NASA's Space Science (mostly Heliophysics) Virtual Observatories and Informatics

1. NASA's Space Science (mostlyHeliophysics) Virtual Observatories and Informatics D. A. Roberts C. P. Holmes J. H. Bredekamp NASA HQ

2. The HP Data Environment • Data from the (NASA) Heliophysics Great Observatory reside in a distributed environment and are served from multiple sources. • Multimission Data Centers • Solar Data Analysis Center (sponsors the Virtual Solar Observatory) • Space Physics Data Facility [CDAWeb, OMNIWeb, VSPO, etc.] • National Space Science Data Center (currently sponsors SPASE) • Mission-level active archives: e.g. ACE, TIMED, TRACE, Cluster, etc. • Much of our data are served from individual instrument sites. • We are moving into a new data environment of • Virtual Observatories for convenient search and access to the distributed data, and • Resident Archives to retain the distributed data sources even after mission termination. • We have a Data and Computing Working Group to help us move ahead. • [Not HP] NASA Astrophysics, with NSF, is now calling for a VAO facility based on the NVO framework.

3. Article 1: Data access • Earth system data and information should be made available electronically with interoperable approaches that facilitate open access. • The NASA HP Data Policy is based on a distributed system with access through both the active archives from providers and data centers, and integrated access through Virtual Observatories. • The Virtual Solar Observatory and Virtual Space Physics Observatory (now a part of NASA’s SPDF) are operational, and “VxOs” for the heliosphere, and the Earth’s magnetosphere, radiation belts, and ionosphere are on their way. “Energetic Particle” and “Model” VxOs are being added to the mix.

4. Article 2: Data release • Owners, custodians, and creators of Earth system data should work together to share their digital information with the world community, though in a manner that respects intellectual property rights and security constraints. • The HP Data Policy is based on the now long-standing NASA policy that all data gathered by NASA missions should be openly available. The HP “rules of the road” state that users, in turn, should give proper credit, as well as feedback to improve data products. HP datasets are continually being released as they are produced or upgraded from legacy data stores.

5. Article 3: Data description • Providers and users of Earth system data and information should share descriptions of structure, content, and contexts to facilitate interoperability and the discovery of relationships within and between information resources. • HP has been supporting the development and promoting the use of a common data model, SPASE, that will allow a standard description of HP datasets.The community “VxOs” are becoming the agents for implementing the SPASE data model for a wide range of individual datasets. The VxOs are working with each other and with other interested parties to assure communication channels work smoothly. SPASE is now fairly stable at release version 1.2, and it is becoming more widely used and considered.

6. Article 4: Data persistence • Data and information about the Earth system should be preserved and sustained in forms that are both software and hardware independent so as to be openly accessible today and in the future. • The Data Policy does not force particular formats, but insists that as data moves from mission to resident to permanent archives that preservation and accessibility are maintained. Formats should be based on common, open standards. The HP goal is to produce archival data in easily used, readily maintained, calibrated form. Many missions are adopting CDF, FITS, and NetCDF for serving and archiving data. Resident Archives will help to preserve data. “Mission Archive Plans” to insure legacy (post-mission) access to data are being required in the current Senior Review of operating missions.

7. Article 5: Data rescue • Effort should be made to identify and rescue critical Earth system data and ensure persistent access to them. • Current NASA HP calls for proposals for HP Virtual Observatories include a “data upgrade” portion. As the VxOs become established, the upgrade portion of the funding may increase. A number of these efforts are now under way, and more will be funded this coming fiscal year.

8. Article 6: Common standards and cooperation • Standards for interoperability should be identified, created, and implemented through international collaboration. • The Data Policy does not impose standards, but expects them to come from the experience of the community (as in the SPASE data model which has strong international contributions). In this way, the standards will be what is needed to accomplish the uniform access and interoperability goals. A new Heliophysics Data and Model Consortium (HDMC) will consist of representatives of VxOs, SPASE, Data Centers and others, and will have an Implementation Working Group to facilitate standards development where needed.

9. Article 7: Capability building • Communities with advanced information technology and communications capabilities should contribute to developing such capabilities elsewhere to reduce the digital divide. • This goal is not addressed directly, except insofar as the data access provided through the HP data environment should allow all people to have equal access to the data from NASA HP missions. NASA also has programs that encourage cross-disciplinary sharing of science and information technology developments. We will work with eGY, IHY, and other groups to facilitate this.

10. Article 8: Education and public outreach • Students, scientists, decision-makers, and the public should be informed about and be enabled to contribute to our understanding and management of Earth system phenomena that impact human survival. • Part of the HP data environment involves the Living with a Star initiative that looks to further knowledge that will impact life on Earth and in space as we explore further. The environment envisioned in the Data Policy is designed to foster the cross-disciplinary research needed to address these problems, as well as Education and Public Outreach activities. We have initiated an informal investigation of how the HPDE can contribute to EPO.

11. Current Activities • The Data Policy was released in June 2007. • Has been used for VxO, SMEX, and other AOs, new mission PDMPs, and the SR. • Implementing a third round of VxOs (and services) and reviewing the next round of proposals for VxOs and related data upgrades and services. • Working on defining the “Heliophysics Data and Model Consortium” to unify the VxO and related efforts. • Implementing “Resident Archives” and the processes to manage these archives; new proposals currently under review. • Working with new missions (e.g., MMS) to incorporate the Data Policy from the start, and “retrofitting” older missions through VxOs and other means. • Working on collaboration with other NASA science divisions, other US agencies, and international partners (here, via eGY). • Maintaining a web site for latest news about our data environment: http://hpde.gsfc.nasa.gov.

12. Goals of the HP Science Data Management Policy • Improve management of and access to HP mission data. • Clarify the architecture and associated data lifecycle milestones of the data environment. • Provide guidelines for proposals, Project Data Management Plans, NRAs, peer reviews, and other activities related to the HP data environment.

13. Basic Philosophy • Evolve the existing HP data environment: • take advantage of new computer and Internet technologies to • respond to our evolving mission set and community research needs (enable the HP Great Observatory) • Blend ‘bottoms-up’, ‘market-driven’ implementation approaches with a ‘top-down’ vision for an integrated data environment. • Assure that the HP science community participates in all levels of data management.

14. Guiding Principles • All data produced by the HP missions will be open and made available as soon as is practical. • Gurman's "Right Amount of Glue” from the Fall 2002 AGU meeting sets the philosophy [see http://lwsde.gsfc.nasa.gov], a key component of which is a standard of behavior - share one’s data with everyone. • Data will be independently scientifically usable. • adequate documentation • sustainable and open data formats • easy electronic access • provision of appropriate analysis tools.

15. Architecture • The environment will be distributed • Many archives with different internal workings • Data integration capabilities provided by discipline-based virtual observatories (“VxO’s”; VSO first for x = “Solar” and now 5 others) • linked by a central dictionary (“SPASE Data model”) and machine-to-machine communication routines. • Easily permits the inclusion of essential data sets from non-NASA sources. • Provides a context for services and advanced analysis tools developed under, e.g. AISRP, LWS TR&T, and the VxOs.

16. Policy Recommendations, Etc. • The Policy includes: • Roles of data environment components • “Rules of the Road” for data use, • Recommendations for Project Data Management Plans and Resident Archive Plans, • A timeline of the HP mission data lifecycle

17. Implementation • Use peer-review processes to assist in managing the elements of the environment. • NRAs for: (a) VxOs, (b) Data quality and access improvement, (c) Resident Archives, and (d) Value-added services. • Mission and Data Center Senior Reviews. • Success will be determined by community use and feedback. The process is “market-driven.”