MANGO 1.0: Proposed Recommendation: Request for Comments

In the VO world, there is a paradox: source data, which represent the basic building blocks of astronomers' work, is not modeled.
Astronomical sources and their measured data, the key to astronomers' work, have no dedicated IVOA data models yet.
This paradox can be explained by the multifaceted nature of observed source objects.

Generally, the way features of source data are described and organized depends on the targeted scientific objective.
Principal investigators and archive designers set up the data profile, structuring it according to their goals, which vary from one project to another.
Therefore, a single static data model cannot serve this diversity by describing a source item for all possible cases.

A global source model would lead to an overly complex and impractical solution.
This standard proposes overcoming this paradox by presenting a template model that gathers independent components embedded in a container on demand.
MANGO is not designed to describe what a source is, but rather to help clients discover and understand the quantities available for each source instance in a catalog.

In a list of sources — typically a catalog — each column has a meaning that can be associated with a property covered by MANGO.
Thus, MANGO helps build an upper description level for tabular query responses and homogenizes descriptions of relevant quantities.
The metadata already present in the table columns can be annotated using MIVOT to facilitate catalog comparison, discovery, and analysis.

Latest version of IVOASTANDARD can be found at:

  • URL link to the document

Reference Interoperable Implementations

The project contains 4 static files, shown as working examples located in PROJECT_HOME/implementations.
They cover most of the model features (see coverage table). In addition to this, we have 2 services (Vizier, XMM) providing annotated data compliant to MANGO DM.

The term "reference implementation" has never been clearly defined in the context of a model. In the case of MANGO, whose purpose is to restore complex quantities from tabular data, we provide static or dynamic VOtables, whose data are mapped onto MANGO using the Mivot schema. Additionally, we consider the Pyvo Mivot API to be another type of implementation.

Static Files

4 references files implementing most of the model features are provided within the implementations folder in the Git repository. The detail of the covered properties is givel by this table.

  • xtapdb:TAP query response on the 4XMMdr14 slim catalog. The VOTable has been annotated on the flight by the server.
    A link binding the postion with a quality flag has been added by hand.

    • file: xtapdb.xml
    • service: https://xcatdb.unistra.fr/xtapdb
    • query: SELECT TOP1 * FROM "public".mergedentry
    • format: application/x-votable+xml;content=mivot

  • Gaia:Vizier query response on the GAIA DR3 catalog. The VOTable has been annotated on by hand with the Pyvo MIVOT API.

    • file: gaia_with_mivot.xml
    • service: https://vizier.cds.unistra.fr/viz-bin/votable
    • query: see the mango:origin.QueryOrigin instance

  • datalink:Query on an Obscore table made to exercise the mapping on both Footprint and Datalink classes. The VOTable has been annotated on by hand on the project purpose.

    • file: datalink.xml
    • service: https://ws.cadc-ccda.hia-iha.nrc-cnrc.gc.ca/argus
    • query: SELECT TOP 1 ivoa.ObsCore.obs_id,ivoa.ObsCore.s_region,ivoa.ObsCore.access_url FROM ivoa.ObsCore

  • vizier_cs_I_239:Cone search response on the I/239 Vizier table. The VOTable has been annotated on the flight by the server.

    • file: vizier_cs_I_239.xml
    • service: https://cds/viz-bin/conesearch/V1.5/I/239/hip_main
    • query: RA=0&DEC=0&SR=0.5
The detail of the covered properties is given in the README file.

Services

There are two services in operation and serving data mapped on MANGO.

XTapDB (HE Data and Photometry)

A TAP service serving XMM catalogue (https://xcatdb.unistra.fr/xtapdb/) data (table mergedentry) has been deployed.

This service demonstrates the ability of MANGO to properly describe the following quantities

  • Coordinate systems (space, time imported from Coords DM)
  • Position at a given epoch
  • Photometric filters and calibration (imported from Phot DM)
  • Fluxes and hardness ratio
  • Quality flags
Only quiered quantities are annoated.

The service can be connected with Taphandle or by using curl (or any other client enable to set a specific format)):

  • url: https://xcatdb.unistra.fr/xtapdb/sync?LANG=ADQL&REQUEST=doQuery&QUERY=[QUERY]&FORMAT=application%2Fx-votable%2Bxml%3Bcontent%3Dmivot
  • query: SELECT TOP1 * FROM "public".mergedentry
  • format: application/x-votable+xml;content=mivot
  • example: copy this URL in your clipboard.

Vizier Endpoints

There are 2 Vizier services returning VOtable partially mapped on the EpochPosition MANGO property.

These services have been officially released in May 2025.

Python API

An important new module is being added to Pyvo. This module's purpose is to write and read Mivot annotations, with a particular focus on MANGO (see the doc).

  • Reader (since Pyvo 1.6):
    • Mivot annotations are rendered as dynamic Python objects that obey the model structure. This allows data to be explored through the model view.
    • If the data id mapped onto the EpochPosition property, this API can automatically extract SkyCoord instance.
  • Generic writer (since Pyvo 1.6):
    • Allows to build Mivot annotation element per element (attribute, instance, collection...). This API has been made for developpers to build mode user-friendly functionalities.
  • Mango writer (to be released with PyVO1.8)
    • Write coordinate frames (space, time ang photmétric calibration) that are part of Mago instances
    • Map data on EpochPosition, Brightness and Color properties. This is faciltated by a meta-data analizer included in the code.

Implementations Validator

VOTable whose data are mapped onto MANGO can be validated with mivot-validator:

The validator operates at 3 levels

  • Validation against the VOTable schema
  • Validation against the Mivot schema
  • Validation of the annoatation agans the models they refer to

Notre on the Repository

The process of building the document is very specific to the project. he workflow has been set up to make sure the diagrams keep in sync with the specified model.

  • The project is hosted by GitHub as a regular ivoa-std project
  • The working draft PDF is regularly udpdated
  • The descriptions of the model elements are stored in individual files located in PROJECT_HOME/vo-dml/desc.
    This allows for an easy update. It also delegates the latex escape character handling to the builder tool.
  • The table of content of the normative sections is given by PROJECT_HOME/utils/toc.json
  • The document is built by the PROJECT_HOME/utils/buildDoc.bash script:
    • Insert the description of all model elements in mango.vo-dml.xml and store the result in desc.mango.vo-dml.xml which is the model reference file.
    • Escape some characters to please to latex
    • Build the PROJECT_HOME/doc/model.tex file which contains the Latex of the model description (section 4).
      This step is achieved by the XSLT developed by M. Cresitello Dittmar.
    • Update the publication date
    • Build the pdf with the ivoatex tools
  • The PROJECT_HOME/mivot folder contains MIVOT snippets for the main classes.
    This allows contributors to figure out what the MIVOT annotation for MANGO could look like.
    These snippets have been generated with the mivot-validator package (available on pip)
Contributor Watchout: If you want to open a PR, please do not edit _PROJECT_HOME/doc/model.tex_ but the snippet files in PROJECT_HOME/vo-dml/desc and then run PROJECT_HOME/utils/buildDoc.bash.

A brief note details the process.

Comments from the IVOA Community during RFC/TCG review period: RFC_start_date - RFC_end_date

The comments from the TCG members during the RFC/TCG review should be included in the next section.

In order to add a comment to the document, please edit this page and add your comment to the list below in the format used for the example (include your Wiki Name so that authors can contact you for further information). When the author(s) of the document have considered the comment, they will provide a response after the comment.

Additional discussion about any of the comments or responses can be conducted on the WG mailing list. However, please be sure to enter your initial comments here for full consideration in any future revisions of this document

Comments from TCG member during the RFC/TCG Review Period: TCG_start_date - TCG_end_date

WG chairs or vice chairs must read the Document, provide comments if any (including on topics not directly linked to the Group matters) or indicate that they have no comment.

IG chairs or vice chairs are also encouraged to do the same, althought their inputs are not compulsory.

TCG Chair & Vice Chair

Applications Working Group

Data Access Layer Working Group

Data Model Working Group

Distributed Services & Protocols Working Group

Registry Working Group

Semantics Working Group

Data Curation & Preservation Interest Group

Education Interest Group

High Energy Interest Group

Knowledge Discovery Interest Group

Operations Interest Group

Radio Astronomy Interest Group

Solar System Interest Group

Time Domain Interest Group

Standards and Processes Committee

TCG Vote : Vote_start_date - Vote_end_date

If you have minor comments (typos) on the last version of the document please indicate it in the Comments column of the table and post them in the TCG comments section above with the date.

Group Yes No Abstain Comments
TCG        
Apps        
DAL        
DM        
DSP        
Registry        
Semantics        
DCP        
Edu        
KDIG        
Ops        
Radio        
SSIG        
TD        
<nop>StdProc        


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This topic: IVOA > Mango10RFC
Topic revision: r5 - 2025-05-28 - LaurentMichel
 
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