The human pipeline: distributed data reduction for ALMA

TL;DR

This paper discusses the distributed data reduction pipeline for ALMA, detailing communication strategies, calibration scripts, and future improvements to enhance user data processing across global teams.

Contribution

It introduces a distributed data reduction model for ALMA, highlighting communication protocols and calibration scripts used in early cycles and plans for future cycles.

Findings

Effective communication channels established among global data reducers

Calibration and imaging scripts provided to users in Cycles 0 and 1

Plans outlined for improvements in future Cycles

Abstract

Users of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) are provided with calibration and imaging products in addition to raw data. In Cycle 0 and Cycle 1, these products are produced by a team of data reduction experts spread across Chile, East Asia, Europe, and North America. This article discusses the lines of communication between the data reducers and ALMA users that enable this model of distributed data reduction. This article also discusses the calibration and imaging scripts that have been provided to ALMA users in Cycles 0 and 1, and what will be different in future Cycles.