Environmental Data Management at NOAA Archiving, Stewardship, and Access (2007) / Chapter Skim
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5 What to Archive
5 What to Archive
Pages 55-68
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From page 55... ...
Before a diverse group of users can be provided with a wide spectrum of useful and reliable environmental data, it must first be decided what data to include in the data archive. The decision to archive or not to archive a data set is often made before the data actually become available (for instance, as part of the requisite data management planning now required for all new NOAA data streams)
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From page 56... ...
specific, leaving data managers with considerable flexibility, but also little guidance, for determining which data sets to archive. Based on this committee's review of current data management practices at NOAA, it appears that most archiving decisions are made in a deliberate manner and with a concerted effort to meet user needs.
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From page 57... ...
Creating a complete, publicly available inventory of NOAA's data would be a logical first step, and the resulting guidelines and procedures for data archiving would need to be sufficiently flexible and adaptable to accommodate the ongoing nature of the data life cycle and the wide spectrum of different kinds of environmental data managed by NOAA's National Data Centers and centers of data (the entities that would ultimately be responsible for implementation)
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From page 58... ...
Most environmental observations are irreplaceable, since resampling is usually impossible, and are expensive to obtain, especially compared to typical data management costs. Although it is extremely difficult to assess the quantitative value of most Original Data, especially for future applications, access to a broad and continuous collection of high-quality observational data is essential to long-term environmental monitoring, model development and testing, and many other areas of Earth System research.
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From page 59... ...
NOAA should consider employing similar techniques for some of its data, especially the data expected from the National Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) and NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP)
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From page 60... ...
In order to improve the cost-effectiveness of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data archive, the data will be moved from the central Goddard Earth Sciences Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC)
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From page 61... ...
Some of the data used to create Hydrometeorological, Hazardous Chemical Spill, and Space Weather Warnings, Forecasts, and Advisories (Appendix C) may also fall under this guideline, such as long-range and intermediate forecast model output or high-volume data (sub-second wind or radar returns, for instance)
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From page 62... ...
As noted previously, not all data sets are of equal value, and practical constraints prevent all data from being archived and made readily accessible, so at some point certain data will need to be designated for reduced archiving and/or access requirements. Ideally, this decision would be made based on the current utility and potential future value of the data, but as noted at several points in this report, it is extremely difficult to assess even the current value of any particular environmental data stream (see, for example, Millard et al., 1998)
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From page 63... ...
satellite imagery, which is archived at the National Snow and Ice Data Center for use in analyzing snow cover and is only available in hard copy format. However, it is imperative to make certain that the data could still be retrieved if needed, and implementation of this guideline at NOAA would likely require some modification to existing policies across the agency.
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From page 64... ...
In regard to data archiving decisions, which are inherently complex, feedback from users is critical to help data stewards evaluate the current uses and potential future societal benefits associated with a particular data set or general category of data. While such evaluations must necessarily be qualitative in nature, even a relative assessment of the current or likely future value of data is critical for three main purposes: (1)
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From page 65... ...
In the case of decisions to stop archiving data, which are irrevocable, it is essential to notify and actively engage the broadest possible spectrum and number of users before final disposal of the data. Currently, NOAA data managers only notify known stakeholders (that is, historically active users and, sometimes, data managers at other agencies)
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From page 66... ...
Guideline: NOAA should establish close partnerships with other national and international data holding institutions and engage these institutions as part of the archiving process. It is important to have clear agreement on which partner has what archival responsibility.
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From page 67... ...
Moreover, a number of program elements within NASA were not made aware of NOAA's decision for some time. Fortunately, NASA has subsequently found a way to take on the archiving responsibilities for the remaining EOS data sets through several of its distributed data archives, but it is unclear how discoverable these data will be to regular NOAA archive users or what further inefficiencies this unfortunate lack of coordination might engender.
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From page 68... ...
68 ENVIRONMENTAL DATA MANAGEMENT AT NOAA the beginning of the data collection campaign, closer ongoing collaboration is needed to make certain that all environmental data are properly archived. If interagency agreements continue to prove ineffective, other mechanisms for improving coordination, such as oversight at the CCSP, Office of Management and Budget, and/or Office of Science and Technology Policy levels, should also be considered.
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