Astronomical Data Analysis Software & Systems XXXIV

DARTS Timescape: Exploring 50 Years of Space Science Data Through Interactive Visualization
2024-11-11 , Aula Magna

DARTS, the data archive operated by JAXA’s Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, provides a wide range of time series data obtained from space science missions over a period of 50 years. In this paper, we present the development of “DARTS Timescape”, a system designed to provide efficient access to these time series data and allow users to explore the vast temporal landscape of missions archived in DARTS.
To build this system, we utilized InfluxDB, an open-source time series database designed for fast, high-availability storage and retrieval of time series data. InfluxDB can be easily used as a data source in the likewise open-source tool Grafana to build an interactive web application for data visualization.
Users of DARTS Timescape can compare data from various space missions side by side, analyse long-term trends with data aggregation such as calculating averages, and more.
For demonstration purposes, we will present various datasets providing insights into lunar seismology, magnetospheric phenomena, and high-energy astrophysics, specifically:

  1. Apollo Lunar Seismic Data: This dataset includes seismic measurements from the Moon's surface, captured by instruments deployed during the Apollo missions from 1969 to 1977. These data illustrate the motion and geologic characteristics of the lunar surface.
  2. Arase, MAXI and CALET Magnetosphere Data: Observations from the Arase satellite (launched in December 2016), the Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI), and the Calorimetric Electron Telescope (CALET), the latter two being mounted on the International Space Station (ISS) since July 2009 and August 2015, respectively, provide data on relativistic electrons and plasma waves trapped in the Earth's magnetosphere. This data is crucial for advancing space weather research, enhancing our understanding of space environment dynamics and their impacts.
  3. MAXI X-ray Data: MAXI furthermore offers X-ray data from various celestial bodies, enhancing our understanding of high-energy phenomena in the universe.

By integrating these diverse datasets into a unified visualization platform, DARTS Timescape aims to facilitate comprehensive research and discovery across multiple domains of space science.