OPeNDAP/THREDDS Access to the NCAR Research Data Archives

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Research Data Archive (RDA) provides free access to 600+ observational and gridded datasets to 10,000 users world wide, annually. While custom requests are still supported, most of the data requests are automated, providing the user with their data quickly and accurately. The automated request process utilizes a combination of database driven web based technologies and server-side “back end” programs that allow for multiple file downloads, file format conversions, and data subsetting. The current state of the RDA allows users to retrieve their requested data in a variety of ways.

To enhance user experience and utility, the NCAR RDA has started implementing a THREDDS Data Server (TDS) for use on targeted dataset collections, with the main goal of providing users with OPeNDAP access to its archives. The OPeNDAP access is a compliment to the existing asynchronous data request and retrieval that the RDA currently employs. This presentation reviews the basics of the TDS, in general, and continues by describing the specific implementation of the TDS to the RDA's diverse archive of gridded GRIB-1, GRIB-2, and NetCDF format dataset collections. Potential future implementations of TDS on in-situ observational dataset collections will also be discussed. The presentation will show expected benefits to end users and illustrate sample cases.