British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC)

Improving access to NERC data for organisations outside of academia.

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 06 Mar 2018 09:00:00 +0000

Are you working for a business that is using NERC or other environmental data, or would like to be able to use such data? Are these data uses supporting business activities that are outside of academia? If your answer is “yes” to both questions, then we would like to hear from you.

NERC would like to improve the accessibility of data held by NERC data centres and to develop new tools and services to drive innovation within a digital economy. The centre of current ambitions is the creation of new business opportunities. To this end we are currently undertaking a discovery project to establish non-academic requirements for an Environmental Information and Innovation Hub.

Examples of business uses of NERC data include the use of:

modelling techniques by Pest Risk Information Service to predict crop loss caused by pests (such as insects, mites and plant pathogens) in up to six countries in sub-Saharan Africa
climate simulations by the oil and gas industry to estimate the profitability of damage to assets (e.g. via sea level rise, storm surge, heat/cold)
weather data by power companies to predict demand
weather data for the management of motorway traffic
data from air quality measurements by Councils to monitor "clean air zones".

There are plenty of other examples, and your need for environmental data may be entirely different. The first stage of this project is a survey. If you are a non-academic user (in the private, public or third sector) of NERC or other environmental data or plan to become one, we would be grateful if you could spare 10 to 15 minutes of your time to complete this survey. Your input will help us greatly to shape our future services in a way that supports your business needs.

The survey is open until mid-April 2018 and can be found at https://bodc.me/eds

Argo Data Manager vacancy at the British Oceanographic Data Centre

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Wed, 27 Sep 2017 07:49:00 +0000

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) is part of a worldwide network of oceanographic data centres created to support global, regional and climate-related studies of the world’s oceans. We are at the forefront of managing and disseminating large, complex marine data sets. We are a component of the Natural Environment Research Council’s (NERC) environmental data centre network and collaborate widely with other national data centres and international initiatives, to make marine data discoverable and easily available to scientists, policy makers, industry and the public. BODC is part of the National Oceanography Centre (NOC).

About the role:

Based at our Liverpool site, you will lead our team of Argo data managers ensuring that data collected by Argo floats on a variety of research projects flows through our near-real time data management systems and that a high quality delayed mode data set is curated and made widely available for long term re-use.

You will receive training in the processes and systems so that you can provide expertise in the management of Argo data to a range of national/international BODC data projects. Argo floats collect a range of data from physical parameters through to biogeochemistry. You need to be open to learning areas of science that may be new to you – for example if you are a physicist, you may be required to gain knowledge in biogeochemistry (or vice versa).

You will be expected to develop solutions for the management of data within your area of responsibility. You will also be expected to work closely with project scientists and to develop a clear scientific insight into the data being handled.

You will be expected to become an expert in quality control of delayed mode data, optimising the scientific use of the data.

As project manager for the Argo portfolio of projects, you will be expected to comply with NERC and EU project reporting requirements. You will also be responsible for managing a portfolio of other data management projects, for which BODC is the designated Data Centre. The work is intellectually challenging and fulfilling. Some seagoing work may be arranged to familiarise the successful candidate with data collection techniques.

About you:

To be successful in this role you will need to understand the value of sharing quality marine science data. You will have a degree or post-graduate qualification in marine science, ideally with experience in Argo science, and experience of working with large scientific datasets. You will be comfortable presenting and reporting our work to UK and international audiences. Well-developed computer skills will be required, including some scientific programming experience. Good communication, planning and problem solving skills are highly desirable, as is experience in project management.

Salary:

The starting salary for this position will be £28,200 per annum (Band 6). Depending upon skills and experience, a salary uplift and/or additional allowances may be available for exceptional candidates.

Hours of Work:

The hours of working are full time.

About you:

To be successful in this role you will need to understand the value of sharing quality marine science data. You will have a degree or post-graduate qualification in marine science with experience of working with large scientific datasets. Well-developed computer skills will be required, ideally, including some scientific programming experience. Good communication, planning and problem solving skills are highly desirable, as is an understanding of project management.

What we can offer you:

The NOC is committed to making the NOC ‘a great place to be, where our people succeed and deliver great work’. The NOC is committed to being recognised as a flexible employer to support employees’ work and personal commitments where possible. Our flexi-time system and flexible working policy contribute to this important aim.

In return for your talents, we offer a competitive remuneration package, including a RCUK pension scheme, 30 days annual leave with a further 14 Public/local days off and low cost car-parking. Opportunities for further training and development are supported.

For more information visit working at NOC.

About us:

The National Oceanography Centre (NOC), part of the Natural Environment Research Council, is a national research organisation, delivering integrated marine science and technology from the coast to the deep ocean and is one of the top five institutions of its kind in the world.

With sites in Liverpool and Southampton, it is the UK’s leading centre for sea level science, coastal and deep ocean research and technology development. Working closely with its partners and associates, it provides capability to meet needs across the UK marine science community (http://noc.ac.uk/).

From April 2018, the NOC, a component part of the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), will be part of UK Research and Innovation. UK Research and Innovation will bring together the seven Research Councils, Innovate UK and a new organisation, Research England. The vision for the new organisation is to be the best research and innovation organisation in the world. More information can be found online at http://www.ukri.org/. From April 2018, you will be employed by UK Research and Innovation.

Our Commitment as an Employer:

The NOC is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. People with disabilities and those from ethnic minorities are currently under-represented and their applications are particularly welcome. The NOC is an Investors in People organisation and is working towards achieving Bronze status for Athena SWAN – a scheme that recognizes excellence in women's employment in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) in UK higher education. There is a guaranteed Interview Scheme for suitable candidates with disabilities.

How to apply:

All internal and external applications are handled by the UK Shared Business Services Ltd (UK SBS). For further information about the role and to apply, please visit our website at http://topcareer.jobs/ quoting reference number IRC242793.

To apply, please submit an up-to-date CV (including covering letter explaining how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role). If you are unable to apply online, please contact us by telephone on 00 44 (0) 1793 867003.

Closing date:

8th October 2017

Interview dates:

24th, 25th and 26th October 2017

Job Description and Person Specification

Software Development Manager vacancy at the British Oceanographic Data Centre

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Mon, 10 Jul 2017 11:57:00 +0000

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) is recruiting a Software Development Manager. This is your opportunity to build complex, high-performing systems in a data-rich research environment, helping the world to understand and adapt to climate change by making sense of the changing seas.

About the role

BODC is built around our in-house software systems that manage and disseminate complex marine science data sets. Hence, software development is core to our success. The purpose of this role is to lead the BODC systems team including: project delivery, team capability, software development tools, methodologies and technical strategies.

This is a full time, permanent position offered on Natural Environment Research Centre (NERC) terms and conditions and is open to internal and external candidates.

Salary

This is a Band 4 position and the starting salary will be between £45,271 to £49,119 per annum.

About you

Do you want to contribute to our understanding of the changing oceans? You may be an experienced software development manager looking for an exciting opportunity to apply your expertise in a data-rich research environment or perhaps a senior data manager with extensive software development experience looking for that next step into a senior management role. You will have an interest and an aptitude for building high performing teams and well-designed software systems. Experience with specific technologies (but we don’t use much Microsoft) is less important than an understanding of development methodologies, tools and teams. Reflecting the growing importance of our software development team, this is a new position, so would suit someone with initiative and who wants to contribute to the scope of the role.

Your work experience will be complemented with a good honours degree (or masters) in Computer Science. An interest in marine or environmental science and working with scientific data would nicely round out your suitability.

What we can offer you

In return for your contribution, we offer a competitive remuneration package, including a RCUK pension scheme, 30 days annual leave with a further 14 local and public days. Opportunities for further training and development are supported.

About BODC

The British Oceanographic Data Centre is part of the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) and works closely with other groups in NOC to provide a deck-to-desktop data delivery service to the international marine science community. BODC is part of a worldwide network of oceanographic data centres created to support global, regional and climate-related studies of the world’s oceans. We are at the forefront of managing and disseminating large, complex marine data sets. We are a component of NERC’s environmental data centre network and collaborate widely with other international data centres, on interoperability and semantic web initiatives, to make data discoverable and easily available to scientists, the marine community, industry and the public.

About NOC

The National Oceanography Centre, part of the Natural Environment Research Council, is a national research organisation, delivering integrated marine science and technology from the coast to the deep ocean and is one of the top five institutions of its kind in the world.

With sites in Liverpool and Southampton, it is the UK’s leading centre for sea level science, coastal and deep ocean research and technology development. Working closely with its partners and associates, it provides capability to meet needs across the UK marine science community (http://noc.ac.uk/).

For further information visit www.bodc.ac.uk & noc.ac.uk or contact Dr Graham Allen at: graham.allen@noc.ac.uk to arrange an informal chat about the role.

Our Commitment as an Employer

NOC is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. People with disabilities and those from ethnic minorities are currently under-represented and their applications are particularly welcome. The NOC is an Investors in People organisation and is working towards achieving Bronze status for Athena SWAN – a scheme that recognizes excellence in women's employment in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) in UK higher education. There is a guaranteed Interview Scheme for suitable candidates with disabilities.

NOC is committed to making the NOC ‘a great place to be, where our people succeed and deliver great work’. NOC is committed to being recognised as a flexible employer to support employees’ work and personal commitments where possible and the NOC’s Flexible Working Policy gives all employees the right to request flexible working.

How to apply

Applications are handled by the UK Shared Business Services Ltd (UK SBS); for further information about the role please visit their website at http://topcareer.jobs/ quoting reference number IRC241714. Applicants should provide a CV and covering letter explaining your suitability for the position. If you are unable to apply online please contact us by telephone on 00 44 (0) 1793 867003.

Closing date

The closing date is 13th August 2017. We plan to hold interviews on the 23rd and 24th of August 2017.

Changes to the NERC Vocabulary Server

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 26 Aug 2016 11:19:00 +0000

The NVS2.0 service has been in place since 2012 and while the British Ocenographic Data Centre (BODC) has maintained the original NVS (NVS1.0) service to allow users to switch at their convenience, removal of the NVS1.0 service is necessary to allow future enhancements and functionality to NVS2.0. From December 2016 the NVS1.0 service, which is accessed from http://vocab.ndg.nerc.ac.uk will no longer be available.

An example of XML output from the NVS ©

Vocabulary service users should ensure they are using the services as documented from http://vocab.nerc.ac.uk.

For users that have embedded NVS1.0 URLs within their data files the NVS1.0 URLs will be redirected to the equivalent NVS2.0 URLs, so updating of local data holdings should not be necessary prior to the removal of NVS1.0.

If you have problems switching to NVS2.0 or concerns over the removal of the NVS1.0 please contact enquiries@bodc.ac.uk before 01 November 2016.

We would value your feedback

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 14:27:00 +0000

To meet the needs of the UK's underwater noise community, the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) is working to develop an archival and delivery system for high volume acoustic data.

A minke whale in Skjálfandi Bay, Iceland ©

BODC are committed to providing

A data upload area
A secure archive
A bespoke delivery service (with discovery metadata records and a download platform)

Due to the high volume nature of acoustic data, BODC propose using the JASMIN super-computing facility to securely archive your data. A fully automated submission procedure will allow easy data and metadata submission. As experts in marine data management, BODC will ensure that submitted data are of an appropriate standard and quality for long-term archival and reuse. Data will then be available for download.

In addition, JASMIN provides an environment for data analysis by allowing users to upload tools for interrogating archived data. Given sufficient support and feedback from the scientific community, it is proposed that BODC will support such a data analysis environment for users.

To support this development project please participate in a short online survey, which should take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Feedback will be collated anonymously but you are invited to provide contact details if there are any aspects you would be happy for us to follow up with you.

The closing date for the survey is Friday 22nd July 2016.

British Oceanographic Data Centre at the Forum for Future Ocean Floor Mapping

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 17 Jun 2016 14:07:00 +0000

Dr Graham Allen, Head of BODC & GEBCO Guiding Committee member and Pauline Weatherall, GEBCO Digital Atlas Manager are welcomed to the GEBCO Forum for Future Ocean Floor Mapping by Shin Tani, Chair of GEBCO Committee.

Graham Allen and Pauline Weatherall with Shin Tani at the GEBCO Forum ©

Measuring and mapping the shape of the ocean floor is a crucial component of oceanographic research worldwide. Bathymetry helps provide a better understanding of coastal erosion, storm surges and the threat of tsunamis, along with ocean currents and tidal flows worldwide. It is essential for assessing the impact of sea-level rises, exploring for oil, gas and mineral resources and lies at the heart of safe navigation.

The GEBCO Forum for Future Ocean Floor Mapping, opened by Prince Albert II of Monaco, brings together world experts in ocean mapping. Its aim is to develop the GEBCO Roadmap for Future Ocean Floor Mapping, which will enable us to realise our vision of mapping 100% of the ocean floor.

About GEBCO

The General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) provides the most authoritative, publicly-available bathymetry datasets for the world’s oceans. GEBCO operates under the joint auspices of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) and the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).

Titanic wreck discoverer speaks at Ocean Floor Forum

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Thu, 26 May 2016 14:03:00 +0000

Among keynote speakers at a major conference on the comprehensive mapping of the ocean floor in Monaco, June 2016, is Dr Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985. Dr Ballard is Director of the Center for Ocean Exploration at the Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island and President of the Ocean Exploration Trust that operates one of America’s dedicated ships of exploration.

Forum for Future Ocean Floor mapping

The conference, the Forum for Future Ocean Floor Mapping, is being held jointly by the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO), and The Nippon Foundation, a private philanthropic foundation with its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan.

The Forum will bring together over 150 senior representatives, scientists and scholars from major ocean-related and international organisations, to discuss the importance of understanding the shape of the ocean floor. The Forum will culminate in the development of a Roadmap for Future Ocean Floor Mapping.

About GEBCO

GEBCO consists of an international group of experts who work on the development of a range of bathymetric data sets and data products with the aim of providing the most authoritative publically-available bathymetry for the world’s oceans and operates under the joint auspices of the International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO.

The GEBCO chart series was initiated in 1903 by Prince Albert I of Monaco. Five paper editions of the GEBCO chart series were produced, with the Fifth Edition published in the 1980’s. Since then, GEBCO has largely concentrated on developing and making available digital bathymetric data sets and products.

BODC and GEBCO

Through funding provided by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) has been involved in GEBCO’s activities since the early 1990’s – hosting the role of the GEBCO Digital Atlas Manager. On behalf of GEBCO this has involved the development of the GEBCO Digital Atlas (GDA); the maintenance and delivery of GEBCO’s gridded bathymetric data sets, and hosting and maintaining GEBCO’s web site.

Pauline Weatherall (GEBCO Digital Atlas Manager) and Graham Allen (Head of BODC and GEBCO Guiding Committee Member) look forward to meeting you at this exciting Forum for Future Ocean Floor Mapping.

National Oceanography Centre IT Manager vacancy

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 06 May 2016 09:50:00 +0000

The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) is seeking an IT Manager to lead our 30-strong IT Team.

The team delivers the enabling IT services to research scientists, National Marine Facilities and corporate teams totaling 600 users across the 2 NOC sites in Southampton and Liverpool and to a further 400 users of our partners (including the University of Southampton) co-located at our waterfront Southampton location.

The role has everything you would expect in a leading research science organisation: delivery of HPC services, management of network infrastructure, an extensive suite of desktops and associated service desk support and provision of database and web services.

The role is diverse, being responsible for all aspects of IT delivery including team management, budgets, security, relationship management and technical co-ordination. [More information]

BODC at the 2016 Challenger Conference

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 01 Mar 2016 16:22:00 +0000

The 17th biennial Challenger Conference takes place in Liverpool on 05–09 September 2016, hosted jointly by the National Oceanography Centre, the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University.

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) is involved in two sessions and a new data management special interest group.

Challenger Society for Marine Science logo©

The sessions are: Science impacts through Open Data and Technological advancement and democratisation of ocean observing systems.

Abstract submission is now open and registration will be available from March. Authors are invited to submit abstracts for inclusion in the conference program. Please follow the 'abstract submission' link for full details of the other sessions.

For details of the special Challenger Society for Marine Science's interest group please contact Matt Donnelly at BODC.

We value your feedback

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 16 Oct 2015 15:25:00 +0000

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) is reviewing our website and data delivery mechanisms. We are inviting feedback from the marine data user community about their preferences and experiences of searching and interacting with marine data holdings, both in general and more specifically those managed by the BODC.

BODC web site ©

The survey can be accessed through the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/marine_data_survey

We hope to use this feedback to improve our ability to provide our holdings to those who wish to access and use marine data.

You are invited to take a short online survey of up to 15 questions, which should take between 10 and 15 minutes to complete. Feedback will be collected anonymously but you are invited to provide contact details if there are any aspects you would be happy for us to follow up with you.

Vocabulary search interface released

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 29 Sep 2015 13:20:00 +0000

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) announces the release of its search client for the NERC Vocabulary Server, NVS2.0

This tool provides easy access to nearly 200 controlled vocabularies, describing over 100,000 environmental metadata terms. It enables powerful search options for both lay users and experts.

The NVS2.0 advanced search interface ©

To cater for a variety of needs, the simple, free-text search is tuned to give the best results for casual browsing, while the advanced options allow "power users" to tailor the tool to their methods.

NVS2.0 and the controlled vocabularies it hosts, are used worldwide by the environmental data community. In addition to the new Vocabulary search, NVS2.0 provides linked data access. Widespread use of the NVS2.0 vocabularies enhances interoperability of environmental data systems, and promotes data discovery and reuse. BODC invites you to explore, use and contribute to this international resource.

To find out more about NVS2.0, read about the NERC Vocabulary Server.

British Oceanographic Data Centre at GEOTRACES Annual Meeting

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Mon, 10 Aug 2015 10:47:00 +0000

In July 2015, Abby Bull (GEOTRACES Data Manager) and Graham Allen (Head of BODC) attended meetings of the GEOTRACES Scientific Steering Committee (SSC) and Data Management Committee (DMC) at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. These annual meetings focus on GEOTRACES data management, as well as the overall running of the project (overseen by the SSC; a committee comprising 15 international representatives, the DMC Co-chairs and the GEOTRACES Data Manager).

Participants at the GEOTRACES meeting ©

GEOTRACES is an international study of the marine biogeochemical cycles of trace elements’ isotopes. The programme, involving scientists from 35 nations, plans to cover all major ocean basins over the next decade. To date, 747 stations have been sampled during 52 cruises, resulting in over 1000 hydrographical and geochemical data sets.

To facilitate access to the data, the first GEOTRACES Intermediate Data Product (IDP) is now freely available online. It contains data collected and quality-controlled up to the end of 2013. It includes contributions from laboratories around the world involved with the GEOTRACES programme, who’ve shared hydrographic and marine geochemical data in order to strengthen relationships within the oceanographic community. These results will prove useful in many fields of oceanography and the timely release of quality-controlled data is of great benefit to marine research. An electronic atlas, eGEOTRACES, providing 2D and 3D images of the oceanic distribution of many of the parameters, accompanies the digital data.

The second IDP will be launched at 2017's Goldschmidt Conference in Paris. The British Oceanographic Data Centre is looking forward to being involved and continuing to contribute.

BODC working with BCO-DMO on GEOTRACES

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Wed, 15 Jul 2015 14:17:00 +0000

Abby Bull, Data Manager for the GEOTRACES project, and Head of the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) Graham Allen recently spent time with colleagues at the Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO) at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in Massachusetts, USA.

Abby Bull (BODC) with Shannon Rauch and Bob Groman (BCO-DMO) outside the BCO-DMO office at WHOI. ©

The purpose of the visit was twofold; as well as agreeing GEOTRACES data exchange protocols both parties discussed how the two highly-regarded data centres can build on their long history of collaboration.

BCO-DMO is a combination of formerly independent Data Management Offices formed to support large US research programmes. Its staff work with scientists to make data from US National Science Foundation (NSF) research projects available online.

A Korean delegation visits the British Oceanographic Data Centre

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 14 Jul 2015 15:26:00 +0000

On 24 June 2015, it was with great pleasure that members of the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) team met with three delegates from the Republic of Korea.

Professor Wonsik "Jeff" Shim from Sungkyunkwan University and Senior Researchers Myung-Seok Choi and Jeonghoon Lee from the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KiSTi) visited us to learn more about our approach to marine data management.

Some of the BODC Senior Management team with the Korean delegates ©

The delegation was in the UK to learn more about best practice in research data management. The Korean Government is keen to understand the UK's model and introduce a Data Management Policy to maximise impact from its research activities. Discussion topics during the visit included BODC's 'end to end' approach to data management, UK data policy and how it works in practice, the data standards we employ and the technology we use to underpin our infrastructure.

We enjoyed the visit and hope that the information imparted will prove useful to the delegation.

Surgewatch: making sea level data more discoverable

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 30 Jun 2015 11:36:00 +0000

Surgewatch is a database set up to provide a UK-wide record of high sea level and coastal flood events covering the last 100 years. It is maintained by the University of Southampton (UofS), the National Oceanography Centre (NOC) and the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC).

Storm surges can create higher than usual tides ©

The sea level data comes from BODC, which archives and distributes data from the UK Tide Gauge Network. The sea level exceedance probabilities are derived from a recent national study commissioned by the Environment Agency (EA); the storm information comes from a global meteorological dataset of mean sea level pressure and near-surface wind fields (20th Century Reanalysis Version 2, NOAA).

All of these data have been collated to describe the 96 largest storms from 1915-2014, the highest sea levels they produced and a description of the coastal flooding that occurred during each event.

The database is described by a Data Descriptor article published in Scientific Data, part of the Nature Publishing Group. It publishes open-access, peer-reviewed articles with the aim of making data more discoverable, interpretable and reusable. To make it easier to access to the database, the Surgewatch team have built an accompanying web site.

The data are presented to be easily accessible and understandable to a range of users including scientists, coastal engineers, planners and concerned citizens. Our vision is to progressively expand and update this database. We welcome user contributions (eyewitness accounts, videos, photographs etc. - please don’t put yourself at risk during a storm though!)

ODIP: solving the 'patchwork data' problem

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 05 Jun 2015 10:49:00 +0000

Oceans, and the processes within them, have no concept of international boundaries. The same can't be said for the way we manage the data collected in their study. To enable major scientific advances, oceanographic researchers need to get the most complete picture possible but existing oceanographic data are scattered in national and regional repositories.

Participants at the 4^th ODIP workshop ©

The Ocean Data Interoperability Platform (ODIP) project aims to solve the accessibility problem by establishing a means of sharing and managing marine data seamlessly between the EU, USA and Australia. The ODIP approach is to develop interoperability between existing regional marine e-infrastructures to create a global framework for marine data management.

Over the past three years, data management experts from across the globe have been working together to develop prototypes to meet this interoperability goal. The 4^th ODIP workshop was hosted by the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) in Liverpool during April 2015 to discuss and share progress in key areas.

Central to interoperability is the NERC Vocabulary Server (NVS2.0) developed and maintained by BODC. It provides data managers with agreed, well-defined marine terms via controlled vocabularies and enables mappings to other vocabularies elsewhere. It addresses the problem of ambiguities associated with data markup and enables records to be interpreted by computer. This opens data up to a whole world of possibilities from computer-aided search, manipulation and federated distribution via Linked Data applications.

For more than ten years, the NERC Vocabulary Server has been used operationally by over 35 countries to support the EU SeaDataNet-2 programme (and its forerunners). NVS2.0 has set the standard for a service of its kind and has therefore been utilised within ODIP prototype 2 to underpin interoperability by linking the EU, US and Australian research cruise programmes, providing cruise information at an international level.

Roy Lowry, BODC Technical Consultant, "The meeting demonstrated how the NERC Vocabulary Server provides a solid foundation on which oceanographic Linked Data applications for the Semantic Web may be built. Seeing 25 years' work delivering such exciting results provides me with great satisfaction."

Such is the importance of interoperability, funding to continue the transcontinental ODIP collaboration for a further three years has been approved by the EU. Helen Glaves of the British Geological Survey, who is co-leading ODIP with Dick Schaap of MARIS BV, welcomed the extension: "ODIP has already succeeded in demonstrating a coordinated approach to the sharing of marine data on a global scale through the development of prototypes. This new funding will not only allow these prototypes to become fully operational, but will also enable us to widen the scope of the current project".

BODC at Young Coastal Scientists and Engineers Conference

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 10:28:00 +0000

The 11^th Young Coastal Scientists and Engineers Conference takes place at Manchester Conference Centre on Monday 23 and Tuesday 24 March 2015. It is hosted by the University of Manchester's School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering (MACE). This annual event, first held in 2005, will build on the success of previous conferences - furthering its aim to foster an integrated UK coastal research community.

YCSEC 2015 ©

Coastal physical process research in the UK occurs within several disciplines (oceanography, geography, geology, engineering). The interaction between different groups is often limited and this lack of integration is felt most by young researchers. This interdisciplinary conference is aimed at young scientists and engineers concerned with any aspect of physical coastal science or engineering. It specifically allows young researchers the opportunity to discuss and present their work in an informal setting.

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) will be present, making a case for the importance of data management with a poster entitled "Data Management- from collection to archival". If you are attending the event and have any questions that you would like to discuss, please contact Joana Beja at BODC.

EnviroHack 2015 kicks off

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 27 Feb 2015 15:33:00 +0000

NERC's Head of Science Information and Data Management Coordinator, Mark Thorley, opened the NERC EnviroHack today.

This 'hackathon' event provides an exciting opportunity to collaborate and create value from environmental data sets. EnviroHack was organised by the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH).

Data collected by environmental scientists are being made available for 'hackers' to explore in new ways. The participants, including Justin Buck, Lise Quesnel and Chris Wood from BODC, will be using 'Linked Data' — a means of using web technology to link separate but related data sets.

The event, facilitated by Red Ninja Studios and supported by Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN), runs from Friday 27 February until Saturday 28 February at the Digital Catapult Centre, London. The raw data for this event comes from: BODC, CEH, the British Geological Survey (BGS), UK Data Archive, Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) and the Met Office.

BODC data encompasses measurements made from research vessels, while both underway and at sampling stations; from moorings deployed either on the sea surface, in the water column or on the sea bed; and from land-based stations recording sea level. Over 60,000 data series have been provided; each series consists of a number of data cycles. Data categories include

Acoustics
Bathymetry and topography
Currents — horizontal and vertical velocity, Lagrangian currents and water transport rates
Meteorology — Radiosonde, Met. stations and data buoys
Optical properties — pigments, turbidity, irradiance
Sea level
Water column temperature and salinity
Water column chemistry — nutrients, carbons, oxygen
Waves — statistics and spectra

BODC's metadata (information about data) are available as 5* Linked Data from a SPARQL endpoint. These metadata include links to a download service where the data they describe are available under licence.

Throwing ideas around
at the Digital Catapult Centre

Rescuing historic Maltese tide gauge data

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 14:57:00 +0000

By restoring historic tide gauge data from Malta and making it available to the public, researchers at the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) and the UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) hope to shed new light on past tsunamis and climate change in the Mediterranean.

A tide gauge installed in the Maltese port of Valetta working in 1871 offers the only continuous record of the sea level in the Southern Mediterranean longer than fifty years. However, some of the paper records it produced have deteriorated.

The project coordinator, BODC's Elizabeth Bradshaw said, "there are a limited number of long-term records of climate data in the world, so rescuing and recovering data is vital for answering questions on climate change and oceanography".

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) have provided £32,000 from their 'Breakthrough Fund' to BODC and the UKHO in order to restore these records and make them available to the public. They hope to digitise the data via a citizen science activity, once this project is complete. Once digitised, scientists will be able to use the data to look for evidence of past tsunamis and climate change.

While modern tide gauges typically only calculate the sea level once every fifteen minutes, this historic analogue gauge made a continuous recording. It worked using a float on the water that, via a system of pulleys and cogs, moved a pen up and down a paper-wrapped drum in a way that reflected the changing sea level.

The British Navy installed the gauge to ensure ships got safely in and out of the harbour and in 1877 Astronomer Royal George Airy wrote about the particularly interesting tidal signal at Valetta, caused by the ocean water sloshing back and forth across the Mediterranean basin (much as it does in a bath). The gauge remained in action until 1926.

Once the project is complete, in March of this year, the data will be made available on the BODC website as well as on data.gov.uk. The original records will remain at the UKHO.

BODC quoted in The Observer

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 08:52:00 +0000

A recent NERC research cruise, on which the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) provided on-board data management, was featured in The Observer last Sunday (25 January). The article, 'The secrets of the shelf seas – one of Earth's most important ecosystems' discussed Shelf Seas Biogeochemistry (SSB), a major UK research programme that aims to improve our understanding of how nutrients and carbon dioxide are cycled in the shelf seas surrounding the UK and north west Europe.

Dr Louise Darroch, BODC's Data Manager for SSB, has participated on two of the project's cruises to the Celtic Sea. She was interviewed by the newspaper about her participation in the second cruise, DY018, which took place on NERC's new research ship, RRS Discovery.

SSB is co-funded by NERC and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra). BODC will manage data collected during a large fieldwork campaign due to end later this year. As well as securing and quality controlling the resulting data, BODC will also facilitate data exchange between SSB programme members and the general public.

There's more information about SSB at the project website. For more details of the DY018, see the Principal Scientist's blog.

EnviroHack 2015, a two-day data jam

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Mon, 12 Jan 2015 16:10:00 +0000

EnviroHack, organised by the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) will take place in London in February. The NERC-funded 'hackathon' event will provide an exciting opportunity to collaborate and create value from environmental data sets.

Raw data collected by environmental scientists will be available for 'hackers' to explore in new ways. For example, integrating atmosphere, soil, river and ocean data from different NERC centres could allow the tracking of a pollutant from its source, through the river network and into the sea. It is becoming increasingly important to understand the Earth System holistically, rather than looking at meteorology, oceanography, ecology or hydrology in isolation.

Participants will be using 'Linked Data', a means of using web technology to link separate but related data sets. BODC has been using Linked Data in its projects for several years, most recently in the FP7-funded SenseOCEAN project. The raw data for this event will come from: BODC, CEH, the British Geological Survey (BGS), UK Data Archive, Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) and the Met Office.

Dr Adam Leadbetter, Vocabularies Manager at BODC and one of the co-ordinators of EnviroHack said: "we anticipate that attendees will come from universities, NERC institutes, public bodies and private businesses. This mix will foster new contacts and may lead to future collaboration."

There will be a few brief introductory talks on the Friday morning, after which participants will split into teams. Each team will explore the available data and produce an application prototype over the two days.

The event, facilitated by Red Ninja Studios and supported by Knowledge Transfer Network (KTN), will run from Friday 27February at 10:00am until Saturday 28February at 8:00pm at the Digital Catapult Centre, 101 Euston Road, London. To register for free or request more information, please contact Dr Graham Allen.

GEBCO_2014 Grid released

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 15:58:00 +0000

The General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) is pleased to announce the release of its latest global terrain model at 30 arc-second intervals — the GEBCO_2014 Grid. The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) maintain and distribute bathymetric grids on behalf of the GEBCO community.

The grid marks a significant update to the previous release (the GEBCO_08 Grid) and benefits from contributions from numerous data providers and mapping programmes. The updated regional compilations included in GEBCO_2014 encompass 19% of the world ocean area. These additions, mostly based on multibeam data collected using modern equipment and navigation techniques, provide substantially higher-resolution details on a 30 arc-second spacing than previously released versions of the GEBCO grid.

There is more detailed information in the documentation accompanying the data set.

Regional compilations included in the new grid:

International Bathymetric Chart of the Southern Ocean (IBCSO) v1
International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO) v3
European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODnet) Bathymetry 2013 data set
Baltic Sea Bathymetry Database
Australian Bathymetry and Topography Grid, June 2009
Global Multi-Resolution Topography (GMRT) Synthesis from the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University
Japan Coast Guard Grid for the North Western Pacific Ocean region
Updates of the South China Sea Region and waters off Chile using data supplied from Electronic Navigation Charts (ENCs)
Bathymetry of the North American Great Lakes
North Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Cadiz region
South Pacific Ocean, Coral Sea region

As with the previous release, the GEBCO_2014 grid is accompanied by a Source Identifier (SID) Grid. This indicates whether cells in the GEBCO_2014 Grid are based on soundings or existing grids or are based on interpolation.

The grid is available to download in netCDF form; it is planned to make the data available in Esri ASCII raster and data GeoTIFF formats in the near future. The grid is also available in the form of a shaded relief image via a web map service.

Excellent progress in SenseOCEAN

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Fri, 05 Dec 2014 16:14:00 +0000

The first annual, FP7 funded, SenseOCEAN project meeting shows excellent progress on the development of technologies that will enable the real time acquisition and processing of biogeochemical ocean data from a greater range of platforms than ever before.

This four year project, led by the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), saw world leading SME’s and research organisations from across Europe come together in the Technical University of Graz, Austria, in order to discuss progress on the development of a cost effective, integrated, in-situ, multifunctional sensor package for observing biogeochemical cycles in the ocean.

SenseOCEAN ©

By the time this project finishes, in 2017, the SenseOCEAN consortium aim to have developed a modular sensor system, which will be deployable on a range of platforms, including; profiling floats, deep-sea observatories, autonomous underwater vehicles and fishing vessels. Ultimately these sensors will be launched as commercially available products.

Dr Doug Connelly, project co-ordinator of SenseOCEAN, said "this project really is at the leading edge of sensor development. By taking sensor technology from the lab to the market, this project places the EU at the forefront of this technological development".

Previously many oceanographic data collection missions have been limited by the need to get instruments back in a workable condition, in order to extract data from them. The real time data processing technology being developed by SenseOCEAN will greatly expand the volume and speed at which data can be recovered from these missions.

The role of the British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) on SenseOCEAN is to run a quality control check on the data and to develop a means of using the internet to link different data sets in order to show how they are connected. Dr Adam Leadbetter, Vocabularies Manager at the BODC, explains that "this innovation, called 'linked data' has the potential to vastly improve public access to oceanographic data, as well as to enable the easier production of more accurate marine data products and reports to policy makers. For example, a documentary on life in the ocean could contain a direct link to the data on which it is based".

Dr Graham Allen, Head of BODC, said "As part of SenseOCEAN BODC will extend our Real Time Marine Data Delivery System to manage biogeochemical observations. This enhances BODC's ability to acquire and deliver data in real time to other projects and interested parties; significantly increasing the accessibility of marine data".

Marine Environmental Data and Information Network Coordinator

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 13:04:00 +0000

Dr. Clare Postlethwaite has been appointed coordinator of the Marine Environmental Data and Information Network (MEDIN).

Clare joined MEDIN two years ago as a member of the Core Team with responsibility for metadata and data standards. During this time she has worked with members of the marine community from across the public and private sectors. She believes MEDIN’s goal is to make it easier to share marine data for both data collectors and data users and looks forward to working on ways to achieve this goal.

Clare completed her PhD in Oceanography in 2002 and her background in oceanographic research means that in addition to the data management experience she has acquired since working for MEDIN, she also has experience of generating large marine data sets and the problems associated with reusing other people’s marine data.

MEDIN is a partnership of UK organisations committed to improving access to marine data. Our partners are both public and private sector. MEDIN reports directly to the Marine Science Coordination Committee (MSCC).

Ocean Data Interoperability

noreply@blogger.com (BODC) — Tue, 23 Sep 2014 15:38:00 +0000

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) recently took part in the 3rd Ocean Data Interoperability Platform (ODIP) workshop in Townsville, Australia.

ODIP is a transcontinental collaboration between marine data management experts from the EU, Australia and the USA, scheduled to last for three years (01 October 2012 - 31 September 2015). ODIP focuses on knowledge sharing and collaborative development activities to harmonise and enhance ocean data management globally.

It provides BODC with an opportunity to promote our global systems, exchange expertise with other partners and participate in the development of international systems. Development activities include

Prototype 1 — Data centre interoperability
This activity aims to establish interoperability between the EU SeaDataNet Common Data Index (CDI), the US National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) and Australia's Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS) data discovery and access services.
Prototype 2 — Research cruise metadata
This activity aims to link the EU, US and Australian research cruise programmes to provide cruise information at an international level. The Partnership for Observation of the Global Oceans (POGO) will provide a global cruise metadata repository.
Prototype 3 — Sensor Observation Services (SOS)
The SOS activity aims to develop standards-based automated machine-to-machine data delivery and collection system. Such systems can potentially enhance real-time data delivery. BODC is working on a prototype SOS installation as part of the SenseOCEAN project.
Vocabularies
BODC plays a big part in vocabulary interoperability and this is an area that's becoming increasingly important. ODIP aims to increase the uptake of, fills gaps in and interlink existing vocabulary and persistent identifier services.
Data publication and citation
This aims to share data publication techniques and practices to ensure a consistent global approach to data publication. At the workshop, BODC presented the update to our Published Data Library and recent progress on the citation of dynamic data.
Data Ingestion
This aims to exchange knowledge with a view to improving data submission and ingestion efficiencies through the introduction of web forms. BODC presented its work on a secure file access area project.

The 4^th ODIP workshop will be hosted by the British Oceanographic Data Centre in Spring 2015. A proposal for EU Horizon 2020 funding to continue ODIP has recently been submitted. If successful, it will provide a seamless continuation of ODIP activities and bring more partners in, increasing the expertise shared.