The HTN Workshop

[Alasdair Allan]

The Heterogeneous Telescope Networks (HTN) Workshop
FINAL CALL for Registration

The Southgate Hotel, Exeter, United Kingdom
18th - 21 July 2005

THIS IS THE FINAL CALL FOR REGISTRATION WHICH WILL CLOSE ON THE 30TH OF 
APRIL. IF YOU HAVE NOT REGISTERED AND WISH TO ATTEND THE WORKSHOP, 
PLEASE REGISTER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. ADDITIONALLY, IF YOU HAVE 
REGISTERED AND HAVE NOT YET PROVIDED AN ABSTRACT YOU MUST DO SO SOON.

Aims

  * Set standards for interoperability for robotic telescope networks
  * Set standards for interoperability with the VO for event notification
  * Work towards an e-market for the exchange of telescope time

Topics for Discussion

  * Topics currently scheduled for discussion include:
  * Quantifying availability in a telescope neutral manner
  * Dynamically scheduling observations between telescopes
  * A standard "minimum" interface for a networked telescope
  * Brokering the exchange of telescope time via a e-market
  * Brokering of event alerts to and from the Virtual Observatory
  * How adaptive dataset planning may affect sheduling
* The differences between telescope and database interfaces
  * Agent architectures and machine learning for observing

Website

The workshop website can be found at  http://htn-workshop2005.ex.ac.uk/

The Workshop

The aim of the workshop is to make real progress towards standards for 
interoperability between the existing proprietary robotic, and 
non-robotic, telescope networks. Additionally to define standards for 
interoperability with the emerging Virtual Observatory (VO) 
infrastructre for event notification. As such the number of people 
attending will be intentionally kept small, and total numbers will be 
limited to between 30 and 40 people.

There is NO CHARGE for conference registration or attendance, and lunch 
and refreshments will be provided free of charge throughout the 
conference.

The workshop will be held in the cathedral city of Exeter in the U.K. 
between the 18th and 21st of July 2005. There will be no charge for 
conference registration or attendance.

Format

Each delegate representing an interested project or group will be 
expected to present a talk of about half an hour, describing the status 
of their project. These talks will be followed by architectural 
discussions, and breakout sessions.

Location

The workshop will be held in the 4 star Southgate Hotel 
(http://www.southgate-hotel.co.uk/) which is only a few minutes from 
the centre of the historic city of Exeter . Built in 1989, in the 
Georgian Style, the Southgate occupies a commanding position in the 
heart of the city. Situated next to the city walls and close to the 
cathedral, the hotel benefits from ample free car parking.

Exeter, with its stunning 12th century cathedral 
(http://www.exeter-cathedral.org.uk/) is a fascinating city in which to 
base yourself to explore the South Devon Coast, Dartmoor 
(http://www.dartmoor-npa.gov.uk/) and the many local attractions, or 
for taking a day trip to The Eden Project (http://www.edenproject.com/) 
near St. Austell.

The Southgate itself offers a wide range of leisure facilities 
including; a heated indoor swimming pool,  whirlpool spa, saunas, 
solarium  and an air-conditioned gymnasium all of which which will be 
made available free of change for delegates staying at the hotel.

Registration

Please see the workshop website at 
http://htn-workshop2005.ex.ac.uk/registration.html for details of how 
to register. Registration will close on the 30TH APRIL 2005.

Accommodation

The LOC has arranged a conference discounted rate of £98 per night with 
the Southgate Hotel for the duration of the conference. However there 
are many other places to stay in Exeter and a selection is available on 
the conference web site.

Network Access

The Southgate offers free WiFi network access in its lounge areas. 
Network access for the conference areas has be arranged separately by 
the LOC but will be also be wireless.

It is not anticipated that wired access will be available during the 
conference. However a small number of wireless cards may be available 
for attendees without access to borrow for the duration of the 
conference.

If anyone is concerned about the availability of network access please 
mail Alasdair Allan <aa at astro.ex.ac.uk> and I'll try my best to 
accommodate your needs.

Funding

Some funding may be available to support people wishing to attend, 
please mail Alasdair Allan <aa at astro.ex.ac.uk> for more details. Please 
be aware that funding is very limited, and all funding decisions will 
be made by the LOC at the close of the registration process.

Organisation

The local organising committee (LOC) consists of,

Tim Naylor <timn at astro.ex.ac.uk>
Alasdair Allan <aa at astro.ex.ac.uk>
Eric Saunders <saunders at astro.ex.ac.uk>

The science organising committee (SOC) consists of,

Tim Naylor <timn at astro.ex.ac.uk>
Alasdair Allan <aa at astro.ex.ac.uk>
Iain Steele <ias at astro.livjm.ac.uk>
Rick Hessman <hessman at astro.physik.uni-goettingen.de>
Robert White <rwhite at lanl.gov>
Anuradha Koratkar <koratkar at umbc.edu>

This workshop was funded by an EPSRC grant for "Links to International 
e-Science Sister Projects", which was obtained in a joint proposal 
between eSTAR and Robonet-1.0 Projects in the United Kingdom, the MONET 
Project in Europe, the RAPTOR Project (Los Alamos Laboratory) and SGM 
Project (NASA Advanced Architectures and Automation Group) in the 
United States.