VLASS at AAS242 June 2023
AAS 242 Albuquerque
Splinter Session
An Explorer's Guide to the VLA Sky Survey (VLASS)
Tuesday 6 June 2023 9am - 3pm
NOTE: You must be registered to attend the AAS to attend this splinter session in-person. However, we will be live broadcasting this session on Zoom which can be joined by non-registrants (it is not part of AAS hybrid broadcasts). Stay tuned for more details on this option.
Albuquerque Convention Center, Meeting Rooms 15/16/32 (Acoma/Zuni/Tesuque) on Lower Level
The VLA Sky Survey (VLASS) is a radio astronomical survey with the Very Large Array (VLA) from 2-4 GHz with ~2.5” resolution covering the sky from Declination -40 degrees and above. Observations for the survey commenced in 2017, with two full epochs completed and a third currently underway (with scheduled completion in 2024). The VLASS data and science ready data products are publicly available from the NRAO Archive. In this Splinter Session, we will describe the VLASS and some of the science highlights to emerge from the survey, and the suite of Data Products that enable this science. There will be a particular focus on using our new Single-Epoch continuum images and cubes for polarimetry and other applications. We will explore the survey itself and provide example uses of VLASS in conjunction with other available multi-wavelength astronomical surveys. We will guide users through the process of downloading and performing custom imaging of survey data for cases not covered by our data products. We will highlight community created tools that enhance the use of VLASS, and opportunities for further community based development for the survey. Information on other VLA surveys commensal with VLASS (VCSS, COSMIC, and realfast) will be presented. We will also report on current status of the VLASS and plans for the delivery of the remainder of the survey and its products.
The format of this session will include basic project overview talks, science presentations, demonstrations, and tutorials, with ample time for interaction and discussion. We especially encourage students and educators to attend, with presentations geared towards users coming from these perspectives and wanting to learn about the VLASS and potentially participate in VLASS-related science and outreach activities.
Speakers:
Dillon Dong (NRAO);
Sergio Garza (NRAO);
Brian Kent (NRAO);
Amy Kimball (NRAO);
Mark Lacy (NRAO);
Steven Myers(NRAO);
Juergen Ott (NRAO);
Pallavi Patil (NRAO);
Emil Polisensky (NRL);
Chenoa Tremblay (SETI Ins.)
Preliminary Schedule
Tuesday 6 June, 0900 - 1500
Presentations are approx. 15min with 5min discussion
Tabular Schedule:
| 0900 - 0920 | Welcome, Overview of VLASS | S. Myers (NRAO, VLASS Project Scientist) |
| 0920 - 0940 | VLASS Operations, Scheduling, and Data Quality | A. Kimball (NRAO, VLASS Operations Lead) |
| 0940 - 1000 | VLASS Data Products and Science Results | M. Lacy (NRAO, VLASS Project Director) |
| 1000 - 1030 | Special Demonstration - Creating a Neural Network to Classify VLASS Objects | B. Kent (NRAO, Communications Director) |
| 1030 - 1050 | Time Domain Science with VLASS | D. Dong (NRAO, Jansky Fellow) |
| 1050 - 1110 | Commensal Systems: The VCSS | E. Polisensky (NRL) |
| 1110 - 1130 | Commensal Systems: COSMIC SETI | C. Tremblay (SETI Inst.) |
| 1130 - 1300 | Open discussion, demonstrations, tutorials, lunch break | various |
| 1300 - 1320 | VLASS Imaging QA and Understanding the Weblog | S. Garza (NRAO, Data Analyst) |
| 1320 - 1350 | Interactive Demonstrations | VLASS Team |
| 1350 - 1410 | Extragalactic Studies with VLASS | P. Patil (NRAO, Jansky Fellow) |
| 1410 - 1430 | The Future of VLASS | J. Ott (NRAO, VLASS Technical Lead) |
| 1430 - 1500 | Discussion and Interactive Demonstrations III; Closeout | VLASS Team |
AAS 242 Albuquerque
Individual Related Talks
Steven Myers (NRAO) "An Overview of the VLA Sky Survey (VLASS) and New Data Products"
Mark Lacy (NRAO) "The VLA Sky Survey: update and new results"
Session name: Large Surveys, Programs and Catalogs
Session date & Time: Monday, June 5, 2023, 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Albuquerque Convention Center, Meeting Room 235
