|
|
Support from NAIF
The SPICE tools, generic kernels, mission operations kernels for those
missions where NAIF has a funded ops role, and kernels archived at the
NAIF node of the PDS, are freely available to all.
However, assistance from
the NAIF staff in using these products, including solving user problems that
seem related to SPICE, is restricted to those activities where the NAIF group is
funded to supply such support. While NAIF would prefer to provide
unlimited support to everyone, we simply haven't the human resources to do
so. What we can do is the following.
- Under NASA Planetary Data System funding NAIF staff can provide modest
consultation to individual professional scientists who are using archived SPICE kernels
and Toolkit software in pursuit of planetary science data analysis funded by
NASA's Planetary Science Division.
- NAIF can provide a SPICE Archive Guide
and some tools and examples useful to someone who will be preparing
a NASA Planetary Science Division flight project's SPICE
archive. NAIF will conduct a peer review of archive submitals from the flight
project. Once the data set has passed per review NAIF will ingest it and make it
available to the worldwide planetary science community from the NAIF Node of the
Planetary Data System. NOTE: this service does not provide for instuction on the production
or validation of SPICE kernels.
- When hired by a flight project to deploy and operate SPICE capabilities,
NAIF staff provides SPICE-related support to flight team scientists and engineers associated
with that flight project.
- NASA has provided funding for NAIF to consultate on SPICE-related issues
for ESA's Mars Express, Venus Express and Rosetta missions.
- NAIF's more-or-less annual SPICE training classes are free and open to all professionals.
A table summarizing those flight projects and other endeavors for which
NAIF staff are currently funded to provide help can be viewed
here (PDF format).
Any flight project or other activity that wishes to consider hiring NAIF,
whether to configure, deploy and operate some level of the SPICE capability,
or to simply provide a consulting service for others who are implementing SPICE,
should contact the NAIF manager.
Links providing additional support information are provided
here.
|
