With funding from the National Science Foundation for the project, “An Informed Guide to Climate Data Sets with Relevance to Earth System Model Evaluation,” an expert team created the Climate Data Guide, a website, http://climatedataguide.ucar.edu, devoted to discussing the strengths and limitations of observational climate data sets.  Observations of key variables in the climate system--for example surface temperature, precipitation, clouds, sea ice, winds, ocean currents, and trace gases--form the bedrock upon which understanding the climate system is built.  Observations are vital to the development and validation of the climate models (now commonly called Earth System Models, or ESMs) used to project climate change and its impacts on society.  As the climate research community has benefitted from an ever-increasing quantity and variety of observations, especially from satellites, the complexity and nuances of individual datasets has also grown.  There are multiple versions of datasets on a single variable, all legitimate but generated with a different algorithm, quality control, error adjustments, and data processing and analysis.  This proliferation of datasets has made it difficult for individual scientists to know which are most appropriate for specific applications, including the evaluation and analysis of ESMs.  Beyond the climate research community, an increasing number of economic sectors, for example energy, agriculture, insurance, and defense, require high-quality climate data and knowledge to inform major decisions.  

The distinguishing feature of the Climate Data Guide is expert-user commentary on the strengths and limitations of individual data sets from the researchers who construct and evaluate the data.  As such, it offers users much more than a typical data portal that lists datasets like the names in a phone book.  The Climate Data Guide is akin to a travel guidebook (like the “Lonely Planet”), written by experts to offer users insight and context for the data they are using.  The vision and legacy of the project is as a living repository for the climate community’s collective wisdom and expertise on a broad array of observational data sets and their appropriate use.  To realize this vision, the project team, based at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and its Climate Analysis Section, leveraged its own expertise, and more importantly, the expertise of leading climate scientists around the world.  Individual scientists were invited to contribute in-depth commentaries on specific data sets, while two NCAR scientists researched and wrote summaries of more than 160 different climate data sets.  In addition to offering world-class expertise on climate data, the Climate Data Guide also facilitates broader access to individual data sets by directly linking to the data centers where the data are physically archived.  The website increases the visibility of each featured data set, ensuring broader use within the climate research community and beyond.  As such, the Climate Data Guide supports government and research community goals around open data and “big data.”  Usage of the resource was tracked with web analytics software and user feedback.

Measurable outcomes and metrics of the Climate Data Guide project include:

-In-depth commentaries from 4-dozen experts on numerous climate data sets

-Summaries of over 160 climate data sets

-Modern, user-friendly website built on Drupal 7; data searchable by...

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