Status of IOOS Data Management and Communications Subsystem

Status of IOOS Data Management and Communications Subsystem Implementation Plan Steve Hankin Chair, IOOS Data and Communications Steering Committee

Implementation Plan - The Process The Data Management and Communications Steering Committee (DMAC-SC) was appointed in May 2002, as recommended at the March 2002 National Meeting • DMAC-SC is supported by four Expert Teams Data Transport Data Discovery and Metadata Data Applications Data Archival and two Outreach Teams Data Facilities Management Products and Services • Expert Teams are evaluating available technologies and making recommendations in the form of White Papers; • Outreach Teams are assembling Community Issues Lists and establishing feedback and review networks • The Plan will be circulated widely for review

IOOS Data and Communications Steering Committee Members • • • Steve Hankin (Chair), NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory Lowell Bahner, NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office Landry Bernard, NOAA National Data Buoy Center Peter Cornillon, Univ. of Rhode Island (Data Transport Team Lead) Fred Grassle, Rutgers Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences Chuck Hakkarinen, EPRI David Legler, U. S. CLIVAR (Data Applications Team Lead) John Lever, Naval Oceanographic Office Phil Mundy, Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council, Gulf of Alaska Ecosystem Monitoring & Research (GEM) (User Outreach Team Lead) • Worth Nowlin, Texas A&M University • Susan Starke, NOAA Nat’l Coastal Data Development Center (Data Discovery/Metadata Team Lead) • Steven J. Worley, UCAR/NCAR (Data Archive Team Lead)

IOOS Data and Communications Steering Committee Team Members DATA TRANSPORT DATA DISCOVERY/METADATA Peter Cornillon (Lead), URI Steve Collins, NOAA Donald Denbo, NOAA Allan Doyle James Gallagher, URI Dan Holloway, URI Tony Lavoi, NOAA Ken Mc. Donald, NASA Reagan Moore, SDSC Eben Oldmixon Richard Owens, NOAA Phoebe Zhang, Rutgers U. Susan Starke (Lead), NOAA Anne Ball, NOAA Julie Bosch, NOAA John Caron, UCAR Cheryl Demers, NOAA Donald Denbo, NOAA Dan Holloway, URI Lola Olson, NASA Karen Stocks, UCSD

IOOS Data and Communications Steering Committee Team Members DATA APPLICATIONS DATA ARCHIVE David Legler (Lead), USCLIVAR Russ Beard, NOAA James Cummings, Navy Daphne Fautin, U. Kansas Margarita Gregg, NOAA Craig Kelly, Navy Bernie Kilonsky, SOEST John Lever, Navy Steve Worley (Lead), UCAR Don Collins, NOAA Bob Cushman, CDIAC Mark Fornwall, Maui Res. & Tech. Center Steven Hale, EPA John Hughes, MEL Alex Koyrz, CDIAC Syd Levitus, NOAA Chris Lynnes, NASA Steven Rutz, NOAA Kurt Schnebele, NOAA George Sharman, NOAA Gus Shumbera, NOAA

IOOS Data and Communications Steering Committee Team Members DATA FACILITIES MGMNT USER OUTREACH Landry Bernard (Lead), NOAA William Birkemeier, USACE Lee Dantzler, NOAA Steve Hankin, NOAA J. Edward Johnson, Navy Joe Stinus, NOAA Phil Mundy (Lead), Exxon Valdez Trusteeship Council Phil Bogden, Go. MOOS Carol Dorsey, AL Dept. of Health Dave Eslinger, NOAA Mark Luther, U. South FL Mike Mc. Cann, MBARI Roy Mendelssohn, NOAA Malcolm Spaulding, URI Jack Tamul, Navy Suzanne Van Cooten, NOAA

Timeline for Plan Development First Meeting of DMAC Steering Committee. Teams and Outreach groups defined. Mar Airlie workshop Jun Draft Summary Plan Delivered Sep Workgroups and Teams present White Papers Oct Draft Detailed Plan Delivered Dec Jan Public Review of Plan Begins

http: //www. ocean. us. net/dacsc/index. jsp

The Vision See “The Plan” paper …. Highlights only here • • • IOOS data will be available through broad range of current and future computer applications, largely unencumbered by traditional barriers of data format, location, and size Users will be able to browse and compare any of the data through a standard Web browser For data suppliers, small and large, the effort to make data available will be minimized

The Vision (Continued) • • • DMACS will be a “free market” of ocean science information -- easy to compare official IOOS products with outside results DMACS will engage the private sector in the development of value-added products for special user groups -- commercial fishermen, recreational sailors, divers, etc. Outreach mechanisms will ensure that the needs of users are recognized and acted upon.

Community Building Issues The greatest challenges are in the area of community outreach and organizational behavior rather than in technology! Challenges for – All levels of management – Technical staff (the implementers) – Users (the definers of “success”)

Community Building Issues Required to succeed: The perceived benefits of participation must exceed the costs! – Ensure very low barriers to participation for both data suppliers and users – Follow an evolutionary path – Sustain a program of vigorous outreach

Metadata management and search Complete, consistent, searchable metadata – Metadata must be inseparable from data – Create/adopt standardized, shared vocabularies (not as easy as it sounds!) – Supply training and tools to data providers – How to make a human-dominated (flawed) approach more automated? – “Web portal” is just one way to do searches – How to do highly effective search in distributed systems?

Components of DMAC System

Data Transport “middleware” is the foundation – Networking infrastructure for connecting heterogeneous clients and servers – Data providers must translate from “native” formats and data bases (DCS must provide tools). Applications adapted to read from middleware.

Data Transport (Continued) OPe. NDAP (DODS) is an IOOS “pilot” activity – Discipline-neutral, low entry barrier – Can immediately begin building DCS – Must develop the “ocean data model” (standards) in parallel Parallel work on blending data push/data pull

Archival Irreplaceable observations, data products of lasting value and associated metadata preserved in perpetuity – Accessible using DCS standards – Acquired at Archive Center using DCS standards

Archival Issues – How to phase in new techniques? (“don’t look back”? ) – How to partition responsibilities among existing facilities, new operational product centers and new facilities? – Relationship between archive centers and “delayed-mode (climate) data assembly centers”

User Outreach, Products and Applications User needs will drive how IOOS evolves – DCS already has an incipient IOOS User Outreach Committee (Phil Mundy) – Most feedback focuses on needs for products – not something that DCS controls – A mechanism for sharing the User Outreach Committee among all components of IOOS?

Administration and Operations The Plan will convene a WG to define the DCS Administration policies working closely with Ocean. US • Day to day DCS operations • Monitoring system performance / correcting problems • Liaison with Product, Archival facilities and Observing Subsystem • Liaison with regional systems • “help desk” • Assures compatibility with related national and international data systems

Technical Issues • Scalable metadata management • Version tracking • Data mining • Data volumes generated by satellite (and sonar) measurements · Blending “data push” and “data pull” · Comprehensive geo-spatial data model · Aggregation of distributed data to achieve seamless access between assembly centers and archives.

The End http: //tmap. pmel. noaa. gov/~hankin/OCEAN. US/USGOOS_VII