TVS Task Force
LSST Science Platform Evaluation
Work Plan
Members:
| Sara Bonito | Chair, Spokesperson |
| Rachel Street, LCO | |
| Raffaella Margutti, Northwestern University | |
| Kelly Hambleton, Villanova University | |
| Melissa Graham, University of Washington/LSST | |
| Maryam Modjaz, New York University | |
| Somayeh Khakpash, Lehigh University | |
| Claudia M. Raiteri, INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino | |
| Filippo D'Ammando, Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF) | |
| Barbara Balmaverde, INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino / SNS-Scuola Normale | |
| Maria Isabel Carnerero Martin, INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino | |
| Massimo Dall'Ora, INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte | |
| Ilaria Musella, INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte | |
| Maria Ida Moretti, INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte | |
| Nicholas Rattenbury, University of Auckland | |
| Massimo Brescia |
Context
The LSST Science Platform (LSP) is envisioned as an online portal by which most users will access LSST data products, aside from the alert brokers, since the size and scale of those products is likely to prohibit users downloading large subsets for analysis at their local institutes.
The LSP platform consists of three aspects, fully described in LDM-542:
- the Portal aspect, designed to enable browsing and interactive visualization of data products
- the Notebook aspect, which provides a JupyterLab notebook environment for users to run software-based investigations
- the API aspect, which enables users to query the LSP remotely and programmatically
All of these aspects are accessed through the user's browser window, so no software needs to be installed on the user's machine.
LSST Project are currently using the LSP for commissioning activities, but relatively few researchers currently have access for scientific use, owing to personnel limitations in supporting users and transitioning the LSP for external use. The Project expect to make the platform accessible to the community later in 2020-2021.
Nevertheless, it is advantageous for science users to evaluate the LSP as soon as possible.
Task Force (TF) Goals
Nevertheless, it is advantageous for science users to evaluate the LSP as soon as possible. The goals of this Task Force are, therefore:
- Gain familiarity with the LSP, and share this knowledge with the rest of TVS
- Understand what TVS users will need from the LSP and evaluate whether the current design will provide it
- Report on the Stack Club
Work Plan and Deliverables
- Review the LSP design documents available
- Develop a detailed questionnaire designed to identify the software and data products needed by TVS science, and circulate it.
- Review all sections of the TVS Roadmap to identify the implied software requirements for the analysis outlined.
- Update the TVS Roadmap to reflect any software and/or data products that need to be developed to perform the scientific analyses.
- Report TVS' users requirements for the LSP to the LSST Development team.