The Remote Telescope Markup Language (RTML) is an
XML
Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language and file format for storing, transmitting, and reconstructing arbitrary data. It defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a format that is both human-readable and machine-readable ...
dialect for controlling remote and/or
robotic
Robotics is an interdisciplinary branch of computer science and engineering. Robotics involves design, construction, operation, and use of robots. The goal of robotics is to design machines that can help and assist humans. Robotics integrate ...
telescope
A telescope is a device used to observe distant objects by their emission, absorption, or reflection of electromagnetic radiation. Originally meaning only an optical instrument using lenses, curved mirrors, or a combination of both to observ ...
s. It is used to describe various telescope parameters (such as
coordinates and
exposure time
In photography, shutter speed or exposure time is the length of time that the film or digital sensor inside the camera is exposed to light (that is, when the camera's shutter is open) when taking a photograph.
The amount of light that re ...
) to facilitate observation of selected targets. RTML instructions were designed to be displayed in a more human-readable way; they are then processed and executed by telescopes through local parsers.
It was created by
UC Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...
's
Hands-On Universe
Global Hands-On Universe (GHOU) is an educational program that enables students to investigate the Universe while applying tools and concepts from science, math, and technology. Using the Internet, GHOU participants request observations from an au ...
project in 1999.
Because of its XML structure and consequent flexibility readability, it is now widely used, and has become an international standard for astronomical imaging.
References
External links
* http://hou.lbl.gov/rtml/
* http://www.astro.physik.uni-goettingen.de/~hessman/RTML/
* http://www.handsonuniverse.org/
XML-based standards
Robotic telescopes
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