NOAA’s Climate Data Records—10 Years of Innovation

NOAA established its Climate Data Record Program in 2009 at the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI, formerly the National Climatic Data Center) to provide sustained and authoritative climate information from satellite data. The CDR Program was built following best practices in program management and configuration management with the goal of developing and sustaining CDRs in a transparent, cost-effective, and scientifically-defensible manner. During the NCEI reorganization in 2015, the CDR Program ended and the responsibility for the ongoing development and sustainment of CDRs moved to NCEI’s Center for Weather and Climate (CWC) and Center for Coasts, Oceans and Geophysics (CCOG). To date, over 40 CDRs have transitioned from Research to Operations (R2O). The Centers Directors recognized the value of the CDR Program’s DOC Gold Medal for Innovation Award winning approach and is implementing CDR processes and standards into its highest utilized products. These include not only satellite, but also in-situ and blended datasets, as well as derived informational products. The two Centers have also categorized their extensive suite of over 400 products and services into portfolios known as Product Areas, which are led by Product Area Leads (PALs). Each Product Area has an associated Product Area Management (PAM) Plan that describes the evolutionary growth path the PAL would like to implement. Management reviews the annual PAM Plans and provides feedback to the PALs, detailing how Product Area recommendations will be utilized in the upcoming Fiscal Year. Implementing a Portfolio Management approach provides a process to help guide NCEI leadership’s resource and budgetary decisions, ensuring investment activities fulfill NOAA, NESDIS, and NCEI’s strategic vision in supporting end user needs.