Virtual Observatory& LIGO

Roy WilliamsCalifornia Institute of Technology

IVOA is a standards organization

VO StandardsSimple Cone Search

Simple Image AccessSimple Spectral Access

Space-Time Coordinate MetadataSpectral Data Model

Unified Content DescriptorsVocabularies in the Virtual Observatory

VOTable Format Specification Sky Event Reporting Metadata (VOEvent)

Table Access ProtocolAstronomical Data Query Language

VOSpaceAuthentication Mechanisms

Asynchronous Service PatternIVOA Support Interfaces

IVOA IdentifiersRegistry Interfaces

VOResource: Registry RecordVOResource Schema Extension

fetch data by sky position

data models

service infrastructure

registry

semantics

data exchange

relational/region queries

Virtual Observatory• model: survey owners make their own VO service

– + new VO-hosted repository if funded • sharing:

– standard services form data grid– VO registry– connections to literature

• analysis: – old tools refitted + new tools in cloud– everyone wants something different

• publication: – connection with journals+data, ADS and semantics

• preservation: – responsibility is with data centers– they hate making good metadata

Virtual Observatory

• organization: through standard services and VO registry, service validation

• users: more people using surveys for publication • institutions: astronomy data centers

– IPAC, STSCI, HEASARC, etc• new communities: don't like standard services

(too complex, too simple)• standards: http://ivoa.net/Documents/• US project: http://us-vo.org/

LIGO• Laser Interferometric Gravitational Wave Observatory• to detect the gravitational waves (GW’s) predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity (GR).

• NSF requirement for open data• but data is difficult to understand

LIGO open data

• size ~600 TB per year• plan is to work with OAIS• replication:

– Hanford WA, Livingston LA, Pasadena CA, Milwaukee WI

• analysis is not supported, rather "rich viewing”• preservation

– getting the good metadata out of scientists heads

• designated community– professional astronomers– educated layperson

LIGO open data

• sharing: VERY carefully. Data is very difficult to understand.• international: US Ligo with French/Italian Virgo.

– Differences on open data question• new communities will have a steep learning curve!• other purposes: PEM channels

– Seismometers Accelerometers Tiltmeters Magnetometers Microphones Radio receivers Weather stations

• http://www.ligo.org/