested observations, using a set of on-line forms, and uploading of a pdf-format scientific and technical justification to accompany the cover information.

It is also possible to obtain VLA observing time by proposing to NASA missions, under cooperation agreements established between NRAO and those missions. Currently, such programs exist for the Chandra and Fermi missions. Astronomers interested in those joint programs should consult the relevant mission proposal calls for more information.

Students planning to use the VLA for their PhD dissertation must submit a "Plan of Dissertation Research" of no more than 1000 words with their first proposal. This plan can be referred to in later proposals. At a minimum the plan should contain a thesis time line and an estimate of the level of VLA resources needed. The plan provides some assurance against a dissertation being impaired by an adverse review of a proposal when the full scope of the thesis is not seen. The plan can be submitted via NRAO Interactive Services. Students are reminded to submit their plan comfortably in advance of the proposal deadline.

Time on the VLA is scheduled on a semester basis, with each semester lasting six months. Proposal deadlines are 5pm (1700) Eastern Time on February 1 and August 1. If the deadline falls on a holiday or weekend, it is extended to the next working day. The February 1 proposal deadline nominally covers time to be scheduled during the following August through January, and the August 1 deadline is for time to be scheduled from February through July. At either deadline requests can be made for a VLA configuration linked to a future deadline.

Proposals are evaluated on the basis of scientific merit by eight Science Review Panels (SRPs). The proposals are also reviewed for technical feasibility by NRAO staff. The SRP's comments and linear-rank scores are strongly advisory to the Time Allocation Committee (TAC). The scores and comments from both the SRPs and TAC are passed on to the proposers soon after each meeting of the TAC (twice yearly) and prior to the next proposal submission deadline. See http://science.nrao.edu/observing/proposal-types/peta for a detailed description of the proposal evaluation and time allocation process.

Because of competition, even highly ranked proposals are not guaranteed to receive observing time. This is particularly true for proposals that concentrate on objects in the LST ranges occupied by popular targets such as the Galactic Center or the Virgo Cluster. Daytime observing will also be limited by VLA commissioning activities throughout 2012.

The NRAO has established two categories of proposals for Director's Discretionary Time (DDT). DDT is limited to a maximum of 5% of the total observing time on the VLA. All DDT proposals should be submitted using the standard NRAO procedures, using the on-line proposal tool. Proposals submitted by any other means (e.g., phone calls, e-mails, faxes, word-of-mouth) will be not be considered.  The list of active triggered proposals can be consulted to determine whether there is an active conflicting proposal.

1. Target of Opportunity. Target of Opportunity (ToO) proposals are for unexpected or unpredicted phenomena such as supernovae in nearby galaxies or extreme X-ray or radio flares. ToO Proposals are evaluated rapidly, with scheduling done as quickly as possible and as warranted by the nature of the transient phenomenon. ToO Proposals are evaluated on the basis of scientific merit by the Chair of the relevant Science Review Panel and Observatory staff with the necessary scientific expertise. The technical feasibility of the proposed observations will be assessed by Observatory staff. The proprietary period for data obtained by ToO Proposals will be assessed on a case-by-case basis but will be no more than six months.

2. Exploratory Time. Exploratory Proposals are normally for requests of small amounts of time, typically a few hours or less, in response to a recent discovery, possibly to facilitate future submission of a larger proposal. In general, there will not be a need for immediate scheduling with these proposals, but they may need to be observed in the current VLA configuration rather than waiting 16 months. The possibility that a proposer forgets about or misses a proposal deadline, or just discovered that he/she was granted time for a particular source on some other telescope, will not constitute sufficient justification for granting observing time by this process. Thus, Exploratory Proposals must include a clear description of why the proposal could not have been submitted for normal review at a previous NRAO proposal deadline, and why it should not wait for the next proposal deadline. Proposals for exploratory time will be evaluated on the basis of scientific merit by the relevant Science Review Panel. Observatory staff will assess their technical feasibility. Notification of the disposition of an Exploratory Proposal normally will be within three weeks of receipt of the proposal; some of these proposals may be put in a queue such that they may or may not be observed. The proprietary period for data obtained by Exploratory Proposals normally will be six months.

To use the VLA, scheduling blocks must be prepared using the "Observation Preparation Tool," or OPT. The OPT is available at:

https://obs.vla.nrao.edu/opt

Once an observing proposal has been approved for scheduling, about 2-4 weeks before the relevant array configuration in the observing semester, the details of the proposal will appear as a project with program blocks in the OPT. Source and resource catalogs will also be populated as much as possible. The proposers will be notified by email when this has occurred, and when the scheduling queue will be accepting scheduling blocks. Please adhere to the current restrictions posted on the OPT web page above; things do change and the OPT page reflects our latest requirements for accepting scheduling blocks.

After consulting the documentation, any remaining questions or help required in making scheduling blocks can be directed to the NRAO Helpdesk at http://help.nrao.edu using your my.nrao.edu/PST user account.

Most projects on the VLA are observed dynamically, based on a combination of the scheduling priority and the expected properties of the array and the weather. Such dynamic scheduling enhances science data quality and the array's ability to discharge time-sensitive science. Some projects requiring coordinated observations with other telescopes will be scheduled on a fixed sidereal date.

Please see the scheduling officers' home page for further information, at http://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/sched/schedsoc

Since most VLA observations are carried out dynamically it is in general neither necessary, nor practical, for observers to be present during their observations. However, there can be considerable benefits to observers who come to Socorro to reduce and analyze their data in terms of interactions and discussions with NRAO staff. See Reservations for the VLA site and/or SOC for information on coming to and staying in Socorro.

For those who choose to process their data at home, the data can be retrieved from the VLA online archive by using the NRAO Interactive Services login from the archive web page.  Depending on the size of your data and the speed of your transmission you may choose to retrieve your data online or have us mail you a disk containing your data.

For more information we refer to the VLA archive web page and our Data Shipment Policy.

The online archive contains all VLA data since observing started in 1976, and also serves the user community with EVLA data. The entire archive is now on disk, and is available via the Archive Access Tool (AAT) at http://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/archive/evla/ . This interface provides a basic data retrieval tool if you know the program code of your observations. It also provides an advanced query tool which enables searches based on a large number of user-specified criteria. Data can be downloaded via standard ftp protocols and via shipment of physical harddisks (see https://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/data-archive/data-shipment for the disk shipment policy). With the exception of some rapid response and large proposals, (E)VLA data associated with a given proposal normally are restricted to proprietary use by the proposing team for a period of 12 months from the date of the last observation in a proposal (Note: data taken more than 12 months previously may still be proprietary, if additional data for the same proposal have been taken within the last 12 months). Proprietary data may be downloaded by the observing team by logging in to the AAT with the my.nrao.edu/PST user account or by making use of the project key (see The Observations and Remote Observing).

Data are stored in the archive in the Science Data Model (SDM) format that will be used by both the EVLA and ALMA. They are available through the AAT in one of two formats:

- As a CASA Measurement Set.

- In UVFITS format, which can be read by either AIPS or CASA.

The raw SDM format will only be available by special request submitted through the NRAO Helpdesk.

Note that some archival data have known problems which, together with the possible fix, are listed at http://www.vla.nrao.edu/astro/archive/issues/ .

The primary data reduction package for the VLA is the CASA (Common Astronomy Software Applications) package, which is also used for ALMA. See http://casa.nrao.edu for more information on the latest release.

NRAO will continue to support AIPS (Astronomical Image Processing System) for the foreseeable future, at least until VLBI functionality has been incorporated into CASA. See http://www.aips.nrao.edu for more details.

It is possible to reduce data obtained through the Open Shared Risk Observing programs during semesters 2010A through 2012B  using either CASA or AIPS.  More complex correlator set-ups are generally better handled by CASA, and advanced imaging algorithms are available in CASA.  The VLA data reduction pipeline will use CASA.

A primary goal of the computing environment at the SOC is to allow every user full access to a workstation during his/her visit. There are 10 public workstations available at the SOC for full-time data reduction by visitors. They are mostly two-processor, 8 core , 2.4-GHz PCs with 24GB of memory and 4TB of local disk running Linux.

For hardcopy, we have a number of high volume B&W laser printers, two color Postscript laser printers which can reproduce on both paper and transparencies, and one wide-bed color printer.

Visitors should reserve time on these workstations when they make their travel arrangements at http://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/visitorinfo/visitorregform (see also Reservations for the VLA site and/or SOC). Note that users may request remote access to the visitor machines as well, without actually visiting the SOC.  Remote reservations are subject to availability. Please contact the computing helpdesk (e-mail to helpdesk@aoc.nrao.edu, extension 7213, office 262) for further information about this and any other computing assistance while at the SOC.

For a more complete description of computing facilities at the SOC, see http://www.aoc.nrao.edu/computing/.

Accommodation for visitors is no longer available at the VLA site. Observers wishing to be present for their observations should stay in the nearby towns of Magdalena or Datil.

Reservations must be made at least 1 week prior to your visit to the NRAO/NM, and 2 weeks' notice is preferred, through the online form at http://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/visitorinfo/visitorregform. Computing requirements and the level of staff assistance needed must be specified through the online form.

First-time visiting students will be allowed to come to the NRAO/NM for observations or data reduction only if they are accompanied by their faculty advisor, an experienced collaborator, or if they have an NRAO staff collaborator.

Visitors to Socorro can take advantage of the NRAO Guest House. This facility contains eight single, four double, and two two-bedroom apartments, plus a lounge/kitchen, and full laundry facilities. The Guest House is located on the New Mexico Tech (NMIMT) campus, a short walk from the DSOC. Reservations are made through the online registration form at http://science.nrao.edu/facilities/evla/visitorinfo/visitorregform.

Since Socorro is located just off I-25, it has more than its share of motels.  Most are located on California Street, the main business thoroughfare.  Typical walking distance to NRAO is 20 - 30 minutes.