A User's Guide to the Batch Request Format of CATS The query form has to begin with the keyword "CATS" at the beginning of a line and to finish with the line starting "CATS END". Each line is interpreted as a command unless it starts with a '%' symbol, which denotes a comment. Each line may contain several commands with their arguments, and may be separated by either space(s), a tabulation, a comma, '=' (equal sign) or carriage return . An exception to this rule is the command 'SOURCES' indicating the beginning of a table of source parameters to be queried. This command must be the last or single on a line. Similarly, the table of sources is terminated by a line starting with any valid command. Therefore it is forbidden to use a sequence of symbols as a name prefix of a source inside of a table, which at the same time also forms a standard command. The default search window is a circle. If the parameter "BOX" is set after a comma, the search will be done in a rectangular box. The units of the circle radius or the box side can be following (written as) : sec or arcsec (default), min or arcmin, a symbol ' (arcmin) or a symbol " (arcsec). All these units are angular (not temporal). The formats of window size can be following: window box x=12",y=3.2' - box of size 12arcsec x 3.2arcmin (RA x DEC) window box 3' - box of size 3' x 3' window circle 3' - circle with radius of 3' window ellipse x=15",y=3' - ellipse with half-axes 15arcsec and 3arcmin All commands are case-insensitive. General commands: ============================================================================= HELP - Get this document and List Catalogs-Names ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- CATS - Type of search arguments: (default) SELECT - Selection by parameters (e.g. by RA) MATCHing - Find counterpart END -\ STOP - End of input FINISH -/ LIST - List of catalogs arguments: (Only the first character is enough) (default) All - All available catalogs Radio - All radio catalogs Infra-red - All catalogs of Infra-Red sources Objects - Catalogs of mixed or optical objects X-ray - X-Ray catalogs ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- OUTput - Type of result output: arguments: INITIAL -\ NATIVE - Native format of catalogs string (default) TABLE - Formatted table FITS - FITS-format (default) EQUATORIAL - Table of equatorial coordinates of sources GALACTIC - Table of galactic coordinates of sources (default) SORT - Enable to sort by Right Ascension order FSORT - Enable to sort by Frequency order NOSORT - Disable to sort COMPRESS -\ (default) GZIP - Compress output file with gzip-programm ZIP -/ NOCOMPRESS -\ NOGZIP - Disable to compress NOZIP -/ (default) UUENCODE - Use "uuencode" before mailing MIME - "mmencode" with base64 SHIP - or "ship" SIZE - Maximum size of file for output, value in Kbytes default value: 250K NAME - User defined output file name for uuencode, value - character string without any blanks. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EPOCH - Equinox of coordinates EQUINOX -/ value: integer (default) 1950 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CATALOGs - Types or Names of select catalogs: arguments: (Only the first characters is enough) (default) All - All available catalogs Radio - All radio catalogs Infra-red - All catalogs of Infra-Red sources Objects - Catalogs of mixed or optical objects X-ray - X-Ray catalogs or ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RA < > - Right ascension limits arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ (default) CENTER possible format values: 12h35m54s or 12 35 54.0 or 12:35:54 or 12h35'54" or float format on hours: 12.583 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- DEClination < > - Declination limits arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ (default) CENTER possible format values: 12d35m54s or 12 35 54.0 or 12:35:54 or 12d35'54" or float format on degrees: 12.583 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- GLON < > - Galactic longitude limits arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ (default) CENTER ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- GLAT < > - Galactic latitude limits arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ (default) CENTER possible format values: 12d35m54s or 12 35 54.0 or 12:35:54 or 12d35'54" or float format on degrees: 12.583 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- FLUX < > Flux density limits in mJy arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ value: float (default) nolimits ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- SPIndex < > - Spectral index limits arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ value: float (default) nolimits ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- FREQuency < > - Frequency limits in MHz arguments: MIN -\ Minimum value > -/ MAX -\ Maximum value < -/ value: float (default) nolimits ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- WINDOW <
<<[argument] value> <[argument] value>>> - Search window (Only for matching) forms: (default) CIRCLE - Circle (only one value is permitted) BOX - Box with half-sizes ELLIPSE - Ellipse with half-axes arguments: X - Radius (or half size of BOX) along RA Y - Radius (or half size of BOX) along DEC value: float possible format of arcmin and arcsec values: 35' or 35.0m or 5.4" or 54s ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOURCEs: - Beginning of sources list (Only for matching) ... % An example of sources Table: % object_1 02h02m01.2s 31d47m15 1950 object_2 12 35 54 13 47 15 1950 object_3 12:35:54 13:47:15 2000 object_4 123.45678 -5.4321 2000 % % The name must not have any blanks. Length of string must less of 80 characters. If the values of RA / DEC in a row in angular degrees, the presence of the last column (equinox) is mandatory (the row with "object_4"). In the old notations 1950 be implied as default. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- LOG - Switch to Log: arguments: (default) ON - Include full protocol to Log-Mail OFF - Log-Mail with syntax report only ============================================================================ The resulting output is provided in the same formats as in the other forms of access to CATS, namely: the usual table format, the FITS TABLE format, and PostsScript for figures. All of them may be delivered in compressed or non-compressed forms. A binary format of output data (e.g. when compression was requested) is first transformed to ASCII by one of the standard UNIX convertors which may be selected by the user (uuencode, mime or ship) and then sent to the user's address with the operations report. It is possible to specify a maximum size of an email returned to the user. When errors occur, the report consists of a protocol of the automatic analyzer of the requested operations, including instructions with syntax rules for the CATS batch request via e-mail. To avoid infinite email loops, e.g. when illegal return addresses were given, or when a reply is impossible, requests will not be processed for "users" with names uucp, root, Mailer-Daemon, etc. 1) A simple example of the mail letter with the 'selection' task: mail -s "" cats@sao.ru cats select ra min=12:30 max=12:40:15. dec > 0 < 5' 46" catalogs r epoch=1950 flux > 0.5 out ship, size=50 cats end 2) A simple example of the mail letter with the 'matching' task: mail -s "" cats@sao.ru cats match catalogs a window box x=30" y=20' sources: s1 02:02:00 +31:23:16 1950 s2 02:23:10 34:03:00 1950 s3 21:26:33.9 -18:34:33.0 1950 cats end