ska_sdp_instrumental_calibration.xarray_processors.beams module

ska_sdp_instrumental_calibration.xarray_processors.beams.prediction_central_beams(gaintable, beams_factory)

Predict the central beam response for the provided gaintable configuration.

This function calculates the primary beam response (central beam) for each antenna, frequency, and time step defined in the input gaintable. It uses the provided beams_factory to model the beam patterns.

The calculation is parallelized over frequency chunks using xarray and dask. The resulting beam responses are stored as gains in a new GainTable.

Parameters:

• gaintable (GainTable) -- The template GainTable defining the time, frequency, and antenna structure for the prediction. The existing gain data in this table is ignored, but coordinates and attributes are preserved.

• beams_factory (BeamsFactory) -- The factory object responsible for generating or retrieving the antenna beam models (e.g., based on antenna type, time, and frequency).

Returns:

A new GainTable where the gain variable contains the predicted central beam responses (complex Jones matrices). The shape matches the input gaintable: (time, antenna, frequency, receptor1, receptor2).

Return type:

GainTable