AstroGrid Oxford Workshop 9 June 2008

Workshop Aim

This short workshop will allow participants to gain knowledge of using the AstroGrid Virtual Observatory software (mainly VODesktop and python scripting) to help discover and work with astronomical data. The particpants will get a brief overview of AstroGrid, before spending a few hours in a hands-on session, where they will work through a number of examples. Help will be provided by AstroGrid 'tutors'.

Oxford Workshop Agenda

Provisional:

Workshop Location

The workshops will be held in the Denys Wilkinson Building, Oxford Astrophysics.

How to get to the Denys Wilkinson building - local map

Two rooms will be used - the Dennis Sciama Lecture Theatre and the Conference Room (seats ~20 people)

Pre-Workshop Checklist

Pre-requistites for running AstroGrid software on your own laptop

AstroGrid Help Pages

Installation

• It will save time if you can pre-install the AstroGrid Desktop, Topcat and the Python egg (if wanted, see below), but we will help you on the day if necessary.

Help pages for all aspects of using AstroGrid During the hands-on session we will aim to work through a number of the worked examples contained within our on-line examples pages. Attendees will be able to work at their own pace, with AstroGrid tutors available to help out as required. We suggest that attendees have a look at the following help pages:

• Comprehensive AstroGrid help pages
• reference Help pages

The worked examples can be found at:

• Usage examples

and we suggest that you start with some of the simpler ones:

• Cone searches - in other words positional queries of catalogues;
• Hipparcos - working with this astrometric data;
• Data Access - an overview of data access.

One of the most-used desktop tools is TopCat, for visualising tabular data - thus, do launch TopCat and have a look at its functionality and the Quickstart Guide.

• OxfordExamples

Python Scripting

Those of you familiar with scripting might like to try out the Python scripting side of AstroGrid:

• Python help pages: read this for help on installing and working with Python.
• Look at the end of that page for a tar file with example python scripts which you can run or edit.

Attendance

Local Network Information

AstroGrid to supply network switch(es), cat5 cables, power splitters and duck tape for use in the Conference Room. There are 2 ethernet ports in the Lecture Theatre for tutors. The Lecture Theatre and Conference Room both have built in projectors.

Wireless Internet access

Wireless is available for email / web when not in the Conference Room, Chris Hunter at Oxford to be informed by morning of Friday 6 June of number of accounts needed. Attendees wil be issued with a document with details upon arrival - MAC addresses not necessary. Printing facilities may be available if needed?

Feedback

ad-hoc notes from AMSR - to be expanded by other attendees

1. Oxford project generating SKA simulated data
   • Currently published as a catalogue via Cambridge
   • Want to maintain local DB for ease of updating
   • Also wrap commandline python script for generating simulations on demnad
2. Importance of time-domain data
   • DIsappointed that so few VO-accessible extrasolar data are searchable by time or contain temporal information
   • Various types of time domain data - transients, random variability, regular variability, time series, images or spectra of regions which vary with time...
   • High-sensitivity wide-field instruments (LOFAR, LSST...) will see a different sky every few days
     • Such data need time axis alongside spatial and spectral axes
   • Involved in future Robotic telescope - want to ensure VO compatibility
     • Is VOEvent documentation clear enough?
3. Pulsar data
   • Is it possible to get e.g. European Pulsar Network data into the VO?
     • Various types of data - pulse series, profiles...
   • Seems technically possible but need to convince data providers of need.
     • Ease of updating
     • Share work on standards
     • Future overlap with other domains e.g. gravitational waves
4. Sending a list of objects to a catalogue as a query
   • See e.g. Multicone at Cross Matching Examples
   • Need to make it easier to find appropriate matching services
   • Develop templates for multiple catalogues etc.
5. Will ALMA/e-MERLIN/EVLA data be fully VO compatible?
   • Intention is yes, at least at some levels
   • One view is that the priority is more advanced products (cubes, images, spectra) - static or like MERLINImager

-- GaryGilchrist - 09 May 2008