HEASARC offline database browser

hark is a command line tool that allows you to search part of the HEASARC archival database and download the data.

Tables from active missions are included in the package. It therefore does not need to connect to the HEASARC servers. The tool also provide functions that allow you to download data directly from the cloud on Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Installation

hark is a single binary file that can be installed with:

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/HEASARC/hark/gh/install.sh | sh

This will install the hark binary file in the folder in which the curl command was run. If you want to install it in another location instead, run:

curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/HEASARC/hark/gh/install.sh | sh -s -- --install-dir /my/custom/location/bin

Make sure the install location is in you $PATH variable. Then run: hark.

Usage

Once installed, type ? to print the help message:

hark> ?

hark: HEASARC archive offline explorer.

Commands
     list-tables: List supported tables
    list-columns: List columns of a table
     query-table: Query a specific table
    aws-download: Download data from AWS
      -----------
            help: Show help message (also: h, ?).
                  Use help command-name for command help
     self-update: Update hark to the latest version!
           about: About hark!
            exit: Exit (also: quit, q)

hark currently has four main commands:

  • list-tables to list the tables supported by the applications.
  • list-columns ... to list the names and descriptions of the columns in a given table.
  • query-table ...: Query a specific table using a circular search region centered at some RA,DEC position, with some radius.
  • aws-download ...: Download the data from the AWS. The passed URI is what you get when calling query-tables and requesting the data products.

Updates

The HEASARC observation tables are updated continuously. Since hark is an offline data explorer, it needs to be updated regularly to include the latest observations.

To update hark, run the self-update command inside hark. This command is available in version 0.1.250623 and above. If you have an older version, you can update it by running the install command again.

Examples

list-columns

  • List the default columns for the NICER master catalog: list-columns nicermastr

  • List all columns for the SWIFT master catalog: list-columns swiftmastr all

query-table

  • Query nicermastr around position 182.6,39.4 using the default radius: 

    query-table nicermastr 182.6,39.4

  • Query numaster around position 182.6,39.4 and radius 40 arcmin: 

    query-table numaster 182.6,39.4 40

  • Query numaster around position 182.6,39.4 for specific columns: 

    query-table numaster 182.6,39.4 ra,dec,name

  • Query numaster around position 182.6,39.4 for specific columns and add product links: 

    query-table numaster 182.6,39.4 ra,dec,name products

  • Query xmmmaster around position 182.6,39.4 for default columns and add product links: 

    query-table xmmmaster 182.6,39.4 products

aws-download

  • Download SWIFT obsid 000037258040: 
    aws-download s3://nasa-heasarc/swift/data/obs/2015_12/00037258040

FAQ

  • Can I search by source name?

    Currently this is not supported. You may want to use a name resolver like simbad to find the RA and DEC.

  • What units should I use?

    RA and DEC are in degrees. The radius is in arc minutes.

  • Is there any way to do a query-table from the command line and save the output?

    hark <<EOF > output.txt
query-table nicermastr 182.6,39.4
EOF

  • Why do I not see the most recent observations when I search in hark?

    The observation tables are updated continuously as observations are taken. Run the self-update command inside `hark` to check for and install the most recent features and table updates.