August 10, 2021 - The Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) Science Collaborations (SCs) were created in 2006 by then-LSST Director Tony Tyson and the LSST Corporation Board, and since then the SCs have provided invaluable scientific expertise—and a lot of hard work—towards making the Rubin Observatory science vision a reality. Now, a new document has been ratified that formalizes the existence of the SCs and provides details about the relationship between the SCs and Rubin Observatory. This Federation Charter "seeks to recognize those contributions with the establishment of mutually agreed-upon principles, rules, rights, and privileges of the Science Collaborations and the obligations of Rubin Observatory to the Science Collaborations to support their activities which benefit the entire Rubin Community."
The Rubin Observatory/LSST Science Collaborations are independent, worldwide communities of scientists, self-organized into collaborations based on their research interests and expertise. Currently there are eight active collaborations. More information about the Rubin Observatory SCs can be found on the LSST Corporation website.
The details in the newly ratified Federation Charter were mutually agreed on by the Science Collaborations and Rubin Observatory Operations leadership, and they provide clear rules for the formation, dissolution, and operations of the self-governed SCs that are or would be federated with Rubin Observatory. The full document is available at this link.
