---
title: emit | Juttle Language Reference
---

emit
====

Synthetically generate live or
historical points containing only a time stamp. This simple source is
like a blank canvas for building synthetic points; you can customize
points by adding fields using
[put](../processors/put.md).

```
emit -every :duration: -from moment -to moment -limit limit -points point-array
```


Parameter  |  Description  |  Required?
---------- | ------------- | ---------:
`-every`  |  The interval at which to emit points, specified as a :duration: <p>See [Time notation in Juttle](../reference/time.md) for syntax information. </p> |  No
`-from`  |  Stream points whose time stamps are greater than or equal to the specified moment <p>See [Time notation in Juttle](../reference/time.md) for syntax information.</p> |  No; defaults to :now:
`-to`  |  Stream points whose time stamps are less than the specified moment, which is less than or equal to :now: <p>See [Time notation in Juttle](../reference/time.md) for syntax information.  |  No; defaults to forever
`-last`  |  Given a duration, shorthand for `-from (:now: - duration) -to :now:` |  No
`-limit`  |  Total number of points to emit  |  No; defaults to 1.
`-points` |  An array of points to stream  |  No

The time field can be a moment expression, a quoted date/time string as generated by Juttle output, or a number of seconds since the Unix epoch. If the points have no time stamps, then a time field is added with values determined by the `-from` options, or the current time if those options are omitted.

By default, this source node emits one point per second starting at the
current time for a total of 100. Points with time in the past are
emitted all at once, while points with time in the future are emitted in
real time.

_Example: Emit a point every second containing the current time, for a total of 100 points_

```
{!docs/examples/sources/emit_present.juttle!}
```

_Example: Emit 50 points in one-second intervals starting one day ago_

```
{!docs/examples/sources/emit_past.juttle!}
```

All points are emitted at once, since their times are in the past. To
emit them in real time, see
[pace](../processors/pace.md).

_Example: Replay points having a variety of timestamp formats text window_

```
{!docs/examples/sources/emit_points.juttle!}
```