Developing a data life cycle for carbon and greenhouse gas measurements: challenges, experiences and visions

Abstract:

Environmental research infrastructures and big data integration networks require common data policies, standardized workflows and sophisticated e-infrastructure to optimise the data life cycle. This presentation summarizes the experiences in developing the data life cycle for the Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS), a European Research Infrastructure. It will also outline challenges that still exist and visions for future development.

As many other environmental research infrastructures ICOS RI built on a large number of distributed observational or experimental sites. Data from these sites are transferred to Thematic Centres and quality checked, processed and integrated there. Dissemination will be managed by the ICOS Carbon Portal. This complex data life cycle has been defined in detail by developing protocols and assigning responsibilities.

Since data will be shared under an open access policy there is a strong need for common data citation tracking systems that allow data providers to identify downstream usage of their data so as to prove their importance and show the impact to stakeholders and the public.

More challenges arise from interoperating with other infrastructures or providing data for global integration projects as done e.g. in the framework of GEOSS or in global integration approaches such as fluxnet or SOCAt. Here, common metadata systems are the key solutions for data detection and harvesting. The metadata characterises data, services, users and ICT resources (including sensors and detectors). Risks may arise when data of high and low quality are mixed during this process or unexperienced data scientists without detailed knowledge on the data aquisition derive scientific theories through statistical analyses.

The vision of fully open data availability is expressed in a recent GEO flagship initiative that will address important issues needed to build a connected and interoperable global network for carbon cycle and greenhouse gas observations and aims to meet the most urgent needs for integration between different information sources and methodologies, between different regional networks and from data providers to users.