Every dashboard should lead you back to the sources behind it.

The Sources panel lists the pages that support the dashboard. Individual dashboard entries may also point back to source material, especially live updates, facts, images, videos, maps, and timing information.

References are there so you can check the original page. They are not decorative footnotes.

What a source link means

A source link usually means the page helped support the dashboard in some way.

That page may have provided one or more kinds of support:

A source link does not mean the publisher is endorsed, every claim on the page is correct, or every dashboard sentence came from that one source.

Page sources and specific references

There are different levels of support.

What you see	What it means
Source in the Sources panel	The page was useful to the dashboard
Source attached to an update	The update is tied to that page or live feed
Source attached to media	The image, video, map, or embed came from or was supported by that source
Source score details	The page ranked higher or lower for practical reasons
Factuality or bias label	Broad context about the source domain when available

The more specific the reference, the easier it is to check. A live update linked to a particular live page is more useful than a generic source list with no context.

Why source wording matters

When you read a live story, exact wording matters.

Compare these:

• "confirmed" and "reported"
• "scheduled" and "expected"
• "evacuated" and "told to prepare to evacuate"
• "no earlier than May" and "in May"
• "officials said" and "local media said"

Orbit tries to keep important source wording and uncertainty intact. Still, the original page is the place to check exact wording, quotes, corrections, and updates.

Live updates

Live-update references are especially important because the story can change minute by minute.

Update feeds are paginated by the backend. A dashboard initially receives the first page of merged entries and raw-source feed summaries, then requests additional pages when you move through the feed. This keeps long live feeds usable without loading every entry at once.

When a dashboard has an update feed, open the linked live source if:

• the timing matters
• the update sounds surprising
• the wording is cautious or uncertain
• other sources have not confirmed it
• the story is still developing

Also check whether the update is recent. A live blog can contain old entries that were accurate earlier but no longer describe the current state.

Images, videos, maps, and embeds

Media can add useful context, but it can also be easy to misread.

Open the source when:

• an image is central to the story
• a map affects your understanding of location or scale
• a video is being used as live coverage
• a tracker or status page contains the current state
• a social feed is the source of a claim

Images and videos may have captions, timestamps, or context that are not fully visible in the dashboard.

Source scores and references

Source scores help decide which links to open first.

A high score may mean the source is direct, current, detailed, structured as a live page, official, or useful as a stream or tracker. A lower score may mean the source is less direct, older, thinner, duplicated, or only lightly useful.

Use scores as a guide, not a verdict. The original page matters more than the number beside it.

Attribution

Original publishers and platforms remain the source of their own material. Orbit links back to them so you can read the full context.

Open the original source for:

• full articles
• full quotations
• corrections
• live-blog context
• image captions
• video descriptions
• official status wording
• terms, caveats, or limitations

Do not treat a dashboard as a replacement for the original page when exact wording matters.

What a source link does not guarantee

A source appearing in Orbit does not guarantee that:

• the source is error-free
• the source is unbiased
• the claim is independently confirmed
• the page is still current
• the dashboard captured every caveat
• other sources agree

It means the source was useful enough to appear in the dashboard's evidence set. You still decide how much weight to give it.

How to check an important claim

Use this quick workflow:

1. Open the linked source.
2. Find the exact claim, number, time, location, or quote.
3. Check when the source was published or updated.
4. Open a second independent source.
5. Compare wording and certainty.
6. Look for corrections, live updates, or later developments.

If the claim affects a decision, keep reading beyond the dashboard.

When to be extra cautious

Be extra cautious when:

• the dashboard relies on one source
• the top sources are old
• the source is a broad topic page
• the source is a social post or discussion thread
• sources disagree
• the story is breaking
• the claim involves safety, health, law, money, politics, or emergencies

Remember

References help you move from the dashboard back to the source.

Use them. Open the links. Compare independent sources. Pay attention to exact wording and timestamps.