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A Transient Astronomy “Free for All” at The Astronomer’s Telegram

A Transient Astronomy “Free for All” at The Astronomer’s Telegram Derek B. Fox, Caltech Robert E. Rutledge, McGill VO Events Meeting Pasadena – 13 April 2005 A Transient Astronomy Free-for-All ATEL in Context What need does it serve? How does it work? ATEL in Action

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A Transient Astronomy “Free for All” at The Astronomer’s Telegram

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  1. A Transient Astronomy“Free for All” at The Astronomer’s Telegram Derek B. Fox, Caltech Robert E. Rutledge, McGill VO Events Meeting Pasadena – 13 April 2005

  2. A Transient Astronomy Free-for-All • ATEL in Context • What need does it serve? • How does it work? • ATEL in Action • How has it been used? • What have we learned? • From ATEL to VO Events • Minimal standards for VOE • ATEL-like components • New/Novel components

  3. The Astronomer’s Telegramin Context

  4. The Astronomer’s Telegram • Online December 17, 1997 • Founder: Bob Rutledge • Application of the Web to transient astronomy • All Perl CGI • Daily emails + Instant Notices On the same day: • GCNs #9 to #13 on GRB971214 • IAUC 6791, also on GRB971214

  5. ATEL Approach Philosophy: • Universal access • Vet authors on registration • Trust them thereafter . . . (can revoke if necessary) • Complete automation • Instant distribution • On web in seconds • Email in minutes (instants) • A must for transient astronomy • Free for all

  6. Universal Access  Collaboration • Observers expect others to be aware of ATEL • Watch ATEL for transient events • Respond by initiating observations • Post results to ATEL Extremely rich phenomena are intensively observed, without prior agreement, between major observers at the largest facilities

  7. ATEL Usage In the 7 1/2 years since: • ATEL #457 – all freely available via ADS query • GCN 3255 • IAUC 8509 (+1718) – approx. 5000 notices • CBET 137 – New since Jan 25, 2005 • Multiple project-specific mailing lists

  8. Authors self-describe telegrams by bandpass and subject matter Multiple selections are allowed & encouraged 107 “Requests for Observations” 18 “Comments” ATEL Users

  9. ATEL Subjects

  10. The Astronomer’s Telegramin Action

  11. ATEL Lessons • Personal registration of users • HTTP User + Password sufficient to verify (cookie) • Cryptographic signatures still rare • Content verification via the website • Authors have “pushed the envelope” for instant notices • Theory telegrams didn’t work • Observers encouraged to interpret results

  12. Registration of Users Necessity of vetting users • Verify identity by personal contact • Professional astronomers and graduate students Considerations: • Several requests per year from non-astronomers • Amateur astronomers would like to post • Usually users attempt to post prior to registration

  13. Instant Email Notices Exception to daily emails intended for: • Discovery with new coordinates • New outburst of known transient • Typing of supernova • Request for observations

  14. From Astronomer’s Telegramto Virtual Observatory(Events)

  15. Elements of VO Events • XML Schema • Event Coordinates • Event Properties • Descriptive elements • Distribution channels • Vetted in advance • Providing event verification • Cafeteria style selection (not all or nothing) • Registration service • Identity • Qualifications

  16. Elements of VO Events ATEL: • Schema • Author names + affiliations • First author email address • Telegram Title (string) • Wavebands + Object types • Text description • Distribution channels • Website, Email, RSS • Event verification by visiting the website • Registration service • Personal contact by Editors

  17. The Information Registry • VO Events may enable machine-intiated observations on subsecond timescales. • To work in this fashion they must have registry metadata enabling identity and content verification • If these are not included in the VO event schema then events will be distributed only between previously known & trusted sources, and the utility of a universal schema will be lost.

  18. From ATEL to VO Events VO-Events: • XML Schema • Ongoing process • Distribution channels • Website, Email, RSS, SOAP • Identity verification • Content verification • Registration service • ?

  19. The VO Event Free-for-All • ATEL has been up for 7.5 years • Instant access enabling progress in transient astronomy • Registration of users has allowed us to trust them • Increasing usage + diversity of subject matter VO Events as a free-for all: • Flexibility of subscriptions • Flexibility of subject matter • Freedom of access • Verification of author and content provided

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