.. sectionauthor:: Robert Nikutta <robert.nikutta@noirlab.edu>

*Version: 20250305*
                   
.. index::
   pair: data; explorer
   pair: data; tools

.. _sec_DataExplorerOverview:

**********************
Data Explorer overview
**********************

The Data Explorer is a fully integrated collection of web-based data tools that provide data discovery, search and querying capabilities, and data management functions.

When accessing Data Explorer, the user is initially presented with a two-panel view: a left-hand side panel with :ref:`Data Sources <sec_DataSourcesPanel>`, and a larger middle panel for Tools.

A third panel on the right-hand side is initially hidden, but like all panels can be summoned in and out of view with the arrow-styled buttons. This is the :ref:`Context/Info panel <sec_ContextPanel>`.

Finally, a :ref:`Status panel <sec_StatusPanel>` at the bottom of the page can be activated. It can for instance present information on the status of user-submitted queries, the progress of file downloads, etc.

.. figure:: dataexplorer_overview_annotated.png
   :width: 100 %
   :alt: Web Portal

   *Figure:* Data Explorer with the panels for Data Sources (left), Tools (middle), Context/Info (right), and Status (bottom) outlined in red.

You can hide or show all side panels (left, right, bottom) at once using the dedicated "Hide / Show Panels" buttons:

.. figure:: dataexplorer_hideshow_panels.png
   :width: 200px
   :alt: Data Explorer hide/show panels