# Presentation: 075150

## NCDC’s Station Metadata Activities

- Jeff Arnfield, Station History Program Manager
- Karon Mathews, NCDC Coop Administrator
- NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center
- Asheville, NC

- Ingest, Archive, Access and Issues

## NCDC’s Station Metadata Activities

- NCDC Station Metadata Personnel
- CSSA Document Processing
- MI3: NCDC’s Station Archive
- Additional Resources
- Issues For Discussion

## NCDC Station Metadata Personnel

- Henry Ray
- Metadata Team Leader; Coordination, planning & oversight
- Jeff Arnfield
- Station History Program Manager; design, operations; NESDIS ITAT Metadata Team
- Karon Mathews
- Interface with NWS; CSSA QC/entry; COOP & WBAN ID assignments
- Kristy Carver (STG)
- US CRN QC/entry, COOP QC/entry, non-Coop entry
- Mary Slagle (STG)
- Entry and correction of station details
- Charles Philips
- Inventory integration with MI3; FGDC Dataset documentation
- Chris Fenimore (STG)
- FGDC Dataset documentation; Web standards
- Jeff Alleman (on-site IMC contract programmer)
- MI3 operational support, development & enhancement
- Information Manufacturing Corporation (IMC )
- CSSA QC/Entry, MI3 design and development

## NOAA Processing of Cooperative Station Service Accountability (CSSA) Station History Documents

- Karon Mathews, NCDC Coop Administrator
- NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center
- Asheville, NC

## CSSA Manual
CSSA Report forms
NCDC MI3 Metadata Database
WSSRD – station history document images
Pre-1948 Coop station database
External geospatial resources
Mapquest, Rand McNally Atlas, Acme Mapper,  USGS Geographic Names Information System

- CSSA Report forms
- NCDC MI3 Metadata Database
- WSSRD – station history document images
- Pre-1948 Coop station database
- External geospatial resources
- Mapquest, Rand McNally Atlas, Acme Mapper,  USGS Geographic Names Information System

- CSSA DocumentsAdditional Sources of Information

## Station Name Error
Pull down tabs 
Climate division, County, Time zone
Latitude/Longitude and Source or Method
Degrees and Minutes vs. Degrees, Minutes, Seconds
Initial Database Load vs. GPS
Latitude/longitude will usually not end in “00” with GPS
Once GPS is in place, cannot go back to Initial Load

- Pull down tabs
- Climate division, County, Time zone
- Latitude/Longitude and Source or Method
- Degrees and Minutes vs. Degrees, Minutes, Seconds
- Initial Database Load vs. GPS
- Latitude/longitude will usually not end in “00” with GPS
- Once GPS is in place, cannot go back to Initial Load

- CSSA DocumentsCommon Errors

## Observer information
Observer’s Name/Focal Point
Observer Type
Individual, Institution, Government
Missing required equipment serial numbers
F&P, MMTS, Antenna and Binary-Decimal Transmitter
Obstructions
Corresponding entries in Azimuth, Distance/Range and Angle
Azimuth range exceeds 90 degrees total

- Observer’s Name/Focal Point
- Observer Type
- Individual, Institution, Government
- Missing required equipment serial numbers
- F&P, MMTS, Antenna and Binary-Decimal Transmitter
- Obstructions
- Corresponding entries in Azimuth, Distance/Range and Angle
- Azimuth range exceeds 90 degrees total

- CSSA DocumentsCommon Errors (cont)

## CSSA DocumentsCommon Errors (cont)

- Relocation
- Report Distance and Direction of station relocation or equipment move not noted in REMARKS
- Observation Time
- Automated recording precipitation gauges should be entered as MID for hourly precipitation element.  Observations taken at midnight should be entered as 2400 for elements to be published in Climatological Data (CD) publication

## CSSA DocumentsThings to Question

- Difference in Lat/Lon over 20 seconds without a change in Source or Remarks
- Difference in Elevation over 10 –15 feet
- Lack of explanation in remarks section
- Each change being made must be listed in this section leaving nothing to question
- Changes in Azimuth/Distance for pieces of equipment without an explanation
- Localized equipment move?

## Publication data and ob info observed element screen do not agree
If observed element/publication stops or is added, corresponding remark should be included 
Obstructions have not changed when a station has moved
Major change such as removal of obstructions without explanation.
Buildings, trees, houses

- If observed element/publication stops or is added, corresponding remark should be included
- Obstructions have not changed when a station has moved
- Major change such as removal of obstructions without explanation.
- Buildings, trees, houses

- CSSA DocumentsThings to Question (cont)

## Soils
Information required under equipment description for Soil Equipment (Palmer, Frontier)
Probe Depth  e.g. 4”
Probe Cover  e.g. Bare
Soil Type  e.g. Loam
Slope Dir e.g. 2 degrees NNW
Observation Time(s)
If observation taken more than once a day, each observation time must be reported separately under Ob Time

- Information required under equipment description for Soil Equipment (Palmer, Frontier)
- Probe Depth  e.g. 4”
- Probe Cover  e.g. Bare
- Soil Type  e.g. Loam
- Slope Dir e.g. 2 degrees NNW
- Observation Time(s)
- If observation taken more than once a day, each observation time must be reported separately under Ob Time

- CSSA DocumentsSoils

## Station name must conform to name in FAA Location Identifiers publication
Must have 3 observed elements
ATEMP/Temp  (Ob Time 2400)
AHTB/Hourly Precipitation  (Ob Time MID)
PCPNX/Precipitation   (Ob Time 2400)
Some questions about how Ob Time should be reported for this equipment
MID vs. 2400 (To be addressed in revised CSSA manual)

- Must have 3 observed elements
- ATEMP/Temp  (Ob Time 2400)
- AHTB/Hourly Precipitation  (Ob Time MID)
- PCPNX/Precipitation   (Ob Time 2400)
- Some questions about how Ob Time should be reported for this equipment
- MID vs. 2400 (To be addressed in revised CSSA manual)

- CSSA DocumentsASOS Stations

## CSSA Support

- NCDC strives to provide the best support / assistance possible for the CSSA Processing within our scope, as we receive many calls/emails concerning different issues, especially rejected documents, or problems within the CSSA.
- Reminders:
- NCDC does _not_ have access to view a document once it has been rejected.
- NCDC cannot make changes to submitted documents
- We need to verify and make known to NWS personnel who call us:
- 		Who to contact for corrections in the CSSA?
- 		Who provides technical support to end-users?

## MI3: NCDC’s Station Metadata Archive

- Jeff Arnfield, Station History Program Manager
- NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center
- Asheville, NC

- Features, Content and Direction

## MI3: NCDC’s Station Archive

- Metadata Integration & Improvement Initiative
- Background and goals
- Contents
- Integration with NWS
- Capabilities and features
- A quick look: http://mi3.ncdc.noaa.gov
- Other Resources

## MI3: Background and Goals

- Integrate, enhance & increase access
- Initial focus: manage NCDC’s station histories
- Handle NOAA and non-NOAA stations
- Accommodate broad variety of station details
- Adapt to new observing systems, data programs and phenomena without recoding
- Track information source and log all changes
- Extensible to incorporate data inventories, other details

## MI3:  Current Contents

- Initial content ported from SHIPS system
- More than 33,000 stations, including:
- 26,067 Cooperative stations (includes historical stations)
- 890 ASOS
- 71 CRN stations (Currently location/identity)
- 161 RADAR sites
- 514 AWOS sites (remainder in process)
- About 5500 other stations (mostly surface, includes historical)

## MI3 Content Expansion plans

- HADS stations (Hydrological Automated Data System)
- Canadian RADAR stations
- USCRN instrumentation details
- Update all commissioned ASOS stations
- Current data inventories
- WMO MCDW / GCOS stations
- Pre-1948 Coop station merge & integration
- Backfill station historical details
- AWS MSC stations

## MI3: Adding a new station network

- Identify information source(s)
- Identify affected NCDC systems and processes
- Quantify volume of information
- Station count
- Volume per station
- Map information to MI3, identify gaps
- Identify overlap with current stations
- Define QC requirements/ develop QC processes
- Develop ingest processes
- Manual
- Automated (if warranted/feasible)
- Identify QC / data entry personnel
- Develop critical reports & extracts
- For operational networks
- Ensure ongoing refresh from source agency(s)
- Identify anticipated update frequency & volume
- Define QA/QC rules, workflow and personnel

## MI3: Integration with NWS

- EXISTING

- NWS
- CSSA

- NCDC
-  MI3
-   (PRIMARILY COOP STATIONS)

- CAN ACCOMMODATE RADAR, ASOS, CRN, UA, ETC

- CURRENT AND HISTORICAL

- COOP
- WEB
- FORM

- PROPOSED

- NOAA
- SMS

- NOAA
-  OBSERVING SYSTEMS
- STATION METADATA
-  DATABASE

- CURRENT

- COOP

- CRN

- ASOS

- NETWORK-SPECIFIC WEB ENTRY FORMS

- USERS

- USERS

- HISTORICAL   AND NON-NOAA

- OPERATIONAL

- PORTS

- SURFRAD

## MI3: Capabilities and Features

- Flexible search options
- One interface for query and maintenance (privilege-based)
- Tabbed interface by subject area
- Overview grids showing all time periods
- Drill-down capability to an integrated form view
- Further drilldown to individual “fact” level
- Generates critical production reports
- Date management functions simplify views/reports
- Oracle database permits direct query-level access
- Web-based interface supports direct CGI access

## MI3: A Quick Look

- http://mi3.ncdc.noaa.gov

## MI3: Search for stations

- http://arachne.ncdc.noaa.gov/mi3qry

## MI3: Sample Station Details Grid

- http://arachne.ncdc.noaa.gov/mi3qry

## MI3: Sample Station Details Form

- http://arachne.ncdc.noaa.gov/mi3qry

## MI3: Sample Details Drill-down

- http://arachne.ncdc.noaa.gov/mi3qry

## NCDC Metadata Contacts

- MI3 home page – _[http://mi3.ncdc.noaa.gov](http://mi3.ncdc.noaa.gov/)_
- Henry Ray
- _[henry.j.ray@noaa.gov](mailto:henry.j.ray@noaa.gov)_, 828-271-4011
- Jeff Arnfield
- _[jeff.arnfield@noaa.gov](mailto:jeff.arnfield@noaa.gov)_, 828-271-4444
- Karon Mathews
- _[karon.mathews@noaa.gov](mailto:karon.mathews@noaa.gov)_, 828-271-4325
- Corena Douthitt
- _[codouthitt@imcwv.com](mailto:codouthitt@imcwv.com)_, 304-726-4809 x4473

## NCDC/NWS: Issues and Contacts

- Technical and business issues
- CSSA: Source of ASOS station information
- CSSA: observing time reporting standards
- CSSA: soil reporting standards / detail
- CD publication: Handling of Snow Water Equivalency (SND)
- COOP IDs for Pacific Region stations
- COOP station name changes vs. Coop ID
- Diverging reporting standards for the same “station”
- MI3: Further integration with NWS systems
- Contacts needed
- CSSA: support contact for NWS end-users
- CSSA: contact for NWS end-user request for database changes
- NWS station system/database access authorization for NCDC
- NWSLI, MIRS, EMRS, SIS, etc
- CSSA/SMS: development plans

## Questions?

- NCDC’s  Station Metadata Activities