2025 Workshop: Planetary data open house
Ryan Dewey
Wen Li
Peter Delamere
Dan Gershman
Bob Marshall
Shannon Curry
This session assembles knowledgeable experts on planetary mission datasets (both in situ and remote observations) to provide expert advice on how to access, use, and interpret planetary magnetosphere and ionosphere datasets in an informal “open house” setting. The session will begin with a brief presentation on the Planetary Data System (PDS) before breaking out into groups. Each group will be organized about a single planetary system where the data experts are available to discuss data use topics with session attendees. Conversations will be led by attendee questions, e.g.: What datasets are available at a particular planet? Which mission(s) or instrument(s) should I focus on for a particular research topic? Are there features of this dataset I should be aware of before use? Attendees are welcome to move between groups and duck into & out of the session as needed. Conveners will organize the data experts and will advertise the session.
One of the most discussed topics at the Comparative Magnetospheres focus group sessions at mini-GEM 2024 was on the difficulty and confusion in finding and analyzing planetary datasets. Compared to CDAweb, Earth magnetospheric researchers found difficulty accessing planetary data and were unsure of who to contact with questions. To improve the community’s access to and understanding of these data, we propose an “open house” session with planetary data experts to answer community questions. These questions can be general (Which missions collected magnetosphere measurements at Mercury?) or specific (Is this particular squiggle in the data real or an instrumental effect?). By splitting the room up by planet and encouraging an informal atmosphere (compared to formal presentations on each planet/mission), we aim to empower community members to seek the information they need to research planetary magnetospheres and ionospheres.