ESA experience in Interoperability:

1

• ESA experience in Interoperability
• the role within the Virtual Observatory and
  beyond
• Pedro Osuna
• ESA-VO
• Science Archives and VO Team
• European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC)

2
Introduction

• Although not the most budget demanding part of a
  satellite project, certainly the most valuable
  the final scientific data
• Final goal of scientific missions is to provide
  the scientific community with scientifically
  relevant data, thus care must be taken in
  production and archiving
• Besides the obvious value of the scientific data
  per se, it has become increasingly clear that
  access to external or past missions data can be a
  key in the success of future missions
• The possibility to access external data resources
  in a seamless way opens the door to engineers and
  scientists to
• Simulate and compare responses of their
  instruments
• Perform cross-calibration with other similar
  projects
• Fine tuning of exposure times and other
  parameters in proposal preparations

3
ESA Archiving of Astronomical Missions Data

• The Science Archives and VO Team at ESAC, Madrid,
  is in charge of designing, developing and
  maintaining all the Scientific Archives for the
  Astronomical missions of the European Space
  Agency
• In view of the benefits described before on
  external data access, ESA decided to research on
  interoperability with other projects
• Initial interoperability was done specifically
  with the different projects and institutions
• Recently, an effort was initiated to homogenise
  interoperability through the creation of
  Standards on data access, query languages etc.
  The effort took shape in the form of the
  International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA,
  http//www.ivoa.net)
• ESA has been heavily involved in the IVOA core
  activities, participating on definition of
  standards and providing reference implementations
  for them

4

• Interoperability in the past
• (interoperability a la carte)

5
Example from the Infrared Space Observatory data
6
Example to the Infrared Space Observatory data
7
Example to the XMM-Newton data
Postcard Server
Product Server
8

• Interoperability in transition
• ESAC Archive Interoperability System

9
Human archive access interfaces

• Java Applet or standalone app
• User friendly for non expert user
• Powerful queries, organized by panel
• User can see/edit the SQL which is generated by
  the interface
• Downlink and uplink data are linked
• Hierarchical view of the catalogues with clear
  color scheme
• All data is listed but access to proprietary data
  is restricted to data owner
• Images preview (icons, full image)
• Quick download (1 click) at various processing
  levels, shopping basket retrieval

10
Machine archive access interfaces

• Access to metadata dynamically (via XML
  scripting)
• Access to product server in socket mode (XML
  request), data back through socket or FTP
• Access to all level of data processing products,
  access to individual files for internal and
  external users
• Used a lot by Scientists for Calibration and
  Monitoring purposes
• As if they have the complete data repository on
  their local disk

11

• Interoperability today
• The International Virtual Observatory Alliance
  and ESA-VO

12
IVOA Structure and Standards

• Registry will allow an astronomer to be able to
  locate, get details of, and make use of, any
  resource located anywhere in the IVO space
• Data Model define data models for the most
  common astronomical objects
• Data Access to define and formulate VO standards
  for remote access
• Etc.

13
ESA-VO Involvement in IVOA

• Registry
• Full Harvestable Registry available at
  http//esavo.esac.esa.int/registry/
• Data Model
• Leading of the Atomic and Molecular Line Data
  Model group and Source Data model group
• Co-authorship in other Data Model standards
• Semantics
• Members of the steering committee
• Data Access
• Creators of first spectrum access protocol and
  Simple Line Access Protocol
• First implementors of SSAP access to spectra
  (ISO)
• Implementation of Image access protocols for ISO
  and XMM-Newton
• Applications
• Build application for Spectrum handling in VO
  context (VOSpec)
• And others

14
Interoperability in action VOSpec

• Access to Registry (IVOA standard)
• Access to Spectrum protocols (SSAP-TSAP, IVOA
  standard)
• Use of VOTable (IVOA standard)
• Access Spectral lines (IVOA standard)
• Access theoretical spectra (IVOA standard)
• Eases cross-calibration work, model fitting,
  objects sampling, spectra comparison, etc.
• See video at http//esavo.esac.esa.int/doc/VOSpec
  _UserManual_I.htm
• And

15
Other interoperability efforts

• Created the Planetary Archive Interoperability
  System (PAIO) within the Planetary Science
  Archive system for machine access to Planetary
  Science Data for ESA missions
• Initiated collaboration with NASA-PDS to
  interoperate the differen tplanetary missions
  archives
• Created Planetary Data Access Protocol (PDAP) for
  interoperability with NASA
• Created a prototype implementation for Planetary
  access from both ESA and NASA missions
• Currently working on the creation of an
  international interoperability effort for
  Planetary Data

16
Conclusions Interoperability for the Future

• Archive Interoperability has demonstrated to be
  possible and useful
• The International Virtual Observatory Alliance is
  playing a major role in the definition of
  Standards for interoperability
• ESA is contributing to the international effort
  through participation in both standard
  definitions and implementations, appearing as
  both a major data provider and a technical
  partner
• ESA and NASA are dealing with interoperability
  for planetary science. Other efforts might take
  place
• Not only scientists, but also mission planning
  and instrument specialists can benefit from
  interoperability for Space operations