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Paper: The New Science Portal and the Programmatic Interfaces of the
ESO Science Archive
Volume: 523, Astronomical Data Analysis Software and Systems XXVIII
Page: 433
Authors: Micol, A.; Arnaboldi, M.; Delmotte, N.; Forchì, V.; Fourniol, N.; Hainaut, O.; Lange, U.; Kahn, A.; Mascetti, L.; Retzlaff, J.; Romaniello, M.; Sisodia, D.; Spiniello, C.; Stellert, M.; Stoher, F.; Vera, I.; Zampieri, S.
Abstract: In June 2018 the new ESO science archive interfaces have become available to the astronomical community. Powerful new features allow a much richer user experience than ever before. The two main components are the ESO Archive Science Portal for interactive web access, and the VO-based programmatic and tool access.
The Science Portal provides a web-based interface to browse and explore the archive with interactive, iterative queries. The results are presented in real time in various tabular and/or graphic forms, including interactive previews, allowing an evaluation of the usefulness of the data which can then be selected for retrieval.
The direct database and Virtual Observatory layer allows a more flexible and customizable access allowing users to perform complex queries, to script their access, or to use common VO-aware tools to access the wealth of data in the ESO Science Archive. Extensive documentation is provided in terms of practical examples, which are intended to provide templates for users to customise and adapt to their specific needs.
In this first release, the Science Portal supports processed data from the La Silla Paranal Observatory, while the programmatic layer already supports processed, raw, and ambient data. Future plans include: support for ALMA processed data by both components, and Science Portal support for raw data. It is planned that these new access points will gradually replace the previous ones for La Silla Paranal data, while ALMA will keep maintaining a dedicated, separate access.
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