A Tale Of 160 Scientists, Three Applications, A Workshop and A Cloud

TL;DR

This paper describes a workshop where 160 scientists used cloud-based open source tools to analyze exoplanet light curves from the Kepler mission, enhancing research capabilities in planetary system studies.

Contribution

It introduces a cloud-based approach to hands-on exoplanet data analysis workshops, demonstrating scalable and accessible training for researchers.

Findings

Successful deployment of analysis tools on Amazon Elastic Cloud 2

Engagement of 160 scientists in practical exoplanet research techniques

Enhanced accessibility of exoplanet data analysis methods

Abstract

The NASA Exoplanet Science Institute (NExScI) hosts the annual Sagan Workshops, thematic meetings aimed at introducing researchers to the latest tools and methodologies in exoplanet research. The theme of the Summer 2012 workshop, held from July 23 to July 27 at Caltech, was to explore the use of exoplanet light curves to study planetary system architectures and atmospheres. A major part of the workshop was to use hands-on sessions to instruct attendees in the use of three open source tools for the analysis of light curves, especially from the Kepler mission. Each hands-on session involved the 160 attendees using their laptops to follow step-by-step tutorials given by experts. We describe how we used the Amazon Elastic Cloud 2 to run these applications.