The torrent of images has not only begun, it’s bringing meta-information:
https://www.astronomerstelegram.org/?read=17703
17703 Salgundi, A. Andreoni, I. Anumarlapudi, A. et al. AT 2026epw: Discovery of a possible nova from Vera C. Rubin Observatory
27 Feb 2026; 21:00 UT
In my last update, I mentioned that quasi-real-time alerts were about to be dispatched from the Rubin data stream. As of Feb. 25, those alerts (flagged images with some sort of updating sky objects) are live. Here is one of the first to break cover: a new nova, we think. Maybe it’s a false alarm; that’s the point of the alerts. Someone, somewhere out there will take a telescope, and follow up on this alert.
In general, it’s been a productive February. Originally, the Rubin telescope was to go down mid-March for maintenance and last-minute fixes, before the sky survey begins in earnest. However, in February the instrument dewar had a leak. A faulty vacuum seal allowed the camera to warm up. Vera Rubin staff then took the camera offline, to fix the air leak. In the process, the crew used the downtime to get ahead with their telescope repairs. This went well enough that the March downtime is now cancelled.
The Vera Rubin data stream, though not truly up to the pace of the LSST sky survey, is nevertheless working away. There has already been a submission of Rubin asteroid data to the Minor Planet Center. Data rates will only climb from here. We are truly entering a new era. The only question is what to do with all these pixels, and what wonders will they hold that we haven’t even predicted.