The SPACIOUS Kick-off meeting took place on 23-24 January at the ICCUB premises in the Physics Faculty of the University of Barcelona, focusing on establishing the project’s direction and priorities and timeline. The agenda covered a wide range of topics from administrative details to technical discussions.
The event began with introductions and practical information, followed by a presentation by the European Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA). Administrative guidelines were reviewed, and a comprehensive planning session addressed hiring, development timelines, meetings, and anticipated challenges.
Computational resources were a key focus, with detailed discussions on cloud services at BSC, on experience acquired with the deployment of the UK Gaia data mining platform, and the challenges of scaling to accommodate large data sets and numerous users. Experiences with commercial cloud deployments were shared.
The importance of SPACIOUS Science and outreach were underscored. Videoconferences were held with ESA and the External Advisory Board to align SPACIOUS Science and Technology with ESA and the scientific community at large.
This kick-off set a clear direction for SPACIOUS, ensuring a collaborative and focused approach to achieving its objectives in astrophysical research and big data exploitation.
The meeting concluded with a discussion and prioritisation of actions. The kick-off set a clear roadmap for the SPACIOUS project’s journey ahead.
