The International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA) was formed in June 2002 with a mission to "facilitate the international coordination and collaboration necessary for the development and deployment of the tools, systems and organizational structures necessary to enable the international utilization of astronomical archives as an integrated and interoperating virtual observatory." The IVOA now comprises 20 VO programs from Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Europe, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Italy, Japan, Russia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and the United States and inter-governmental organizations (ESA and ESO). Membership is open to other national and international programs according to the IVOA Guidelines for Participation.

The IVOA focuses on the development of standards and encourages their implementation for the benefit of the worldwide astronomical community. Working Groups are constituted with cross-program membership in those areas where key interoperability standards and technologies have to be defined and agreed upon. The Working Groups develop standards using a process modeled after the World Wide Web Consortium, in which Working Drafts progress to Proposed Recommendations and finally to Recommendations. Recommendations may ultimately be endorsed by the Virtual Observatory Working Group of Commission 5 (Astronomical Data) of the International Astronomical Union. The IVOA also has Interest Groups that discuss experiences using VO technologies and provide feedback to the Working Groups. Ad-hoc and permanent committees deal with specific scientific and procedural topics. Interaction with other scientific disciplines interested in data inter-operability is also pursued through dedicated Liaison Groups.

Senior representatives from each national and international member VO program form the IVOA Executive Committee. A chair is chosen from among the representatives and serves an eighteen-month term, normally preceded by an eighteen-month term as deputy chair. The Executive Committee meets 3-4 times a year (also by teleconference) to discuss goals, priorities, and strategies. Executive Committee members represent their respective programs and are expected to be in a position to commit resources targeted at the achievement of common goals. Decisions by the IVOA Executive Committee are reached by consensus.

The IVOA holds two Interoperability Workshops each year typically in May and October. These meetings are opportunities for the IVOA Groups and Committees to have face-to-face discussions.

May 2010

 

---

Additional Information:

• The IVOA (R. J. Hanisch & P. J. Quinn)
• IVOA Guidelines for Participation (R. J. Hanisch, P. J. Quinn, D. De Young, P. Padovani, F. Pasian)
• IVOA Technical Architecture (C. Arviset, S. Gaudet & the IVOA Technical Coordination Group
• A Discussion Paper for the OECD Global Science Forum (P. J. Quinn & A. Lawrence & R. J. Hanisch)
• Documents and Standards
• Training Materials and Presentations

Technical milestones:

• Statement & Roadmap 2002-2005
• Status Report 2005
• The IVOA in 2005: Assessment and Future Roadmap
• The IVOA in 2006: Assessment and Future Roadmap
• The IVOA in 2007: Assessment and Future Roadmap
• The IVOA in 2008: Assessment and Future Roadmap
• The IVOA in 2009: Technical Assessment and Roadmap