LTER Site Byte
LTER Site: North Temperate Lakes (NTL)
Contributor: Dave Balsiger, Barbara Benson, Jonathan Chipman (Aug 01, 2007)
Site Byte:
1. Annual Site Byte
We have continued our development in the area of sensor networks and our leadership in the Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON). We are collaborating with computer scientists from the University of California San Diego Supercomputer Center and SUNY-Binghamton on automating the configuration and quality assurance components of the NTL information system for near-real time data streaming from instrumented buoys. We are developing a database of lake characteristics information on lakes associated with GLEON including web forms for users to enter and edit information from their sites.
Two major upgrades to NTL-LTER data collection software were accomplished by our student programmer during the past year. Software used in counting and measuring zooplankton was made more user friendly and efficient. Software used by the fish crew for field data collection was migrated to the latest IPAQs with substantial program enhancements based on feedback from the fish crew and information management staff.
During the past year we developed complete EML metadata for the NTL spatial data sets. Inigo San Gil was very helpful with the development of a set of methods for converting ESRI-format metadata into EML. At NTL, most spatial metadata are originally developed using ESRI's ArcCatalog utility. We then save the metadata as XML, use a stylesheet to reformat them into EML, and then use the oXygen XML editor to correct various errors and make the metadata fully EML-compliant. EML from the spatial datasets are included in the Metacat harvest.
We currently provide access to the NTL spatial data through several interfaces -- a "static" data catalog for downloading individual files, a set of interactive ArcIMS map applications, and an Oracle/ArcSDE geodatabase for direct interactive access to all spatial data. We are exploring a series of improvements to these interfaces, including investigating methods for efficient storage of and access to very high-volume (multi-gigabyte) raster images.
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2. Planned IM Projects
1. Design and implement an alternate search interface for the NTL data catalog to allow users to query by investigator, subject, keywords, lake name, geographic location, and taxonomic criteria.
2. Continue our progress in automating data processing of near-real time data from instrumented buoys and the NTL meteorological station including testing a new data model.
3. Develop a generic version of our custom zooplankton software that would enable microscope counting and measuring of other organisms.
4. A new seminar in information management and technology for graduate students will be offered this fall at the Center for Limnology. Organized by Barbara Benson and Paul Hanson, this course will cover topics such as database design, software options, and metadata requirements.
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