Standardisation of Data Formats in Gamma-ray Astronomy

TL;DR

This paper discusses the development and adoption of standardized data formats for gamma-ray astronomy, enabling open data and analysis tools for the Cherenkov Telescope Array and the broader scientific community.

Contribution

It presents the ongoing effort to define a prototypical high-level data format for gamma-ray astronomy, highlighting community consensus and practical implementations since 2016.

Findings

First public data releases using the standard format in 2018-2019

Successful application in testing analysis tools

Facilitated reproducible, multi-instrument studies

Abstract

The operation of the future Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA), the next generation of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs), as an Open Observatory requires data products and analysis tools to be accessible and usable by the scientific community. This requirement has impelled gamma-ray astronomers to develop open-source science tools and standardised data formats. The objective of this presentation is to provide a perspective on the current effort to define a prototypical format for high-level gamma-ray astronomical data. The initiative, started by the IACT community in 2016, has gained in the years 2018 and 2019 full recognition thanks to the first public data releases in such format by current-generation IACTs, followed by a series of papers employing it either to test the capabilities of open-source gamma-ray analysis tools or to showcase examples of reproducible, multi-instrument analysis.