Meetings
Objectives
Location
Registration
Class Sign-up
Class Assignments
Program
Program Committee
Invitations
Visa
Transportation
Lodging
Local Information
Local Organizing Committee
Evaluation
Notebook
Pictures
The intended audience for this meeting is the technical staff of the stations.
The meeting will be oriented towards hands-on training and
problem resolution in VLBI operations. We hope that all VLBI stations
will be able to send technical representatives. This meeting represents
a rare opportunity for both training and communication with personnel
from other stations, the coordinating center, and the correlators.
Attendance at the TOW will be limited to two people from each station. If you can
send two people, we recommend that the best pair of people would be an experienced
station operator plus a new operator. If your station would like to send more than
two people, please have the additional people also fill out the registration form.
Then, send a message to the
with the priority order of the people from your station. Attendance for only two
people per station is guaranteed. The limit of two will be raised only if it does
not cause the meeting and classes to become too large.
The workshop will be held at
Haystack Observatory
in Westford, Massachusetts, USA.
Everyone who plans to attend must register. Registration consists of
two parts: (1) pre-registration and (2) final class sign-up. Please use
the
pre-registration form
to pre-register.
Pre-registration deadline was March 20, 2009.
Pre-registration is closed. Contact the
if you missed the deadline and want to attend the meeting.
The class sign-up will open once the class interest feedback is evaluated.
The registration fee is $300. This will cover
morning refreshments, coffee breaks, lunches, and two dinners during
the meeting, and course materials. The fee will be collected at the
registration desk at the meeting. Only cash or checks (made out to
"MIT Haystack Observatory") in USD can be accepted.
Everyone who pre-registered must sign up for classes to complete the registration
process. To do so please fill out the
class sign-up form
with the aid of the list of
class descriptions
.
The deadline for signing up for classes was April 17, 2009.
Class sign-up is closed.
If you did not sign up for
classes and still need to do so, please contact the
.
The
draft class assignments
are ready.
Class assignments have been made based on the class selection forms.
On the
Class Assignments page
you can find a link to your individual form as well as schedules of all classes.
Note that changes are still possible due to the draft status.
If you want to add or change any classes, please contact the
.
We plan on having an icebreaker reception at the meeting hotel (Westford Regency)
on Sunday April 26, 2009 starting at about 6 pm.
A
class feedback form
had been
prepared in order to determine the class interests for this year's TOW.
The deadline for submitting class interest feedback was
March 6, 2009.
The results of the feedback will help determine the
final offer of classes in the class sign-up.
Submission
of feedback is no longer possible.
The Program Committee is responsible for deciding on the topics
to be covered at the workshop and setting up the sessions.
Please send comments or requests for classes to the
TOW Program Committee
.
Members of the program committee are:
Although IVS cannot provide financial support for attendance at the workshop,
we will send a letter of invitation to attend the meeting. If this would be of
assistance for your travel plans, please contact the
to request a letter.
Depending on your country of origin you may need a Visa to enter the United States
or you may be eligible to participate in the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). Please
check the
list of VWP countries
to find out if you are eligible for a Visa Waiver.
If you need a
Visa
, please contact the
U.S.
Embassy/Consulate
in your country in order to inquire about the necessary paperwork.
If you can take advantage of the
Visa Waiver Program
, please note
that there was a recent change in immigration procedures. VWP participants now have to
obtain an approved travel authorization prior to their travel to the United States. For
this purpose, use the so-called
Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA)
. Please make sure
that you obtain your authorization on time.
Haystack Observatory
is about
equally distant from two airports: Boston, MA and Manchester, NH. Boston airport is a
major international hub, whereas Manchester airport is a regional airport. Local
traffic from Manchester to Westford is usually lighter than from Boston.
There are several choices for ground transportation to the
Westford Regency Inn
from Boston and Manchester airports. Use the phone numbers below to reserve a
seat.
|
Service
|
Contact Information
|
Price
|
Comments
|
|
Flight Line
|
1-800-245-2525
http://www.flightlineinc.com
|
From Boston airport:
$77 for 1–3 people
$87 for 4 people
$97 for 5 people
$107 for 6 people
From Manchester airport:
$74 for 1–3 people
$84 for 4 people
$94 for 5 people
$104 for 6 people
|
This is for a shared ride. Both Boston and Manchester airports are served
by Flight Line.
|
|
C & L Air Limo
|
1-800-247-7080
978-692-9303
http://www.clairlimo.com
|
From Boston airport:
$69 for 1 person
$75 for 2 people
$81 for 3 people
$89 for 4 people
From Manchester airport:
$77 for 1 person
$77 for 2 people
$88 for 3 people
$94 for 4 people
|
This is for a shared ride. Both Boston and Manchester airports are served
by C & L Air Limo, Inc.
|
If you prefer to rent a car at either Manchester or Boston Airport, you may follow
the hotel's
driving directions
and/or
map
in order to get from the airport to the hotel.
A block of rooms has been set aside at the
Westford Regency Inn
in Westford, MA. The hotel has a full-service
restaurant and bar. Room rates are $110 + 9.7% state tax for single/double occupancy.
The government rate is higher.
Participants are requested to make their own reservations if possible. Please
contact the hotel using the information given below. Rooms will be released from
the block after April 4, 2009; please make your reservations before then. A
credit card is required to guarantee your room.
If you need assistance with your reservations, please contact
.
To reach
Haystack Observatory
, please
follow the map and text based
driving
directions
.
Weather in late April / early May in the northeastern US is usually wonderful.
Participants can check the
local weather conditions
before leaving home.
Other links to local information:
Members of the local organizing committee are:
Please feel free to contact any of the committee members with any questions.
Evaluation forms were filled out by meeting attendees. A summary
of the comments and ratings is available at the link below.
After the meeting, the teachers met to share their experiences
and evaluate the meeting and their teaching. Notes from this
meeting are are available at the link below.
Most of the hard copy material provided in the notebook distributed at the meeting
is now available in PDF files. The
notebook page
has links
to the files.
Several people took pictures during the meeting and made them freely available.
Please use the following links to pages with thumbnails. Some thumbnail pages
allow downloading of the full size pictures by clicking on them.
You can also browse and download picture files on the ftp server.
You can also download a QuickTime movie file (huge file):
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