Supporting FAIR Principles in the Astrophysics Community: the European Experience

TL;DR

This paper discusses the implementation of FAIR principles in astrophysics, emphasizing open standards and governance to improve data reusability, interoperability, and machine accessibility within the European scientific community.

Contribution

It provides an account of the European experience with FAIR principles, interoperable systems, and open governance in astrophysics, highlighting activities within the ESCAPE project.

Findings

Progress in adopting FAIR principles in astrophysics data management.

Development of interoperable systems aligned with EOSC architecture.

Promotion of open governance to support open standards and community participation.

Abstract

FAIR principles have the intent to act as a guideline for those wishing to enhance the reusability of their data holdings and put specific emphasis on enhancing the ability of machines to automatically find and use the data, in addition to supporting its reuse by individuals. Interoperability, one core of these principles, especially when dealing with automated systems' ability to interface with each other, requires open standards to avoid restrictions that negatively impact the user's experience. Open-ness of standards is best supported when the governance itself is open and includes a wide range of community participation. In this contribution we report our experience with the FAIR principles, interoperable systems and open governance in astrophysics. We report on activities that have matured within the ESCAPE project with a focus on interfacing the EOSC architecture and Interoperability Framework.