# Presentation: 199020

## EPIC: Providing World Wide Web Access to Oceanographic Observations

- D.W. Denbo1, N.N. Soreide2, M.C. Spillane1, and W.H. Zhu1

- 1Joint Institute for the Study of Ocean and Atmosphere, University of Washington, Seattle, WA,
- 2NOAA/Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, WA

- _[http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/home.html](http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/home.html)_

## Background

- EPIC was developed at _[NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL)](http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/)__ to manage hydrographic and time series oceanographic observational data sets._
- EPIC Web tools
- Basic web utilities to reduce development time
- EPIC Web Browser provides easy access to on-line data
- Java enhanced data selection creates an improved interface to the EPIC Web Browser

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## Web Utilities

- EPIC utilities for creating dynamic Web pages include:
**AnyURL** - uses forms to point to static URLs (gif, mpeg animations, or other Web pages)
**cover** - dynamic generation of graphics or listings by running existing utilities from a Web page
**clickable maps** - cgi script translates mouse clicks on a map to a latitude-longitude rectangle
**m2gif** - convert Plot Plus output directly to gif format

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## EPIC Web Browser

- Web application for viewing observational data by creating graphics and listings “*on the fly*”.
- Uses a set of perl routines that generate HTML. Routines can be called as cgi scripts or from other perl scripts.
- Uses EPIC Web utilities to provide functionality.

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## EPIC Web Browser Capabilities

- Plot (T, S, Sigma-t, Ox) vs Pressure/Depth
- Plot Temperature vs Salinity
- Plot user-selected property vs Pressure/Depth
- Plot two user-selected Properties vs Pressure/Depth
- Plot Station Locations
- Plot Vertical Sections

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## EPIC Web Browser Capabilities (cont)

- List data files in ASCII format
- Download data file in binary (EPIC/netCDF) format
- View meta-data/attributes of data file
- Edit data file selection list
- Download data file selection list

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## Slide 7

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## Slide 8

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## Slide 9

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## Java Tools

*Java Interface to EPIC data selection*
- Combines Java applets with existing HTML forms and cgi scripts.
- Provides “*point and click*” interface to on-line databases from the Web.
- Searches databases then starts the EPIC Web Browser.

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## Slide 11

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## Java Tools (cont)

*Java-enhanced Interface to Real-time TAO Data*
- Interactive access to the most recent TAO data
- Uses existing cgi scripts to generate buoy summary plots

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

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## Slide 13

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## Availability

- EPIC is freely available and used at numerous oceanographic institutions
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute
- U.S. Geological Survey
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography
- etc ...
- Available at: _[http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/epic-toolkits.html](http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/epic-toolkits.html)_
- EPIC Home Page: _[http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/home.html](http://www.pmel.noaa.gov/epic/home.html)_
- EPIC Web Browser:* *_[http://www.epic.noaa.gov/epic/browser/browser_doc.html](http://www.epic.noaa.gov/epic/browser/browser_doc.html)_

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999

## References

- Denbo, D.W., and N.N. Soreide, 1997: EPIC. *Oceanography*, **9(3)**, 189-190.
- _[Denbo, D.W., S. Zube, D.C. McClurg, and N.N. Soreide, 1997: EPIC and TAO data access with Java applets](http://merlin.pmel.noaa.gov/dwd/talks/ams97_java/)__. _*Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Interactive Information and Processing Systems for Meteorology, Oceanography and Hydrology*, AMS, 2-7 February 1997, Long Beach, CA, 182-183.
- Renton, M.W., and N.N. Soreide, 1997: EPIC utilities for data access on the World Wide Web via forms. *Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Interactive Information and Processing Systems for Meteorology, Oceanography and Hydrology*, AMS, 2-7 February 1997, Long Beach, CA, 441-443.

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

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## References (cont)

- Zube, S., D.C. McClurg, N. Merati, M.W. Renton, T. Vance, and W.H. Zhu (1997): Live access to oceanographic databases on the World Web Web via the EPIC Web Browser. *Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Interactive Information and Processing Systems for Meteorology, Oceanography and Hydrology*, AMS, 2-7 February 1997, Long Beach, CA, 184-186.

- 15th IIPS, Dallas, TX

- January 14, 1999