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Known issues

Users will find a list of known issues with alert data. We will update this list as we learn new things.

Missing Solar System association

Until 2026/02/20, the Rubin project was not associating alerts to known asteroids. As a result, alerts generated by Solar System objects moving are released as diaObject (static object on sky). In case of doubt, carefuly check using the SkyBot for example.

Mis-association

We have found many nearby alerts with different diaObjectId. This is likely due to mis-association by the project. Note that the project cannot for example associate to the same object two alerts emitted less than 6 minutes apart. This happens often in Deep Drilling Fields. Check for example the number of alerts within 5'': https://lsst.fink-portal.org/?action=conesearch&ra=150.0277299894&dec=3.7575025429&r=5.0 .

Forced photometry

Forced photometry was not present in alert packet until 2026/02/17.

Missing fields

Although the alert packet has a long schema coming from Rubin, many fields are not populated as the Rubin pipeline is incomplete. This includes (but is not limited to):

  • Forced photometry section (prvForcedDiaSources)
  • Various Solar System fields in mpc_orbits and ssSource
  • Various quality flags in diaSource
  • Time of the first diaSource (diaObject.firstDiaSourceMjdTai)

Designation for SSO

The field ssSource.designation contains packed designation instead of unpacked designation. We've been told that the change will be done in the future (writing in Feb 2026).

Cutouts orientation

The WCS information in the header does not align correctly to the North-South direction in standard FITS visualisation tools. The problem is explained in the Rubin Community Forum: https://community.lsst.org/t/how-to-use-wcss-in-dp1-and-commissioning-processing/10769 .

Diffraction spikes

We find many alerts around bright stars, following diffraction spikes. We advise users to check for bright stars nearby alerts of interest.