We will present several new features in GrADS version 1.9, and discuss specific examples of how it is used in conjunction with the GrADS-DODS Server (GDS) to make a much larger pool of data available to the user community.

GrADS 1.9 has a new interface for NetCDF and HDF-SDS data that entails writing a classic GrADS descriptor file that contains only the required metadata. This interface enables GrADS to handle self-describing files in a more general and full-featured way, including the use of PDEF for pre-projected data and templating for easy aggregation of multiple data files. Another significant new feature in GrADS 1.9 is the capability to serve and access station (in situ, sequence) data via the GDS. GrADS 1.9 can serve GrADS-formatted station data via the GDS, and it also acts as a client for accessing that data. These improvements allow the GDS to serve a variety of new data sets previously unavailable via DODS. We will show examples (including a live demonstration, if possible) of how these new features are working operationally.

A specific application of GrADS 1.9 and the GDS to enable remote data access and analysis for COLA scientists using the NCAR computing facility illustrates how productivity can be dramatically enhanced. A job that used to take four days now takes four seconds.