An Overview of Global Earth Observation System of

An Overview of Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) Earth observations as potential case studies for spatial semantic technologies Stefan Falke Geospatial Intelligence Operating Unit Northrop Grumman Corporation

GEOSS: Global Earth Observing System of Systems Over the next decade, a global Earth Observation System is planned to “to monitor continuously the state of the Earth, to increase understanding of dynamic Earth processes, to enhance prediction of the Earth system, and to further implement our international environmental treaty obligations”, The Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) is a system of sensors, communication devices, storage systems, computational and other devices used in concert to observe the Earth and eventually come to a better understanding of the Earth’s processes. http: //www. earthobservations. org/

Earth Observations for Societal Benefit

GEOSS Framework GEOSS will draw on existing Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) components as institutional and technical precedents in areas such as geodetic reference frames, common geographic data, and standard protocols. GEOSS will promote the use of common mechanisms for the cataloguing of archives, including how to access them.

Design Issues Carroll Hood, GEOSS Chief Architect Component-based services (WSDL, SOAP, UDDI) • Data Discovery (including ontology mapping) • Data Browse/Visualization • Data Access • Data Integration/Synthesis: environmental + socioeconomic Syntactic/Semantic Interoperability (required to break down stovepipes) • Creation and mapping of ontologies will be a key enabler “Information Assurance” • How do we gauge the integrity/utility of value-added information?

US EPA Remote Sensing Information Gateway The Challenge: • To combine existing and future data at various temporal and spatial scales in a meaningful way; • Transform data into new knowledge; • Map new knowledge into agency decision support systems;

Ultimate Vision Steve Young, co-Chair EPA GEOSS Coordinating Committee • • • Real-time monitoring of vital earth systems Information delivery to decision-makers Ready ability to assess decision outcomes Early recognition of surprises Support for adaptive management – Every action is viewed as an experiment – Ability to make course corrections – Get better and better over time

NOAA’s Architecture Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, GEO Co-Chair for the United States, U. S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere

Incompatible syntax and semantics among NOAA science disciplines (Lautenbacher) • Naming standards – Meteorology (WMO) named “Temperature/ dry bulb temperature” – Meteorology (air pollution) named “Boundary layer temperature” – Oceanography named “Air Temperature” • Location standards: Lat/Lon can be degrees/minutes/seconds or degrees to tenths and hundredths – Latitude E/W, 0 -180 positive and negative, or 0 -360 running east or west – Z used to designate elevation in both atmosphere and ocean but positive is up in the atmosphere and down in the ocean • Time standards (Greenwich, local standard, local daylight) • Data Formats (>50 formats used within NOAA) -GRIB, Net. CDF, HDF and others used for gridded data -BUFR, Net. CDF, and many others used for observations • Observing standards – Direction – Wind: the direction the wind is coming from – Ocean Current: the direction the current is going to