OGS oceanographic data archiving and validation system: the IOC/National Oceanographic Data Centre

The oceanographic database, managed by the National Oceanographic Data Centre (NODC)/IOC Research Unit within OGS, archives 166 millions of measurements of physical and biogeochemical parameters, of current, wave motion, sea level and meteorological data. The information in the data archiving system are fully validated and continuously updated. Its relational schema contains all the information needed by the Medar/MedAtlas format, including the complete set of information qualifying the measured data. All the meta-data are public while the access to archived data is subjected to a data policy, defined at data set level in agreement with the data providers. The oceanographic data archiving and validation system is accessible through the NODC Web Portal, available on Internet. A dedicated data portal has been developed, where all users can register and get different access permissions pertinent to different levels of information and to different sections of the data archiving system. The Italian NODC information system is completely integrated in the European distributed network of oceanographic data centres and is able to answer requests for information through the network by means of a standardised interface and making use of the XML technologies to exchange and qualify information.