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BinX and Astronomy

This document explores the integration of BinX with the Virtual Observatory (VO) to enhance astronomical data management. It highlights the importance of data formats like FITS and VOTable, detailing their functionalities and limitations. BinX's capability to convert between FITS binary tables and VOTables, facilitate streaming, and aid interoperability is emphasized. Additionally, the potential of BinX to support SAX and DOM parsing, along with XQuery for data representation, points to a significant advancement in utilizing global astronomical data resources effectively.

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BinX and Astronomy

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  1. BinX and Astronomy Bob Mann Institute for Astronomy and National e-Science Centre

  2. BinX and Astronomy • The Virtual Observatory concept • Astronomical data formats • FITS and VOTable • Possible Use Cases for BinX in the VO • Further requirements

  3. The Virtual Observatory • Federation of the world’s significant astronomical data resources, plus the tools required to exploit those data scientifically • Based on web (later, Grid) services • Coordinated projects around the world • UK: AstroGrid • Forced discussion of interoperability issues

  4. Astronomical data formats

  5. FITS – Flexible Image Transport System • Near-universal in astronomy • Extended to handle non-image data • FITS binary table preferred format for transporting large amounts of tabular data • Only used in astronomy – poor leverage of generic software • Difficult to stream FITS data – no. of rows has to be specified

  6. VOTable • New XML standard for tabular data • Design allows easy translation from FITS • Usual XML advantages… • Flexibility, validation, streaming, etc • …and disadvantages • Verbosity – serious problem in astronomy

  7. Three flavours of VOTable • TABLEDATA • Metadata and data in fully tagged XML • FITS • Metadata in XML, data in external FITS file, linked from VOTable document • BINARY • Metadata in XML, data encoded in binary format and included in VOTable doc

  8. How can BinX help the VO?

  9. Conversion between FITS binary tables and VOTables • Lots of legacy FITS data files around • First step in eDIKT BinX testbed • Conversion to TABLEDATA works • what about FITS & BINARY? • Can also strip metadata from headers of non-bintable extensions (e.g. images)

  10. Aiding data transport in the VO Site 1 WAN Site 2 Database 2 Database 1 VOTable VOTable Application BinX VOTable Binary BinX

  11. Delivering SAX events with BinX? Site 1 WAN Site 2 Database 2 Database 1 VOTable VOTable Application BinX SAX events Binary BinX

  12. Integrating BinX and databases? Site 1 WAN Site 2 Database 2 Database 1 BinX BinX SAX events Application SAX events Binary BinX

  13. Querying BinX’s implied XML representation with XQuery? Site 1 WAN Site 2 Database 2 Database 1 BinX BinX SAX events XQuery Application XQuery SAX events Binary BinX

  14. Summary • The requirements of the VO and the aims of BinX seem well matched • Initial results from the astronomy testbed are encouraging • Astronomy would benefit from a number of the possible extensions to BinX: • Java version – aid integration with VO • Support for SAX as well as DOM • XQuery on implied XML representation

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