Structure
Paris Astronomical Data Centre (PADC) is an Observation Data and Service Centre (CDOS) certified by INSU / CNRS. Its purpose is to distribute ground-based, space borne and laboratory data of general interest, and to maintain and develop the savoir-faire about Virtual Observatory (VO) techniques to spread and promote these archives. In particular, it hosts and helps maintaining INSU-certified data services (ANO5) with VO interfaces.
PADC is also an Expertise Centre from Observatoire de Paris with focus on data access and availability.
Since 2023, PADC has been organized around three main components as defined in the ObsParis internal regulations:
- Directorate (direction): a director, a deputy director and a technical director are coordinating PADC activities. A contact point for Nançay station is associated to the direction.
- Science Committee (comité scientifique, CS): composed of the scientific managers of the INSU-certified data services based at Observatory of Paris, chaired by the director of PADC. It evaluates the requests from ObsParis personnels in the field of data accessibility, in answer to a biannual call. The Science Committee is supported by the technical managers of the data services and other personnels involved in data management and VO techniques; this includes the chairs of IVOA Working Groups and the coordinators of the five historical transverse activities in PADC: Education, Interoperability and Workflows, Hardware infrastructure, Mining and Automation, Nançay Data Centre. The CS can invite external experts to identify directions of future developments.
- Steering committee (comité de pilotage, CoPil): the goal of the steering committee is to discuss and possibly to reinforce the level of resources allocated to the data centre. The members of the CoPil are the directors of the laboratories and common services involved in PADC. This committee is chaired by the President of the Observatory of Paris.
In practice, the current CS replaces the previous Project committee (Groupe Projets, for evaluations) and Science Council (for prospective).
PADC maintains and develops a common hardware infrastructure usable by the data services, and shares the VO-related expertise acquired in various projects.
