AfAS 2024 PANOPTES Workshop
ℹ️ Note that a Google account is required to use Colab.
| Notebook | Description | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Stack Observation | Demonstrates how to search for and download PANOPTES data as well as perform some simple image stacking. |  |
Monitoring the variable sky with wide angle robotic imaging: PANOPTES data reduction workshop
PANOPTES (Panoptic Astronomical Networked Observatories for a Public Transiting Exoplanets Survey) is a citizen science project that empowers students and citizen scientists to build, maintain, and operate a global network of fully automated, low-cost robotic telescopes for surveying the night sky in search of transiting exoplanets. These robotic telescopes operate in survey mode, using DSLR cameras to capture the night sky with a wide field of view spanning 15x10 degrees and a resolution of 10 arcseconds.
The project's primary objective is to combine data from all PANOPTES units within the network to detect both short and long-period transiting exoplanets. Moreover, given the cadence and coverage, data collected by a PANOPTES unit can also be used to study variable stars, asteroids, comets, and more. PANOPTES is both an automated exoplanet search project and an efficient survey for variable/transient events.
This hands-on workshop will provide an overview of PANOPTES data, and demonstrate how to access and analyze it using short working examples. All PANOPTES data is publicly accessible through a web-based data explorer. The workshop will cover beginner-level data analysis as a starting point for students, educators, and citizen scientists. Using Python notebooks, we will demonstrate how to access the raw imaging data, search for observations with target names or coordinates as a criterion, retrieve image metadata, download the corresponding FITS files, and co-add and differentiate the images to look for transient events.
We will also engage in brainstorming sessions with workshop participants to generate research project ideas that may evolve into collaborative efforts among participants, including student-led projects.