1.4 The ROSAT Science Data Centres (RSDC)

 

 

Located at MPE, the German RSDC is the central interface between the     observatory and the other ROSAT Data Centres in the UK (RAL/Leicester),   the USA (GSFC/SAO) and the German WFC centre     (AIT). All data centres serve as direct contact points for the ROSAT user community in their countries.

Each of the data centres fulfills its special tasks within the project. For example the main activities of the German RSDC are briefly outlined here [Zimmermann et al.1986]:

• The centre provides organisational, editorial and technical support during the call for proposals and the proposal selection phases. It has full responsibility for the mission timeline production and the mission scheduling process.
• XRT instrument control and detailed checkout of all relevant XRT data are performed in real and near real time.
• The RSDC has full responsibility for the development and implementation of the SASS (Standard Analysis Software System) used at both the German and the US RSDC for the routine processing of all XRT data. The standard data processing guarantees a uniform calibration and provides observers with the results of a standard image and source analysis of each pointed observation.
• Sophisticated analysis software (EXSAS) is maintained and distributed by the centre to support users in the evaluation of ROSAT data at their home institutions or at the working facilities in the RSDC.
• The centre provides extended observer support, offering advice, documentation and other information services as well as maintaining the ROSAT Archives.

About 40 computers and work stations form the computational hardware basis for the 40 persons who are presently providing this service to the scientific community.