[NRAO] 7th NRAO Synthesis Imaging Summer School - June 2000 Prev
Error Recognition - S.T. Myers Page 16
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  12 Strong Additive Errors - Interference  
 
 
  • Often seen in visibilities on the shortest baselines

  • Sidelobes and ripples from bright sources such as the Sun (and Cyg A at low frequencies) can be seen in images even though the source may be offset by many primary beams!

  • Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) is often variable, showing bursts of activity - predominantly shows up on baselines with low fringe rate (N-S baselines) and when pointed at low elevation

  • RFI is almost always narrow band, and thus may be controlled and possibly excised by observations in high-spectral resolution mode where it can be isolated to a few channels

  • Having a system with a high degree of linearity is critical to dealing with RFI effects, as the signals tend to be strong

  • Cross Talk between closely separated antennas can sometimes be a serious problem on physically short baselines, and especially on shadowed antennas

 
 
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