KEYWORDS: Software development, Telescopes, Data modeling, Computer architecture, Control systems, Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes, Data acquisition, Data archive systems, Design, Cameras
The Astrophysics with Italian Replicating Technology Mirrors (ASTRI) Mini-Array is an international collaboration led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) and devoted to imaging atmospheric Cherenkov light for very-high γ-ray astrophysics, detection of cosmic-rays, and stellar Hambury-Brown intensity interferometry. The project is deploying an array of nine dual-mirror aplanatic imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes of 4-m class at the Teide Observatory on Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Based on SiPM sensors, the focal plane camera covers an unprecedented field of view of 10.5 deg in diameter. The array is most sensitive to γ-ray radiation above 1 up to 200 TeV, with an angular resolution of 3 arcmin, better than the current particle arrays, such as LHAASO and HAWC. We describe the overall software architecture of the ASTRI Mini-Array and the software engineering approach for its development. The software covers the entire life cycle of the Mini-Array, from scheduling to remote operations, data acquisition, and processing until data dissemination. The on-site control software allows remote array operations from different locations, including automated reactions to critical conditions. All data are collected every night, and the array trigger is managed post facto. The high-speed networking connection between the observatory site and the Data Center in Rome allows for ready data availability for stereoscopic event reconstruction, data processing, and almost real-time science products generation.
The ASTRI Mini-Array is an international project led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) aiming at building and operating an array of nine Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) at the Observatorio del Teide in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain). UVSiPM, a calibrated small photon counter working in the 280-900 nm wavelength range, is one of the auxiliary instruments of the ASTRI Mini-Array.
UVSiPM is mainly devoted to measure the level of night sky background during the ASTRI Mini-Array observations in the same energy range of the ASTRI cameras. It is composed of one single multi-pixel SiPM sensor (the same model adopted in the ASTRI Mini-Array Cherenkov cameras) coupled to an electronic chain working in single photon counting mode. The design of the optical system foresees a pin-hole mask equipped with a collimator to regulate the UVSiPM field of view. UVSiPM will be mounted on the external structure of one of the ASTRI Mini-Array telescopes and co-aligned with its camera. In addition, it will be used as a support instrument for the absolute end-to-end calibration of the ASTRI Mini-Array telescopes performed with the illuminator, a further auxiliary device devoted to perform the optical throughput calibration of each telescope of the array. Last but not least, UVSiPM can be used as diagnostic tool for the camera functionalities. In this contribution we present the overall design of the UVSiPM instrument and some preliminary results of its performance based on simulations.
ASTRI-Horn is an imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope developed by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), installed at the Serra La Nave Astronomical Station on Mount Etna (Italy). ASTRI-Horn detected the Crab proving the validity of its innovative camera and of the dual mirror configuration. Henceforth the telescope will play another important role. It will be the test bench for the upcoming cameras to be adopted for the ASTRI Mini-Array, a project led by INAF to build and operate an array of nine Cherenkov telescopes at the Observatorio del Teide (Tenerife, Spain). Moreover, the ASTRI-Horn camera will be used to test new technological solutions and explore innovative Cherenkov observation techniques. The Cherenkov camera uses Silicon-Photo Multiplier (SiPM) detectors. The fast front-end electronics implemented in the CITIROC ASIC is based on a custom peak-detector mode, which measures the electric pulses generated by the Cherenkov light flashes. The compact camera embeds all the components of a reliable thermal cooling system. This contribution gives a description of the upgrades of the ASTRI-Horn camera, which are the results of the lesson learnt during these years of sky observations. The improvements aim at correcting the drawbacks detected so far and at increasing the overall performance of the camera. The main ones are the increment of the power supplied to the photodetectors, the redesign of the Lids kinematic chain, a more efficient embedded calibration system, new control software routines and GUI.
KEYWORDS: Data modeling, Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes, Control systems, Software development, Telescopes, Data processing, Data archive systems, Data acquisition, Calibration, Computer architecture
The ASTRI Mini-Array is an international collaboration led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) and devoted to the imaging of atmospheric Cherenkov light for very-high gamma-ray astronomy. The project is deploying an array of 9 telescopes sensitive above 1 TeV. In this contribution, we present the architecture of the software that covers the entire life cycle of the observatory, from scheduling to remote operations and data dissemination. The high-speed networking connection available between the observatory site, at the Canary Islands, and the Data Center in Rome allows for ready data availability for stereo triggering and data processing.
The ASTRI Mini-Array is an international project led by INAF to construct and operate nine Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes with the scientific goals of studying several classes of objects possibly emitting at energies higher than some TeVs and of performing stellar intensity interferometry observations. The telescopes array will be installed at the Teide Observatory (Tenerife, Spain). A Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) software system will be developed to manage the ASTRI Mini-Array allowing its control remotely, from several locations. One of the most important components of the SCADA system is the Telescope Control System (TCS), i.e. the system responsible for the control and supervision of each telescope. The TCS includes several supervisor components, that interface with the telescope local control systems, the hardware and software that control the telescopes hardware devices such as the telescope mount drive systems and the Cherenkov camera, via the Open Platform Communications - Unified Architecture (OPC-UA) standard. These supervisors are then controlled by a telescope manager component responsible for the execution of the single telescope scientific and technical operations requested, orchestrated and synchronized centrally by the SCADA array central controller. This contribution describes the TCS architecture, design and development approach in the context of the general SCADA architecture and of the ALMA Common Software, the framework chosen for the development of all SCADA software of the ASTRI Mini-Array.
The ASTRI (Astrofisica con Specchi a Tecnologia Replicante Italiana) Project was born as a collaborative international effort led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) to design and realize an end-to-end prototype of the Small-Sized Telescope (SST) of the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) in a dual-mirror configuration (2M). The prototype, named ASTRI-Horn, has been operational since 2014 at the INAF observing station located on Mt. Etna (Italy). The ASTRI Project is now building the ASTRI Mini-Array consisting of nine ASTRI-Horn-like telescopes to be installed and operated at the Teide Observatory (Spain). The ASTRI software is aimed at supporting the Assembly Integration and Verification (AIV), and the operations of the ASTRI Mini-Array. The Array Data Acquisition System (ADAS) includes all hardware, software and communication infrastructure required to gather the bulk data of the Cherenkov Cameras and the Intensity Interferometers installed on the telescopes, and make these data available to the Online Observation Quality System (OOQS) for the on-site quick look, and to the Data Processing System (DPS) for the off-site scientific pipeline. This contribution presents the ADAS software architecture according to the use cases and requirement specifications, with particular emphasis on the interfaces with the Back End Electronics (BEE) of the instruments, the array central control, the OOQS, and the DPS.
The ASTRI Mini-Array is a project led by INAF to construct nine Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes in order to study gamma-ray sources emitting up to the multi-TeV energy band. These telescopes, which will be deployed at the Observatorio del Teide (Tenerife, Spain), will be based on the prototype ASTRI-Horn telescope, successfully tested since 2014 at the Serra La Nave Astronomical Station of the INAF Observatory of Catania. Each telescope will be equipped with the new version of the ASTRI Silicon Photo-Multiplier (SiPM) Cherenkov Camera. In order to monitor and control the different subsystems, a Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) system will be developed to manage a set of software components. Among them, the Cherenkov Camera Supervisor (CCS), a software subsystem of the Telescope Control System (TCS), is the software component to control each Cherenkov Camera. It realizes the interface between each Camera and the central SCADA software through the Alma Common Software (ACS). Furthermore, the CCS is based on the Open Platform Communications - Unified Architecture (OPC-UA) standard, in order to realize a client/server system. The server side is implemented in the software subsystem deployed on board the Camera, while the CCS contains the client side which uses the server services. This work presents the design and the technologies used to implement the CCS. It describes architecture and functionalities starting from the definition of the use cases and the system requirements. Moreover, the work reports the various phases of the CCS development.
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