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. 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.
  • 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 or CBAT object ATLAS does not measure (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 or CBAT object gets only ATLAS's photometry, and only while it is brighter than 19. 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 novae, TNS for supernovae, CBAT for an unconfirmed TOCP entry), 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

Fink: ZTF and Rubin alerts: classifications, light curves, limits and cutouts
Möller et al. 2021, MNRAS 501, 3272.
Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF): the ZTF public alert stream, through Fink
Based on observations obtained with the Samuel Oschin Telescope 48-inch and the 60-inch Telescope at the Palomar Observatory as part of the Zwicky Transient Facility project; Bellm et al. 2019, PASP 131, 018002.
Vera C. Rubin Observatory: the Rubin LSST alert stream and forced photometry, through Fink
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time; Ivezić et al. 2019, ApJ 873, 111.
Transient Name Server (TNS): names, types and discovery reports of transients from every survey
The IAU Transient Name Server, operated by the Weizmann Institute of Science; reports by the surveys named on each object.
CBAT: the Transient Object Confirmation Page: bright novae and other transients reported to the Central Bureau
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams, Transient Object Confirmation Page (TOCP).
ATLAS: forced photometry of TNS objects, from the ATLAS forced-photometry server
Tonry et al. 2018, PASP 130, 064505; Smith et al. 2020, PASP 132, 085002; Shingles et al. 2021, TNS AstroNote 2021-7.
AAVSO: observing campaigns that ask for observations, and VSX's names for the report helper
We acknowledge with thanks the observing campaigns of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO), and the International Variable Star Index (VSX).
CDS, Strasbourg: sky imagery (HiPS), finder charts (hips2fits) and name resolution (Sesame)
This research has made use of the CDS services, Strasbourg Astronomical Observatory, France.

Everything here is also JSON: Data and API has the public API, the feeds, the exports and how to cite the data.

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.

Made by jgriz

Objects

Objects
Source
Bucket
More filters
Clear
4,651–4,700 of 212,889 · All objects seen in the 7 nights
ObjectClassLast magRisePeakFirst seenLast seenNightsDetectionsRel.RA, DecPartner
ZTF ZTF18abrxlip Unknownfaded r−0.218.012018-07-112026-09-3067941.00296.7287, 2.9530
ZTF ZTF18abrxlyc LongPeriodV*faded r−0.115.322018-05-232026-09-30831071.00293.6675, 5.2149
ZTF ZTF18abrxlyd LongPeriodV*faded r−0.215.272018-06-042026-09-30861211.00293.5254, 5.1552
ZTF ZTF18abrxmfz EclBinfaded r−0.218.152018-07-112026-09-3016170.99292.9350, 7.8031
ZTF ZTF18abrxmjs EclBinfaded r−0.718.092018-05-232026-09-3023361.00294.5914, 7.3690
ZTF ZTF18absiepj LongPeriodV*_Candidate15.21 r+0.115.212018-05-282026-09-3045581.00295.5236, 3.1255
ZTF ZTF18absific EclBinfaded r−0.1—2018-05-202026-09-30221.00295.3715, 1.6044
ZTF ZTF18absifuk Unknown18.28 r+0.117.942018-06-042026-09-30331.00296.4260, 2.1883
ZTF ZTF18absifvn LongPeriodV*16.17 r+0.215.942018-06-042026-09-301262211.00294.4935, 3.0713
ZTF ZTF18absifwq LongPeriodV*_Candidate15.97 r+0.214.872018-05-232026-09-301131551.00292.4985, 5.1098
ZTF ZTF18absifxo LongPeriodV*_Candidate16.05 r+0.114.022018-05-282026-09-30951521.00295.0525, 4.6976
ZTF ZTF18absifxp LongPeriodV*faded r−0.314.912018-05-232026-09-301101561.00294.3540, 5.1437
ZTF ZTF18absifyt EclBin18.28 r+0.117.822018-05-282026-09-3050551.00293.3763, 6.2137
ZTF ZTF18absigrl Variable*15.35 r+0.215.352018-06-082026-09-301321901.00294.5468, 5.9379
ZTF ZTF18absigup EclBin17.87 r+0.217.872018-06-112026-09-3021211.00292.2776, 6.0979
ZTF ZTF18absjrnw EclBinfaded r−0.219.162018-08-212026-09-3045471.00298.3214, 1.8319
ZTF ZTF18absjrwl LongPeriodV*_Candidatefaded r−0.316.812018-05-282026-09-30961471.00297.2117, 1.2620
ZTF ZTF18absjsij EclBin17.79 r+0.117.502018-05-232026-09-3052531.00295.7054, 1.3852
ZTF ZTF18absjsko EclBinfaded r−0.118.502018-05-202026-09-3033351.00295.3358, 2.4892
ZTF ZTF18absjskw Unknownfaded r−0.1—2018-07-202026-09-3030401.00297.2070, 4.3974
ZTF ZTF18absjsnn EclBin19.11 r+0.218.792018-06-132026-09-3068681.00296.4224, 2.1368
ZTF ZTF18absjspc Unknown17.65 r+0.117.522018-09-022026-09-30661.00293.4083, 1.6528
ZTF ZTF18absjsvl EclBinfaded r−0.418.872018-05-232026-09-3049531.00294.4134, 2.8891
ZTF ZTF18absjsvm EclBinfaded r−0.219.272018-06-132026-09-3035361.00294.6307, 3.0535
ZTF ZTF18absjsvs Unknown19.14 r+0.319.092018-06-132026-09-3064651.00294.9900, 3.2919
ZTF ZTF18absjsvx Unknown16.58 r+0.116.242018-06-132026-09-30440.99293.5599, 2.4683
ZTF ZTF18absjswr LongPeriodV*faded r−0.115.592018-05-232026-09-30801021.00294.5043, 1.5677
ZTF ZTF18absjszm Unknownfaded r−0.117.972018-06-282026-09-301181721.00296.0011, 3.0266
ZTF ZTF18absjtdw EclBinfaded r−0.519.152018-05-232026-09-3055641.00294.5607, 2.1028
ZTF ZTF18absjteh RSCVnV*19.52 r+0.318.472018-05-202026-09-301091331.00294.2899, 2.1544
ZTF ZTF18absjucp EclBin18.86 r+0.118.552018-06-042026-09-3025251.00292.3976, 4.7961
ZTF ZTF18absjuhw Unknown17.25 r+0.117.252018-09-022026-09-30221.00293.5700, 5.3983
ZTF ZTF18absjvbk Unknown16.98 r+0.116.802018-09-022026-09-30661.00291.9466, 5.7132
ZTF ZTF18absjvlo Unknownfaded r−0.317.822018-09-022026-09-301422221.00293.8978, 5.7316
ZTF ZTF18absjvme Unknownfaded r−0.118.092018-09-022026-09-3082830.98293.4217, 6.0658
ZTF ZTF18abthmcr RRLyraefaded r−0.219.072018-06-042026-09-3020211.00293.3605, 1.4909
ZTF ZTF18abthmjj RRLyrae19.50 r+0.619.102018-05-232026-09-3017181.00295.6817, 2.1371
ZTF ZTF18abtinwi Unknown19.30 r+0.118.362018-09-052026-09-3020211.00294.2852, 1.7418
ZTF ZTF18abtinwt EclBinfaded r−0.118.502018-07-202026-09-3031341.00297.4182, 2.4473
ZTF ZTF18abtinxz BYDraV*17.96 r+0.117.422018-09-052026-09-301271701.00293.5495, 2.3594
ZTF ZTF18abtioad Unknown16.95 r+0.116.952018-07-202026-09-30771.00297.8502, 4.0916
ZTF ZTF18abtioap Unknownfaded r−0.115.132018-09-052026-09-3032430.96296.3294, 2.5071
ZTF ZTF18abtiono Starfaded r−0.217.292018-09-052026-09-301071491.00293.3671, 3.3790
ZTF ZTF18abtionw Unknownfaded r−0.1—2018-09-052026-09-30110.01293.3591, 2.9965
ZTF ZTF18abtipcx Variable*faded r−0.115.492018-07-202026-09-30781.00294.6872, 5.2671
ZTF ZTF18abtipcz Unknownfaded r−0.2—2018-08-022026-09-3061781.00294.8347, 4.9938
ZTF ZTF18abtiqqb Unknown16.30 r+0.316.002018-09-052026-09-301652601.00292.7141, 5.2217
ZTF ZTF18abtiqra Unknownfaded r−0.117.232018-08-242026-09-3021241.00292.5960, 5.0286
ZTF ZTF18abtiriw Unknownfaded r−0.218.562018-06-042026-09-3039461.00294.3801, 5.9290
ZTF ZTF18abucmfp Unknownfaded r−0.1—2018-09-082026-09-30771.00298.4185, 2.2231