SCHOOL OF INFORMATION UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

The UARC/SPARC Experience:1993 - 2002

Peter A. Knoop, Dan Atkins, Gary Olson, Tom Finholt, Joseph, Hardin, Terry Weymouth, Farnam Jahanian, Atul Prakash, Bob

Clauer, Tim Killeen

School of Information and Department of Geological SciencesUniversity of Michigan

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Aurora image

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The Community

Space physicists Concentrated in N. America and Europe

(approx. 300 researchers) Affiliated with the American

Geophysical Union– space physics and aeronomy sub-division

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Description: System Goals

– Real-time remote control of instruments– Access to archival and real time data– Communication with remote colleagues

Evolution– Organized campaigns– Impromptu campaigns and monitoring

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Description: History

UARC v.5 (pre-web era)– NeXTstep-based system, 1992-97

UARC v.6– java applet-based system, 1996-98

SPARC– Web-based, thin client system, 1999 -

present

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UARC 5.0 interface

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UARC 6.0 interface

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Early SPARC interface

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Current SPARC Interface

Live demo! http://sparc-1.si.umich.edu/sparc/central

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Description: Funding

UARC (IRI 9216848)– cooperative agreement between Michigan

and NSF CISE & ATM– approximately $800 K per year, 1992-97

SPARC (ATM 9873025)– KDI award from NSF CISE– approximately $500 K per year, 1997-01

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Description: Organization 14 investigators

– 3 computer science– 2 human-computer interaction– 9 space physics

15 students– 6 computer science– 6 human-computer interaction– 3 space physics

8 staff– 7 programmers– 1 system administrator

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Description: Incentives Funding

– scientists recruited through sub-contracts Recognition

– innovative system– highly visible to space science and computer

science communities Novel capabilities

– new ways of combining data– respond to opportunities (e.g., UCB sounding

rocket campaign)

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Data Sources and Characteristics

Observational and model Real-time and archival; dirty vs. clean Web-scrapping into flat files Access to community databases (e.g.,

CEDAR, CDAW)

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Access: Instruments

Observational– ground-based

• active– incoherent scatter radar (e.g., convection reversal

boundaries)– all-sky cameras (e.g., auroral morphology)– interferometry (e.g., winds)

• passive– riometry– magnetometer chains

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Access: Instruments (cont.)

Observational– space-based

• satellite imagery (UV and visible light)• shuttle imagery• sounding rockets

Theoretical– computational simulations

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Sondrestrom observatorySondrestrom, Greenland

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Instrument scope, 1993

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Instrument scope, 2001

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Technology involved 1992-97

– UARC v.5 built on NeXT machines, migrated to NeXTstep OS

1996-98– UARC v.6 built as java applets (MURAL), Web-

based 1998 to present

– SPARC built as thin client (e.g., HTTP), migrating toward CHEF-based system (e.g., portlet technology)

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Success and challenges Scientific

– first simultaneous real-time display of incoherent scatter radar chain (April, 1998)

– first combined real-time simulation and observation campaign (April, 1997)

– first archival campaign (December, 1993) Educational

– first student campaign (February, 1995) Future

– model for dozens of collaboratory efforts

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ISR Radar Chain

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Simulation and observational data

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Social network 2/95 campaign

Michigan

Scientist

Scientist

Student

Scientist

No one

Scientist

FloridaCalifornia B

California A

StudentSite crew

Greenland

Scientist

Engineer

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Total sessions per year

Arrival of web Internet usage

209

739

322

117

33

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

1993 1994 1995 1996 1997

Year

To

tal n

um

be

r o

f s

es

sio

ns

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Use of SPARC, 1999-2000

Date

14-APR-2000

24-MAR-2000

03-MAR-2000

11-FEB-2000

21-JAN-2000

31-DEC-1999

10-DEC-1999

19-NOV-1999

29-OCT-1999

08-OCT-1999

Nu

mb

er

of

scie

ntif

ic s

ess

ion

s30

20

10

0

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Simultaneous scientific useSeptember 22, 1999 - May 2, 2000

Date

19-APR-2000

29-MAR-2000

08-MAR-2000

16-FEB-2000

26-JAN-2000

05-JAN-2000

15-DEC-1999

24-NOV-1999

03-NOV-1999

13-OCT-1999

22-SEP-1999

Ho

urs

of

sim

ulta

ne

ou

s u

se

24

18

12

6

0

Y2K shutdown

Missing data

Fire in server building

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Date

19-APR-2000

29-MAR-2000

08-MAR-2000

16-FEB-2000

26-JAN-2000

05-JAN-2000

15-DEC-1999

24-NOV-1999

03-NOV-1999

13-OCT-1999

22-SEP-1999

Ho

urs

of

colla

bo

rativ

e u

se

24

18

12

6

0

Simultaneous scientific use with chatSeptember 22, 1999 - May 2, 2000

LTCS campaign Geophysical world days

Radar campaign

Workshop

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Shift in Usage Patterns

Campaigns Real-time monitoring Archival data access

– Island Community Networks (meta-data standards, XML, and Z39.50)

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Key findings, 2001 Some use of data intensive websites;

concentrated with core users No predominant community web or data

sites Scientists do not read core space

science journals on-line Low use of collaboration technologies

– Data conferencing– Videoconferencing

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For more information…

http://www.si.umich.edu/SPARC http://chefproject.org http://scienceofcollaboratories.org knoop@umich.edu