Transient Explorer

What am I looking at?

Every night the Rubin (LSST) and ZTF telescopes image the sky and flag anything that changed since last time: a supernova going off, a star flaring, an asteroid passing through. Each flag is an alert. The Fink broker classifies them, and this site shows what they are and where. Transients the two surveys miss, reported by others to the Transient Name Server, are here too.

Sources

  • ZTF and Rubin: objects the surveys alerted on. Each detection is an alert, with the broker's classification, a reliability score and three image cutouts.
  • TNS: transients reported to the Transient Name Server that neither survey alerted on, among them nearly every bright one south of −30°, which ZTF cannot see. Each detection is a report: the magnitudes reported to TNS (the discovery, and any later ones), each in its reporter's filter, then ATLAS's measurements (c and o bands) for two months while it is brighter than 19. A nova or CV brighter than 14 also gets AAVSO's observers' V for two months: the median of a sample of each night's observations (the tooltip says of how many). Reported by names the surveys (ATLAS, GOTO, Pan-STARRS, …). When ZTF or Rubin later alerts on one, it becomes their object.
  • CBAT: reports on the Central Bureau's Transient Object Confirmation Page that neither the surveys nor TNS have, mostly bright Galactic novae (PNV J…) and dwarf novae in outburst (TCP J…). An object that matches a TOCP entry shows its designation.
  • ASAS-SN: discoveries on the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae's list of transients that nothing above has, mostly cataclysmic variables in outburst (ASASSN-26fg). Each detection is a magnitude the list quotes, in g. An object that matches one shows its ASAS-SN name.
  • A TNS type (SN Ia, Nova, AGN, …) decides an object's class whoever saw it; without one, the broker's label does.
  • An object is active while it has detections in the window. A TNS, CBAT or ASAS-SN object neither ATLAS nor AAVSO measures (fainter than 19, older than two months, or not yet measured) is active only while the window holds its last report, so it leaves the short windows a week later.

Pages

  • Dashboard: how many alerts and objects arrived in a window, what kinds, where on the sky, and the brightest new supernova candidates.
  • Sky: the map. Most of what follows is about it.
  • Objects: the same objects as a table you can sort, filter by the broker's label or TNS type, and page through; click one for its light curve and images.
  • Tonight: a planner for your telescope. Pick your site and telescope, and it lists the supernovae, novae and new objects seen this week that are above your horizon while it is dark and bright enough to see, sorted by when each is best placed, with finder charts, a CSV export and a printable list.

Search

  • An object id (ZTF26abvkmbu, a Rubin id, or the first few characters), a TNS name (SN 2026abc), coordinates (35.71 -4.75 or 02:22:50 -04:45:00, add r=10' for a radius), a deep-drilling field (COSMOS), a class (SN Ia, EclBin) or any name astronomers use (M31).

On the map: zoom to go deeper

  • Whole sky (wider than 20°): a heatmap of how many objects were seen in each patch of sky.
  • Region (1°–20°): a finer heatmap plus numbered badges. The number is the count of objects, the color is their most common class, and a white ring means something new in the last night.
  • Objects (under 1°): one dot per object. A white ring means it was seen last night, and a white center means it has been detected only once so far. Click a dot for its light curve, classification and images.

Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, or click a badge to zoom into it.

Filters

  • Window: how far back to look, from last night to a year.
  • Active / new: objects detected in the window, or only those first seen in it.
  • Class: most alerts are solar-system objects (asteroids). Pick Non-Solar System to hide them and see what else is out there.
  • Brightness (≤ 20, ≤ 18, ≤ 16): only objects at least that bright. Smaller magnitudes are brighter. An object marked faded was last seen fainter than in the survey's reference image, so it has no brightness of its own and counts only under any mag.
  • History (2+ nights, …): only objects seen on several nights, which filters out one-off artifacts.
  • More filters (Objects only): discovered within some nights, a redshift ceiling, a declination band, a faint limit past your saturation, one-night objects, rising ones, a reporting survey, or those an AAVSO campaign asks for. A view can be named, and its Subscribe panel gives it as a feed, as JSON and as targets for a TOM.

Observing from your site

  • Your site: an observatory from the list, or your latitude and longitude (typed, or Use my location). A position is rounded to half a degree, and the site is remembered in this browser only.
  • Object panel: when the object is up tonight, its altitude through the night with the moon, the next 60 nights, and a Finder chart with a link to AAVSO's comparison stars.
  • Objects: Visible from… keeps what is above your limit in tonight's dark window, with when and how high.
  • Sky: Observer… shades what is below your horizon at a time you pick; the counts do not change.
  • Tonight: Subscribe gives an RSS feed of your setup, one item a night with the picks, once the data through the night before are in (or three hours before dark). A condition (novae, rare types, something brighter than a magnitude) leaves nights without a match out, so a feed-to-email service mails only those. The plan is also JSON, for scripts and robotic telescopes. A feed's address holds your rounded site and setup: a reader or email service you give it to keeps it.
  • Where your data count: the surveys measure their own objects every few nights, but a TNS, CBAT or ASAS-SN object gets only ATLAS's photometry while it is brighter than 19, and AAVSO's nightly V if it is a nova or CV brighter than 14. Unconfirmed marks one reported on a single night in the last two weeks: a detection confirms it, and a deep non-detection is news too. No recent data marks one seen on two or more nights that nothing has measured for four nights or more: a magnitude fills the gap in its light curve. Requested marks one an AAVSO observing campaign asks observers to measure; Campaigns tonight lists the other campaign stars that are up.
  • Report an observation (object panel): where your photometry and spectra go (AAVSO for stars and Galactic novae, TNS for supernovae and novae in nearby galaxies, CBAT for an unconfirmed TOCP entry; an AGN only to AAVSO when VSX lists it, and to TNS when it flares), the name to file them under from AAVSO's VSX, and an AAVSO file formatted from what you type. Nothing is sent from the site; your observer code stays in this browser.

Dark means the sun more than 12° below the horizon (18° if you choose). Positions ignore refraction and precession, a few tenths of a degree: enough to plan, not to point.

Classes

  • SN candidate
  • AGN / nuclear
  • Variable star
  • Solar system
  • Cataloged
  • Unknown
  • Low reliability
  • Other

Data credits

See Data Sources.

Everything here is also available via a JSON API.

The data is refreshed nightly. Every view is a link: on the map the URL records the position, zoom, filters and selected object, so Copy link shares exactly what you see.

Contact us

Objects

Objects
Source
Bucket
More filters
Clear
5,151–5,200 of 221,832 · All objects seen in the 7 nights
Subscribe

A feed of this view: an item for each object that matches, newest discovery first, so a reader shows new matches as they come. Give the view a name under More filters to title it.

The same view as JSON, for scripts (the API; 100 rows a page, with offset):

Its first 100 objects as targets for a TOM Toolkit TOM (Targets → Import Targets), with every name and a link back:

RSSTOM targets (CSV)
ObjectClassLast magRisePeakFirst seenLast seenNightsDetectionsRel.RA, DecPartner
ZTF ZTF22abwwqsx Unknown17.79 g+0.216.652018-08-042026-10-0123251.00299.6240, -18.6927
ZTF ZTF22abxcfbi Unknownfaded g−0.215.142018-05-212026-10-0124241.00296.2864, -18.0981
ZTF ZTF22abxcfcq Unknown19.07 g+0.217.922019-07-032026-10-0164911.00295.0554, -14.4494
ZTF ZTF23aaogqus Unknownfaded g−0.117.292019-06-112026-10-0125261.00297.5937, -15.6828
ZTF ZTF23aasqkrl Unknownfaded g−0.118.652022-05-302026-10-01891.00295.3195, -14.4384
ZTF ZTF23ablfpkb Unknown19.17 g+0.219.042019-07-032026-10-0119201.00296.4395, -17.8528
ZTF ZTF24aakpqwi Unknownfaded g−0.218.372024-04-202026-10-0142591.00296.0769, -13.6227Rubin
ZTF ZTF24aaomkzl Unknownfaded g−0.119.402024-05-192026-10-0125261.00296.7612, -13.7865Rubin
ZTF ZTF24aaqdjoo Unknown19.91 g+0.319.552020-06-232026-10-01441.00295.3365, -17.6756
ZTF ZTF24abwzgqy Unknown17.66 g+0.316.742018-12-052026-10-0143551.00300.3661, -17.5417
ZTF ZTF25aapfbsc Unknown19.28 g+0.618.732025-05-012026-10-011051561.00295.6796, -15.9624Rubin
ZTF ZTF25aawwzzq Unknown18.61 g+0.117.722019-06-052026-10-0128351.00295.8409, -14.3091
ZTF ZTF25aawzcyx Solar System MPC19.67 g—19.672025-06-232026-10-01111.00297.1503, -17.1985
ZTF ZTF25abzoqay Unknown19.27 g+0.218.362020-09-072026-10-0133371.00300.8446, -17.7987
ZTF ZTF25acgtmuv Unknownfaded g−0.1—2023-05-012026-10-01110.74295.4398, -19.0709
ZTF ZTF26aarhbku Unknown18.93 g+0.117.952018-05-212026-10-0113131.00297.5619, -19.1910
ZTF ZTF26abegmak Unknown18.92 g+0.118.222020-10-092026-10-0112121.00296.7155, -19.6819
ZTF ZTF26abyixdm Solar System MPC17.51 g—17.512026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.4601, -16.4113
ZTF ZTF26abyixgg Solar System MPC16.95 g—16.952026-10-012026-10-01111.00295.4551, -16.5356
ZTF ZTF26abyixgh Solar System MPC18.80 g—18.802026-10-012026-10-01111.00295.0495, -16.2397
ZTF ZTF26abyixjt Solar System MPC19.24 g—19.242026-10-012026-10-01111.00295.5915, -15.2893
ZTF ZTF26abyixkl Solar System MPC14.84 g—14.842026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.0877, -16.1519
ZTF ZTF26abyixkn Solar System MPC18.77 g—18.772026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.2696, -16.8237
ZTF ZTF26abyixko Solar System MPC19.27 g—19.272026-10-012026-10-01110.98296.7334, -16.0933
ZTF ZTF26abyixkp Solar System MPC18.41 g—18.412026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.5216, -15.7368
ZTF ZTF26abyixnf Solar System MPC16.89 g—16.892026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.3192, -15.9470
ZTF ZTF26abyixng Solar System MPC18.52 g—18.522026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.4044, -15.3385
ZTF ZTF26abyixnh Solar System MPC19.35 g—19.352026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.0998, -15.5009
ZTF ZTF26abyixni Solar System MPC19.97 g—19.972026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.1697, -15.2806
ZTF ZTF26abyixnj Solar System MPC19.86 g—19.862026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.9554, -15.9132
ZTF ZTF26abyixqp Solar System MPC19.09 g—19.092026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.5042, -19.1690
ZTF ZTF26abyixqq Solar System MPC18.78 g—18.782026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.4338, -19.2875
ZTF ZTF26abyixqr Solar System MPC19.40 g—19.402026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.2198, -19.6796
ZTF ZTF26abyixqt Solar System MPC19.67 g—19.672026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.6562, -19.4328
ZTF ZTF26abyixqv Solar System MPC19.67 g—19.672026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.2726, -19.7353
ZTF ZTF26abyixqw Solar System MPC19.72 g—19.722026-10-012026-10-01111.00300.3353, -19.2177
ZTF ZTF26abyixrf Solar System MPC18.82 g—18.822026-10-012026-10-01111.00299.3596, -20.2788
ZTF ZTF26abyixrg Solar System MPC18.88 g—18.882026-10-012026-10-01111.00299.0075, -19.9357
ZTF ZTF26abyixrh Solar System MPC19.63 g—19.632026-10-012026-10-01111.00299.4374, -20.0224
ZTF ZTF26abyixry Solar System MPC17.92 g—17.922026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.4691, -14.7810
ZTF ZTF26abyixsa Solar System MPC18.50 g—18.502026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.5657, -14.5552
ZTF ZTF26abyixsb Solar System MPC18.93 g—18.932026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.4451, -14.4582
ZTF ZTF26abyixsc Solar System MPC19.18 g—19.182026-10-012026-10-01111.00296.8465, -14.2455
ZTF ZTF26abyixtg Solar System MPC18.63 g—18.632026-10-012026-10-01111.00294.6888, -15.7825
ZTF ZTF26abyixth Solar System MPC18.83 g—18.832019-07-032026-10-01111.00294.2499, -15.7886
ZTF ZTF26abyixti Solar System MPC19.06 g—19.062026-10-012026-10-01111.00294.1929, -15.3558
ZTF ZTF26abyixtk Solar System MPC19.47 g—19.472026-10-012026-10-01111.00294.7308, -15.9880
ZTF ZTF26abyixxj Solar System MPC19.18 g—19.182026-10-012026-10-01111.00298.3382, -19.1629
ZTF ZTF26abyixxk Solar System MPC19.88 g—19.882026-10-012026-10-01111.00298.6867, -19.7264
ZTF ZTF26abyiyav Solar System MPC18.37 g—18.372026-10-012026-10-01111.00297.7555, -14.7495