[Artist's Concept of AXAF]

CXO Project Science:
Calibration Analysis Team (CAT)

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MSFC CAT Members

[The X-CAT]
  • Steve O'Dell
  • Jeff Kolodziejczak
  • Allyn Tennant
  • Doug Swartz
  • Ron Elsner
  • Martin Sulkanen


  • Announcements

    This page is for CAT Action Items and CAT telecon Minutes only. Please see the main calibration page for:
    Latest CAT telecon Minutes
    Old (closed) action items

    Open CAT Actions

    ID Who Status Due Subject Description Status Comments
    CAT053 MST Due 980708 Changes in HSI quantum efficiency During the AXAF calibration activities, charge depletion decreased the gain in the central region of the HSI microchannel plate, resulting in an apparent decrease in quantum efficiency. OPEN Develop a strategy for approximately correcting the HSI data for changes in quantum efficiency.
    CAT057 MST Due 980708 Scattering model Ray-trace predictions use HDOS surface-profiler metrology to predict scattering. OPEN Compare surface-metrology scattering predictions with wing-scan data and images; examine effect of differences on effective area and encircled energy. (Need information on possible vignetting by quadrant shutters.)
    CAT066 PS Due 980708 Distances for LETG LETG team requires data on axial positions of sources, LETG, and detectors, relative to HRMA, both at XRCF and in flight. OPEN HETG/ Dan Dewey provided OTG-specific data at HETG web page. PS will assemble table of distances.
    CAT071 ASC Due 980708 HRC-S geometry LETG finds that ASC-reduced data for the LETG/HRC-S shows an apparent nonlinearity in the dispersion scale. ASC software may use incorrect pixel spacing or tilt for the HRC-S outer segment. OPEN ASC will examine geometric parameters (gap, tilts, and pixel spacing) and analysis software used for HRC-S, to attempt to identify cause of apparent nonlinearity.
    CAT072 MST Due 980708 SSD absolute efficiencies CAT members require best values for HXDS absolute efficiencies, in order to complete "final" calibration reports. NEW MST will provide currently best models for SSD absolute efficiencies.

    Old (closed) CAT Actions

    ID Who Status Due Subject Description Status Resolution
    CAT001 ASC DONE 971024 IRIG clock errors Determine periods of occurrence of IRIG clock errors and develop strategy for compensating for IRIG errors. DONE ASC has fixed problems in raw files and is now processing data.
    CAT002 ASC DONE 970528 Lost day-103 data Determine whether day-103 data not recorded on optical disk is present on XRCF hard drives. If so, transfer to ASC archive for CAT access. DONE Day 103 was during an IC repress; thus, no critical data were lost.
    CAT003 MST DONE 970604 BND data products List intended BND data products, for review by other CAT members. DONE Access MST/ Dick Edgar e-mail on PS calibration page. (See CAT015.)
    CAT004 PS DONE 970528 E-mail distribution list Compile e-distribution list for CAT. DONE Send CAT e-mail to distribution list axaf_cat at alph.msfc.nasa.gov.
    CAT005 MST DONE 970702 HRMA ray-trace model Develop plan for distributing or providing access for running SAO's HRMA ray trace. DONE MST will provide ray files for each different CMDB configuration. The standard product will be for 10^4 rays; however, for requested specific cases, the MST will run more rays.
    CAT006 PS DONE 970701 XRCF distances Obtain relevant distances between sources, mirrors, and detectors. DONE Access table XRCF distances through PS calibration page.
    CAT007 PS DONE 970714 HRMA IAPs Explain meaning and specify period for each IAP and instances of axial error during IAP setting. DONE Access table XRCF distances through PS calibration page.
    CAT008 MIT DONE 970529 Cross calibration of BNDs with ACIS CCDs Define an experiment to calibrate BNDs against BESSY calibration-transfer CCD and electronics, in the ACIS-2C, at the XRCF. DONE Terminate effort because BNDs will be directly calibrated at BESSY.
    CAT009 LETG DONE 970602 Raw LETG spectra Provide access to LETG raw spectra of XSS sources, to facilitate HRC and BND analyses by use of information on spectral content. DONE Access phase-2 LETG spectra at www.rosat.mpe-garching.mpg.de/axaf.
    CAT010 HETG DONE 970602 Raw HETG spectra Provide access to HETG raw spectra of XSS sources, to facilitate HRC and BND analyses by use of information on spectral content. DONE Access phase-1 OTG-HSI spectra at the HETG xrcf website.
    CAT011 HRC DONE 971015 HRC pore-angle dependence Provide information on dependence of HRC QE on pore angle. DONE Access table of HRC-I pore-angle dependence, from the HRC Calibration page.
    CAT012 HRC DONE 970924 HRC flat fielding Provide results from HRC flat-fielding measurements DONE HRC has provided links to tables of flat-field results, under Calibration Data Products on the HRC Calibration page.
    CAT013 ASC DONE 970716 Data products to ASC Determine which data products the ASC requires from the SI and BND teams. DONE Access list of ASC-required calibration data products at the ASC and, for grating processing, MIT.
    CAT014 PS DONE 970528 Calibration URLs Compile list of URLs for CAT. DONE URLs are now accessible via ASC or PS web sites.
    CAT015 ALL & ASC DONE 970910 Adequacy of BND data products Review MST list of intended BND data products to evaluate adequacy. DONE All teams have had opportunity to comment on adequacy of MST's BND data products. Access MST description through PS calibration page.
    CAT016 MIT DONE 971119 ACIS HST and telemetry rates Demonstrate that ACIS high-speed-tap and telemetry data are consistent. DONE All HST and telemetry data analyzed thus far give consistent results, provided the bias is treated properly.
    CAT017 MIT DONE 970702 ACIS grade selection Recommend interim grade selection for processing ACIS calibration data. DONE Interim ACIS selection for calibration processing is ASCA grades 0, 2, 3, 4, & 6, to be updated by end of year.
    CAT018 PS DONE 970710 Misidentified EIPS target ACIS and HETG data show that the putative Zr-L target may be Nb-L at 2.166 keV. DONE PS confirms that all putative Zr targets are indeed Nb and have been since pre-VETA.
    CAT019 ASC DONE 980501 De-dithering problem De-dithered data produce blurred images. DONE Ball confirmed problem; however, no SI requires FAM de-dithering to meet calibration requirements. Access FAM transformation equations and other information from Ball on PS Cal FAM information page. HRC concludes that blur results from 5-to-10-micron ringing which settles in a couple seconds.
    CAT020 PS DONE 970807 Visible flux from test light Visible flux from light used for ACIS light-leak check is unknown. DONE Visible flux at HRMA from test light is 5 10^-3 lux, 2 10^9 ph cm^-2 s^-1 (for 550 nm wavelength). Light's battery is nearly dead, so flux may have been as much as 3 times greater (plugged-in value) during ACIS test.
    CAT021 PS DONE 971015 EIPS spot pinhole images (see CAT045) X-ray surface-brightness distribution of EIPS targets is needed for ray traces. DONE HRI data using EIPS is available upon request to Galen.Zirnstein at msfc.nasa.gov
    CAT022 PS DONE 970801 CMDB for flat-fielding measurements ACIS and HXDS teams need CMDB for flat-fielding phases (periods I and J). DONE Access as-requested I and J CMDBs (tab-delimited files) through PS calibration page.
    CAT023 PS DONE 970903 LETG axial position Analysis of the LETG wavelength scale indicates that the LETG may be displaced axially (with respect to the focal plane) by 7 mm. DONE TRW XC04 6.2.4 reports that measured distance between CAP CL and LETG origin is 60.024 in (1524.6 mm).
    CAT024 PS DONE 971015 IRAF I*2 limitation IRAF image pixels are specified in I*2 format, which precludes processing of HRC-S images. ASC is awaiting updated IRAF software. DONE New IRAF release removes limitation and ASC has begun processing LETG--HRC-S data.
    CAT025 ACIS DONE 970910 ACIS true integration time When telemetry saturates, ACIS drops full frames from some CCDs. Consequently, the FITS data files do not currently give the true integration time. DONE ACIS has determined that existing software is adequate for XRCF calibration analysis.
    CAT026 MST DONE 970910 HXDS aperture and efficiency ratios HXDS flat-field (series-J) measurements provide information on FPC and SSD aperture and efficiency ratios. DONE Access from MST simulations & analysis homepage, under HXDS Information.
    CAT027 MST DONE 970911 Errors in sizes of HXDS apertures Errors in sizes of HXDS apertures are not known. DONE Access table of nominal apertures and estimated uncertainties from MST simulations & analysis homepage, under HXDS Information. Also see SAO/ Brad Wargelin's comments in 11 Sep 1997 e-mail.
    CAT028 PS DONE 980108 SSD dead-time correction (see CAT054) Accurate SSD dead-time correction requires use of pulser. Pulser-based dead-time corrections made by MST and by PS do not agree. DONE PS and MST have obtained consistent pulser-based dead-time corrections for SSD measurements.
    CAT029 MST DONE 971222 HXDS modeling workshop Analysis of FPC and SSD data should be performed consistently by all parties. DONE MST will hold a workshop on Feb 10, at SAO Phillips Auditorium, to discuss models and model parameters to be used in analyzing FPC and SSD data.
    CAT030 ASC DONE 980212 Configuration control for models (see CAT058) Consistent analysis and performance prediction requires use of well-defined models, which are under configuration control. DONE ASC hosted Models Management meeting (Feb 12 at SAO) to address this issue. Planning and implementation will be tracked under CAT058.
    CAT031 PS DONE 971125 Bearden's list of wavelengths All calibration analyses shall use the Bearden list of wavelengths for all lines and edges. DONE PS Calibration page now links to Bearden's list of wavelengths for K and L lines and to scanned Rev. Mod. Phys. tables for all lines.
    CAT032 MST DONE 970910 HXDA positions during calibration Calculation of x-ray flux requires knowledge of HXDA position. DONE MST confirms that BND and HXDA positions were the same (+/- 0.25 in) during all calibration phases, including rehearsal and flat fielding.
    CAT033 HRC DONE 970825 HRC aperture for effective area Quoted HRC effective area does not specify aperture. DONE Quoted HRC effective areas include all events within a radius of 1500 pixels (9.64 mm).
    CAT034 ACIS DONE 980401 ACIS pile-up correction Analysis of ACIS data requires an approach for dealing with pile up of ACIS counts for a variety of situations. DONE MIT & PSU ACIS teams distributed description of 8-point approach.
    CAT035 ASC DONE 970909 Pipeline products CAT members require access to calibration pipeline products generated by ASC. DONE Access information on reprocessed XRCF tests through these tables. Original processing, stored by "day" through the path /data/prod1/pipe, is available through mirrored sites at ASC and OCC (fleadh.harvard.edu, sisko.harvard.edu, ascsvr3.harvard.edu) or through the path /data/prod2/pipe. Address questions about accessing these data to Bruce Wyshak.
    CAT036 ASC DONE 970909 ASC point of contact for calibration data CAT members need a contact to facilitate access to calibration data and pipeline products. DONE Bruce Wyshak (617-496-7213, bwyshak at head-cfa.harvard.edu) is the ASC's point of contact for accessing XRCF data and pipeline products.
    CAT037 LETG DONE 970910 LETG spectral resolution PS requests a quantitative comparison of measured to model spectral resolution. DONE LETG has provided a quantitative comparison of measured to model spectral resolution, in its preliminary report.
    CAT038 HETG DONE 970923 rdb_read IDL procedure rdb_read IDL procedure is useful for those CAT members who use IDL. DONE Access rdb_read.pro, rdb_write.pro, and rdb_parm.pro from ~dd/idl/useful at MIT and SAO, or see MIT/ Dan Dewey's 23 Sep 1997 e-mail. Also see MST's rdb page for more specifics on the rdb format.
    CAT039 HETG DONE 980513 HETG period discrepancy The period inferred from XRCF measurements differs from the that determined in subsystem calibration by about 500 ppm. DONE HETG determined that cause is slightly incorrect Rowland spacing.
    CAT040 PS DONE 970903 Filter transmission to Nb-L The putative EIPS Zr target was actually Nb, thus the specified filter transmission requires correction. DONE Filter-transmission tables give absorption depth in line, which value remains valid, but line energy changes from 2.04 keV (Zr-L) to 2.16 keV (Nb-L).
    CAT041 MST DONE 971119 Effect of IRIG errors on BND analysis IRIG clock errors may affect analysis of BND data. DONE MST determined that IRIG clock errors have no efect on BND data.
    CAT042 PS DONE 980114 HSI processing for LETG PIGS measurements LETG team is waiting for processed HSI data for LETG PIGS measurements. DONE ASC has processed LETG PIGS data; LETG team is obtaining needed data.
    CAT043 PS DONE 971015 AXAF CAT mailing list Individual e-mail addresses in distribution list axaf_cat alph.msfc.nasa.gov are not public. DONE Access axaf_cat.lis via anonymous FTP from xanth.msfc.nasa.gov, cd pub/xray/cat_docs.
    CAT044 PS DONE 971119 Location of HRMA node TRW states that HRMA node is 18.1 mm behind CAP datum A. How is the node determined and what is its energy dependence? DONE TRW reports that node is determined, by construction, from EKC data obtained with visible light.
    CAT045 PS DONE 980309 Maps of EIPS spot (see CAT021) MST needs maps of EIPS spot, as input for ray-trace analysis. DONE Access EIPS spot maps through PS Calibration page.
    CAT046 PS DONE 971210 Template for beam-uniformity data ASC needs template for data files from PS beam-uniformity analysis, in order to prepare analysis software. DONE PS provided template for data files, primarily RDB tables.
    CAT047 ASC DONE 980114 Data not found at mirror site Some BND data files seem not to be available at mirror site. DONE ASC has located files and placed on mirror site.
    CAT048 MST DONE 980304 JMKmod in XSPEC v10 The MST implemented JMKmod in XSPEC v9, which doesn't automatically give correct C-statistic; however, v10, which is now available, does. DONE MST has implemented JMKmod in XSPEC v10, with ASC suggestions.
    CAT049 PS DONE 980318 Jump across Mn-K edge MST fits to FPC spectra for Mn-K-filtered Fe-K requires a jump across the Mn-K edge which is inconsistent with Henke tables. DONE Assay report accompanying Mn-K filter shows 1.25% Pb impurity, which accounts for discrepancy discovered by MST.
    CAT050 MST DONE 980429 LETG measurement of Al-Ka spectrum FPC spectra show mean energies in 2nd and 3rd order differ from 2 and 3 times Al-Ka energy. DONE Examined possible causes for "incorrect" energies in higher order, but did not solve mystery. Discontinue effort because goal of measurement doesn't require solution.
    CAT051 MST DONE 980304 Channel offset between JMKmod and Hypermet The channel offsets for JMKmod differ by 1+mu or 1.5 from those in Hypermet. DONE Correct channel offset is 1+mu, 1 from convention for numbering lowest channel and mu from including primary electron with secondary electrons in the charge cloud.
    CAT052 MST DONE 980610 SSD_X energy scale The accuracy of the BESSY crystal monochromator limits the energy-scale accuracy for SSD_X. DONE MST established method for determining the SSD_X energy scale, using ensemble fitting of fluorescence peaks and other spectral features.
    CAT054 PS DONE 980401 SSD dead-time correction - 2 (see CAT028 & 064) The influence of pile-up with the pulser further complicates determining the proper dead-time correction for the SSDs. DONE Make dead-time correction for the SSDs by summing pulser and pulser+photon events. See also HXDS Current Topics page. CAT064 treats related issue of SSD pile up, especially for continuum measurements.
    CAT055 PS DONE 980513 Energy interpolation for monochromator maps Beam-uniformity measurements were not performed at all energies for which the monochromators were used during the AXAF calibration. DONE Completed HIREFS model for interpolating maps in energy; developed strategy for treating DCM data.
    CAT056 PS DONE 980513 Spatial fitting to monochromator maps Beam-uniformity measurements did not always extend to position of the FPC_Hs. DONE Completed HIREFS model for extrapolating maps to FPC_H positions; developed strategy for treating DCM data.
    CAT058 ASC DONE 980513 Models management plan (see CAT030) AXAF teams require access to one another's models in order to complete their respective calibrations. DONE ASC provided list of intended data products. ASC will populate data base of calibration products, accessible off ASC Cal web page, and then implement revision control and notification.
    CAT059 ASC DONE 980401 ACIS model ASC requires a means for generating ACIS response matrices. DONE ACIS/MIT/ Mark Bautz presented a schedule for delivery to the ASC of capability for generating response matrices of ACIS CCDs.
    CAT060 ASC DONE 980513 LETG efficiency models The multiplicity of models for the LETG efficiency may lead to confusion. DONE ASC will adopt MPE's model for the LETG efficiency.
    CAT061 ASC DONE 980226 As-run CMDB An as-run CMDB would facilitate completion of the calibration analysis. DONE Provide access to an initial "as-run" CMDB and e-mail address for sending corrections; update and correct as errors are reported.
    CAT062 PS DONE 980429 Project Science logs Project Science logs may facilitate completion of the calibration analysis. DONE Access Project Science calibration logs from PS Cal page.
    CAT063 PS DONE 980318 Data Systems representative ASC/ Bruce Wyshak is leaving, so CAT now lacks Data Systems representation. DONE ASC/ Peppi Fabbiano identified Dong-Woo Kim (dkim at cfa.harvard.edu, 617-496-7852) as contact for data processing.
    CAT064 PS DONE 980429 SSD pile-up correction (see CAT054) Counting pile up in the SSD affects accuracy of the measurement, particularly for continuum measurements. DONE Determined that SSD pile-up is understood and can be adequately modeled where necessary.
    CAT065 MST DONE 980610 Ray-trace simulations for PIGS Existing ray files treat PIGS as a point source, whereas it is significantly extended in the cross-dispersion direction. DONE Access ray files using characterized PIGS spot at http://hea-www.harvard.edu/MST/simul/simul-home.pl.
    CAT067 ASCDS DONE 980513 Incomplete processing ASC/ Data Systems has not completed processing of XRCF data. DONE ASCDS provided a schedule (indicating percent completion) for processing of ASC data. Send specific requests to dkim at cfa.harvard.edu, with copies to cjones at cfa.harvard.edu, odell at cosmos.msfc.nasa.gov, and swartz at alph.msfc.nasa.gov.
    CAT068 MST DONE 980617 HRMA effective area CAT members require a best value for the HRMA effective area, in order to complete "final" calibration reports. DONE MST/ Ping Zhou placed the tables, PS files, and their descriptions at http://hea-www.harvard.edu/MST/mirror/www/xrcf/hrma_ea.html (XRCF) and http://hea-www.harvard.edu/MST/mirror/www/orbit/hrma_ea.html (on-orbit).
    CAT069 MST DONE 980622 FPC absolute efficiencies CAT members require best values for HXDS absolute efficiencies, in order to complete "final" calibration reports. DONE MST/ Dick Edgar placed the currently best-available calibration at http://hea-www.harvard.edu/MST/simul/xrcf/HXDS/ under "Quantum Efficiency".
    CAT070 MST DONE 980623 HSI efficiency vs energy and pore angle CAT members require current model for dependence of the HSI efficiency upon energy and pore angle. DONE MST/ Ian Evans e-mailed to axaf_cat the currently best available HSI efficiency vs. energy and pore angle.
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