Expressions of Intent for International Polar Year 2007-2008 Activities

Expression of Interest Details

PROPOSAL INFORMATION

International Polar Year (IPY) Metadata and Information Portal Network for the Data and Information Service (DIS)  (IPY Metadata Centre)

Outline
The Global Change Master Directory (GCMD), which also serves as a coordinating node of the International Directory Network (IDN) and hosts the Antarctic Master Directory (AMD-http://gcmd.nasa.gov/Data/portals/amd) has played a key role in assisting the scientific communities over nearly two decades. We propose to host the official metadata and information portal for IPY through the building of a cyber-infrastructure - following the Electronic Geophysical Year (eGY) concept by providing efficient discovery, access and exchange of polar data within the IPY timeframe and beyond. This is a unique opportunity to demonstrate the use of an innovative cyberspace model for distributed data management. This effort would not only benefit the polar communities of the IPY in the near and distant future, but would also represent a modern day benchmark for further understanding of the Earth's climate and environment. As part of the DIS, we plan to work closely with the IPY Program Office, the Data Policy and Management Sub-Committee and other data management organizations to define the data and information policy and strategy for IPY 2007-2008. We envision an IPY Metadata Centre that will integrate multiple organizations from diverse disciplines and regions around the world. Already, major collaborations are in place with key partner organizations and data centres (JCADM/SCAR, ACSYS/CliC, NSIDC, WDCs, NADCs, BODC/BAS). This international network will build on the existing Joint Committee on Antarctic Data Management (JCADM) model (an organizational infrastructure with national focal points linked to a central metadata database) and will capitalize on existing tools, technologies and established expertise. Other contributions, as part of the DIS, could include: ·Incorporating additional polar-related "catalog metadata" (historical data sets, harvesting of other metadata sites, such as PANGEA, BODC among others). ·Collecting additional services available from the polar community (including visualization and analysis tools, model descriptions, metadata and data management/handling, education/outreach materials among others). ·Promoting and customizing existing tools for metadata submission to meet the needs of the IPY community. Metadata submission documentation will be provided. ·Developing and customizing metadata database fields based on the needs of the IPY community, using the Directory Interchange Format (DIF). The DIF format continues to be developed through international consensus and is compliant with the ISO 19115. ·Capitalizing on open APIs, data discovery and access tools (SOAP, HTTP, direct access links, Live Access Server, MapServer) with the goal of bringing users directly to the data. We could also host small data sets available as shapefiles or GeoTIFFs for subsequent, rapid access through a MapServer, and ensure that these files follow the guidelines within the GIS community. ·Integrating additional polar-related keywords to meet the needs of the IPY community. In addition, we recognize the importance of space science research within the polar community and are currently developing additional space science keywords. ·Promoting and continuing to foster close ties with national and world data centres, and partner organizations, while working together towards implementing a metadata policy and strategy for metadata submission (including pre-metadata submission).

What significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes and targets can be anticipated from this project?
The IPY cyberspace model will not only benefit the IPY data and information community by improving the discovery, access and exchange of polar data sets among nations, but will also contribute to increasing our understanding of polar processes and their global effects in the near and distant future. Through contributions, the IPY "catalog metadata" will encompass disciplines from Earth and space science to human dimensions (target 1) and will address significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes listed in section 1.4. This international network will demonstrate the use of an innovative cyberspace model for distributed data management (target 3) and leave a legacy of cyberspace "e-science" for future generations (target 4). The GCMD would take responsibility to assure unique identification of data sets - thus avoiding the duplication and confusion that occurs in distributed systems without a central organization. Maintaining and updating an optimally organized and unique source of quality-controlled metadata will benefit the Antarctic and Arctic communities long after the IPY 2007-2008. This effort could potentially lead to the establishment of an Arctic Master Directory, equivalent to the Antarctic Master Directory (AMD). The directory could also become an important vehicle to facilitate communication among the polar communities through its data and information sharing. With the participation of researchers and national data centres, the IPY portal network could offer focused access to educational resources and outreach materials through a polar-designated "Learning Centre" that could be utilized well beyond IPY by scientific communities and the general public (target 2).

What international collaboration is involved in this project?
The IPY portal network will be composed of a wide range of international collaborators. Twenty-six nations are currently contributing metadata to the Antarctic Master Directory. Through specify requests from Belgium, Canada, Argentina, Estonia, Finland, Japan, and Switzerland, customized web-portals were designed to demonstrate their independent contributions. It is expected that many other nations will request these virtual subsets of the metadata they contribute to the IPY project. To establish an official metadata portal site for IPY 2007-2008, we would build on the strengths of existing organizations and national data centres, such as NSIDC, JCADM/SCAR, WDCs, BODC/BAS, ACSYS/CliC, and PANGEA. Expanding these partnerships is essential to the success of this effort.

FIELD ACTIVITY DETAILS

Geographical location(s) for the proposed field activities:
We suggest that data and information management activities be integrated in all phases of IPY research to insure the long-term quality, accessibility, sharing and usability of data and services. Such activities could include on-site collection of metadata for real-time submission and the development of a stand-alone metadata authoring tool for use in the field. The metadata will be organized and accessible by discipline, instrument/platform, data centre, project, and location (geographic coordinates, bodies of water, countries, continents and/or vertical locations), as well as through free-text queries.

Approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities:
Arctic: as needed       as needed       as needed
Antarctic: as needed       as needed       as needed

Significant facilities will be required for this project:
Within the DIS, we propose to take on the responsibility of hosting and maintaining a centralized IPY metadata portal network for data discovery, access and exchange. Existing metadata standards and tools could provide a principal vehicle for metadata submission for the polar community. These have been well tested, respected and shared by the JCADM and Earth science communities for their interoperability, flexibility, and easy use. We are prepared to customize these tools to meet the specific needs of the IPY community. Available data-related services, such as visualization and analysis tools, data and metadata handling/management, model descriptions and education/outreach materials will be collected and made easily accessible through the portal network. To facilitate access, sharing and analysis of data, the following data access mechanisms could be utilized: open APIs, HTTP, direct data link access to the NADC/WDC, small data storage, a web MapServer, a Live Access Server (LAS), and a metadata database system. All of the resources listed above will be made freely available and shared with all IPY and non-IPY projects, organizations and individuals that choose to participate. Perhaps the most important contribution may prove to be the Local Database Agent (LDA) software component that has been developed to synchronize inputs to distributed databases from multiple sources. To assure quality, this essential component maintains the integrity of the infrastructure through its assurance of unique identifiers for incoming data entries.

Will the project leave a legacy of infrastructure?
The cyberspace network will provide immediate benefits to the IPY scientific and data/information management communities by improving the discovery, access to, and exchange of polar data sets among nations. By fostering and encouraging the stewardship of polar data sets and services, a legacy of "e-science" beyond IPY 2007-2008 will provide the infrastructure and capability to assess changes in the polar regions - critical for comparative studies in the future. Within this infrastructure, access to data-related services will be preserved. This international network will also result in a legacy of web-based partners beyond IPY.

How is it envisaged that the required logistic support will be secured?
Consortium
Own national polar operator
Another national polar operator
National agency
Commercial operator
Own support
Other sources of support

Has the project been "endorsed" at a national or international level?
NASA's GCMD has been active at the national and international level for many years through its involvement with the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS). It serves CEOS as the International Directory Network (IDN) and communicates through a forum of participants, who share thoughts for direction and development related to metadata and/or data interoperability. Furthermore, the GCMD benefits from an active, multidisciplinary Science User Working Group (UWG) in an effort to continue improving the quality of its metadata management.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE

Is the project a short-term expansion (over the IPY 2007-2008 timeframe) of an existing plan, programme or initiative or is it a new autonomous proposal?
Expansion

The project is a component of an existing infrastructure that was designed to support NASA's data. The metadata segment (the directory) has also served as a contribution to NASA's interagency and international efforts. It has now matured and developed over time to serve broader and more diverse communities. Through adaptations and extensions made to better serve the needs of NASA's Earth Science Information Partners (ESIPs) within the Federation and other related projects, requirements for the project have grown. In response, the directory's capabilities have been extended to include direct access to data and the addition of further query refinements to locate data - as the database has grown beyond 16,000 entries. Experiments with distributed databases have educated the staff on feasible solutions to handle growing numbers of data sets and services. The concept of distributed databases employing the Local Database Agent (LDA) concept previously descri! bed will accelerate the ability to respond to extended requirements. The proposed infrastructure model is an innovative, efficient method to manage data and metadata for large-scale projects such as IPY, without requiring regional and/or national data centres from participating countries to submit their data to one national data centre with a pre-defined location. Within this cyberspace model, metadata and information will be distributed through a cyberspace network, where data will be stored at participating National Antarctic Data Centres (NADC). This will not only save time and money, but will leave a legacy of "e-science" metadata management for future generations.

How will the project be organised and managed?
The project would capitalize on existing collaborations with the goal to collect, organise and manage past, current and future metadata relevant to the IPY 2007-2008. Designated coordinators, web designers and programmers would have the responsibility to administer, customize and maintain the IPY portal network for long-term discovery and access of IPY data sets. Upon request from national data centres, customized web-portals could be added, allowing them to document and expose their data in one place without the need to create another online directory. The metadata submission will be primarily managed by the data providers and their respective data centres. We plan to be actively involved in the pre-metadata and metadata collection by providing, when needed, on-site help, customisation of metadata tools and on-line documentation. Data-related services would be made easily accessible through the IPY portal network (see section 2.3). Through on-line visualization tools such as a MapServer and a Live Access Server (LAS), users could have the opportunity to view, compare, and analyse data and model outputs.

What are the initial plans of the project for addressing the education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
In addition to facilitating data discovery and data access, the GCMD is committed to providing and maintaining a community-based network - addressing education, outreach and communication issues as outlined by the Framework document. Information gathered during the preliminary, implementation and post-year stages of the IPY project can be made readily available to the general public and scientific community through a service network (including among others data analysis and visualization, metadata and data management/handling, education/outreach on-line materials). The GCMD will also serve as a vehicle to facilitate communication within the polar communities through its portal network. Furthermore, through our "Learning Centre", we will continue our commitment to education beyond IPY.

What are the initial plans of the project to address data management issues (as outlined in the Framework document?
The IPY Metadata Centre's initial plans, as part of the DIS, are to work closely with the IPY Program Office, the Data Policy and Management Sub-Committee and other organizations to explore the needs of the IPY community, and come to a consensus about data and information management policy and strategy (including metadata). In addition, the GCMD will respond to any special and/or additional needs of the IPY community. Initial tasks might include uniquely identifying additional polar-related data sets (from historical data sets and harvesting from other metadata sites) and data-related services, providing on-line documentation and on-site help, and customizing existing metadata tools and database fields to meet the needs of the polar community.

How is it proposed to fund the project?
Funding would be requested from the National Science Foundation for dedicated science coordinators, support for associated field activities, and software customisation. We expect that NASA will continue to support the directory as a long-term endeavour. Because the infrastructure is being built on an existing framework, it is expected to be cost-efficient, with low long-term maintenance once fully established. We recognize, however, that this distributed effort demands the existence, participation, and collaboration of established data centres, organizations, and individuals. Thus, we plan on working closely with partners such as NSIDC and JCADM.

Is there additional information you wish to provide?
We hope to contribute by bringing our long-term experience, knowledge of data and information management, and open-minded approach to create a new and effective model for data and information management.

PROPOSER DETAILS

Ms Lola Olsen
Code 902
Goddard Space Flight Center
20771
USA

Tel: 301-614-5361
Mobile: 301-928-8978
Fax: 301-614-5268
Email:

Other project members and their affiliation