IVOA Roadmap for 2020A

This outlines the roadmap for development activities by the various IVOA working and interest groups in 2020 between the May and Oct Interops.

• IVOA Roadmap for 2020A
  • Applications WG
  • Data Access Layer WG
  • Data Model WG
  • Grid and Web Services WG
  • Registry WG
  • Semantics WG
  • Data Curation & Preservation IG
  • Education IG
  • Knowledge Discovery IG
  • Operations IG
  • Radio IG
  • Solar System IG
  • Theory IG
  • Time Domain IG
  • Standard and Processes
  • Science Priorities

Applications_WG

Standards

• VOTable 1.5
  • Would love to demonstrate that a new minor version can be turned around fairly quickly.
  • Begin discussion of existing issues (https://github.com/ivoa-std/VOTable/issues).
  • Continue improving contributors' comfort level with the change process within github.
• MOC 2.0: Work towards standardizing Space-Time MOCs (twiki page TBD).

Python

• Continue to engage with Astropy community
• Support open development in PyVO
• Maintain votable parsing in Astropy core
  • Includes supporting VOTable 1.4

HiPS

• With other WGs, discuss metadata and integration with other standards.
• Continue to encourage HiPS providers to declare their services in the VO registry according to the HiPS Standard.

Data Access Layer WG

• DataLink-1.1
  • WD in progress
  • a few issues to solve
    • RFC6570 for templated endpoints to be further investigated
  • RFC by Fall or end 2020
• ADQL-2.1
  • still a few issues to go
    • UDF Catalogue EN to connect to
  • PR, RFC by Fall 2020
  • REC by end 2020
• DALI-1.2
  • need to identify timing
  • should be aligned with ADQL-2.1
    • ADQL "REGION" dependency on DALI
• ConeSearch-1.1 [in connection with TD IG]
  • WD to be released with current status and TIME parameter addition
    • latest updates already available on GitHub
  • align/submit issues on GitHub repo
  • progress WD in summer and by Fall 2020
• ObsLocTAP recommendation path is now under DM WG
  • PR-1.0 available and RFC started
• ObjVisSAP
  • WD-1.0 available
  • follow up for PR in Fall 2020?
• ProvTAP / ProvSAP
  • ProvTAP progress slowed down
  • ProvSAP idle
• TAPRegExt [in connection with Registry WD]
  • started move to GitHub repo
  • revision in view of the "caproles" discussion
• SIAP-2.0 / SODA-1.0
  • gathering feedback also from PyVO implementations
• SLAP-2.0
  • this specification is now stopped waiting for a possibly different solution
    • if VAMDC XSAMS to VO modelling works it will be dropped and fit in a *TAP solution
    • else it will be resumed and follow SSLDM-2.0

Data Model WG

• MCT:

  • Meas/Coords ready for RFC2
  • Transf ready to go in RFC once Coord is frozen
• Source Model (CAB-MSD)
  • Ongoing work in the model spec
  • Ongoing work in the mapping spec
  • Both model and mapping to be tested on more data (Vizier Chandra XMM)
• PhotDMv1-1
  • Must be modified to be serialized in VODML
• SSLDM2
  • RFC process: model to be dropped if a TAP/CAMDC based solution can work.

Grid_and_Web_Services_WG

Auth and Authz: * New SSO version, Working draft by October 2020:

• • Describe approach for obtaining token credentials (SSO)
  • Describe approach for validating token credentials (SSO)
  • Define an IVOA "Realm" and how it determines the scope of services for which a token is applicable. (SSO)
• Implement OAuth in TAP
• Group Membership Service move to PR and it has two reference implementations: CADC and IA2
• Credential Delegation protocol: introduce delegation based on token.

• Encouraged groups to use Kubernetes. Data centres will be running services as containers. Natural step to run user code in containers. Standards after more experience.
• Encouraging remote executing prototypes with containers. What infrastructure and information did you need? What problems did you face?
• Describe POSIX access to a platform. New VOResource Interface Type?
• Encourage collaboration. Share knowledge, code and resources with similar institutes. Organic convergence.

Registry WG

Operations:

• Ongoing validation: check all registry contents for standards validation and consistency
• Encourage takeup of altIdentifier information, especially DOIs, and consistent facility/instrument metadata, across publishing registries
• Facilitate creation and updates of VOResource versions of standards records as we update the GitHub repository, and provide them to the Registry of Registries

• Continue work on VODataService 1.2, especially regarding MOCs in the registry
• Explore registration for HiPS nodes
• "Caproles" revisions: collaborate with DAL on TAPRegExt revisions, make supporting changes in base Registry standards as required

Semantics WG

In Semantics, we will push ahead Vocabularies in the VO 2.0, aiming for RFC around the Granada interop. We believe the document now is essentially sound, and so the main challenge will be to gain sufficient implemenation uptake. We will try to engage authors of VOTable and VOResource validators, to extend the pyVO datalink client to take into account the term hierarchy, and to perhaps provide an ADQL user defined function that will allow the use of simple semantics in query expansion.

We will also work with the Registry WG on resolving the open question of what "use the Unified Astronomy Thesaurus" means for VOResource 1.1, aming for an Erratum to VOResource and perhaps some sort of agreement between the operators of RegTAP services on how to speed up the adoption of UAT use in the Registry.

Our ongoing activities include assistence in producing Vocabularies 2-style vocabulary enhancement proposals and moderating discussions, and maintaining the UCD controlled vocabulary.

Data Curation Preservation IG

Education IG

• IAU 367: Education and Heritage in the Era of Big Data in Astronomy
• Release of the ESASky in Chinese

Knowledge Discovery IG

Operations IG

• Service monitoring:
  • PADC, Euro-VO to continue bulk validation/monitoring, present weather reports at next Interop
  • Follow up common/persistent validation failures, consider whether Errata/changes are required to standards
• Validator curation:
  • Monitor availability of validator software for existing and new standards and versions (IvoaValidatorsSummary)
• Keep an eye on Science Platform operational issues
• Provide a forum for discussion of operational issues at and between interops

Radio IG

• 2nd telecon planned for Sept/Oct (following first one in eary July) to discuss an implementation note for radio data in the VO, a possible VO workshop for software developers from radio astronomy archives, and common needs of the various types of radio data in the VO environment (visibility data, single dish data, pulsar observations etc...Obviously one of these common needs is related to provenance).
• K. Lutz (CDS) is leading a proposal for a radio data BoF session at ADASS.

Solar System IG

• Publish EPN-TAP working draft

Theory IG

Time Domain

• ConeSearch-1.1: see DAL
• TimeSeries: Need to make few modifications in particular to relax a parameter (optional instead of mandatory). Get it promoted to an endorsed note and hosted in the ivoa-std repository.
• ST-MOC next steps: working on the draft towards std -> should be exposed sometime before next interop.
• VOEvent: Navigate Baptiste's changes to VOEvent through the review process and get it accepted as a new version.

Standard and Processes

Science Priorities