[task #16127] Script to view FITS files with DS9 or TopCat based on contents

[Mohammad Akhlaghi]

URL:
  <https://savannah.gnu.org/task/?16127>

                 Summary: Script to view FITS files with DS9 or TopCat based
on contents
                 Project: GNU Astronomy Utilities
            Submitted by: makhlaghi
            Submitted on: Sun 20 Feb 2022 10:00:18 AM UTC
         Should Start On: Sun 20 Feb 2022 12:00:00 AM UTC
   Should be Finished on: Sun 20 Feb 2022 12:00:00 AM UTC
                Category: Installed scripts
                Priority: 5 - Normal
              Item Group: Enhancement
                  Status: Postponed
                 Privacy: Public
        Percent Complete: 0%
             Assigned to: None
             Open/Closed: Open
         Discussion Lock: Any
                  Effort: 0.00

    _______________________________________________________

Details:

In the Gnuastro book appendix, we currently (as of version 0.16) have the
Viewing multi-extension FITS images
<https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/manual/html_node/Viewing-multiextension-FITS-images.html>
section that describes how Gnuastro users can add a '.desktop' file to their
environment to automatically opening DS9 when double clicking on a FITS file.

Recently, with the initiative of Sepideh Eskandarlou, we have moved that
script to the 'bin/scripts/' directory of Gnuastro and expanded it: 1) it (and
the suggested '.desktop' file) can now take multiple files and open them as
different frames in DS9. 2) If there are no images in the FITS file, the
script will call TopCat to view the table contents of the FITS file.

Since the script can benefit a lot from testing by interested users, I will be
merging it into the 'master' branch and including it in the tarballs. It will
also be mentioned in the Viewing multi-extension FITS images
<https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/manual/html_node/Viewing-multiextension-FITS-images.html>
section. However, it will not yet be installed automatically. Any interested
user will have to manually copy it and make necessary modifications

The main issues with the script are (that need to be fixed before installing
it automatically):

* Automatically find user's screen resolution and set DS9's geometry to
automatically fit that resolution.
* Get the configuration options (including DS9's geometry) from the
command-line (right now they have to be typed in the source manually before
installation).
* Decrease the calls to 'astfits', only one call should be enough.
* After the above have been done, add documentation (most of the basic text is
already written in the current Viewing multi-extension FITS images
<https://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/manual/html_node/Viewing-multiextension-FITS-images.html>.




    _______________________________________________________

Reply to this item at:

  <https://savannah.gnu.org/task/?16127>

_______________________________________________
  Message sent via Savannah
  https://savannah.gnu.org/