Technologies Used for Customized Dynamic Web Access to a Unique

Collection of Arctic Change Time Series

Willa H. ZhuJames E. OverlandJISAO/UW - PMEL/NOAA

American Meteorological Society / IIPS January 13-17, 2002, Orlando, FL

Background

The Arctic Is one of the least explored, studied and understood places on earth

The inter-agency SEARCH science plan identifies the complex suite of interrelated pan-Arctic changes gives them the name “Unaami” (Yup’ik word for “tomorrow”)

The Unaami Data Collection consists of over 80 carefully selected time series

unique, interdisciplinary, and diverse spanning a wide geographic range from 1970 to the present

quantifies Arctic changes

The Unaami Web Site

Provides information and access to this unique collection of Arctic Time Series highly interactive many functions for

viewing and plotting data and metadata

The Unaami data collection web access system is described in AMS IIPS paper 4.11

http://www.unaami.noaa.gov

Web Technologies

Java Applets/JavaScript Provide highly user

interactive front-end data selection features

Dynamic HTML JavaScript CGI (Perl, C) Cascading Style Sheets

(CSS)

Back-end software Utilities for web update EPIC analyses

programs PPLUS plotting tools

MySQL Database Store metadata

Backend Data Management

Data Converted into netCDF files categorized by data type (e.g. biology, ocean, fisheries, etc.)

Metadata stored in MySQL database managed using EPIC software (http://www.epic.noaa.gov)

(database structure, data loading, data selecting, etc.) Update utilities

Facilitate addition/removal of time series dataset Pre-generate web page components

Polar stereographic map showing station locations Station location and data type color key information JavaScript containing metadata

Overview of functionality

Data access procedure:

2. Refine selection / Data access options

3. Results

1. Select Data (and view quick info, make quick plot)

Make quick plot

Data Selection and Browse

Show quick info

Select data for further plotting, listing and downloading

Java Applets/JavaScript for Data Selection

JavaScript

JavaScript Load data information Generate “data type” list dynamically Interact with Java Applets Select data by type (different color represent different type) Retain user’s selection by using Cookies

Java Applet Java Applets

Selectable map (select region or single station)

Interact with JavaScript Convert coordinate system

between polar and cartesian Initiate CGI for quick info and

quick plot

Refine Selection / Data Access Use JavaScript Get user’s selection from Cookie Display the metadata and time

range dynamically Select/Deselect by

data type region

Sort the data by data type region start year longitude Latitude

Refine selection (retain/delete)

Refine SelectionData Access

Data Access Make Stacked Time

Series Plot

Make Single Time Series Plot

Make Correlation Matrix

View Data Information

Display Data in ASCII format

Download netCDF data files

Results

CGI (Perl) Initiate EPIC program and

PPLUS script to generate plots and GIF files

Generate PostScript files Generate HTML

JavaScript Dynamically generate

HTML code Control user’s selection

on GIF and download Postscripts files

Stacked Time Series Plot

Results

Correlation matrix CGI (C and Perl)

Calculate correlation coefficient

Generate HTML

Results

Data Access CGI (C and Perl)

List data (access netCDF)

List metadata (access the database)

Great TAR file of netCDF files for downloading

Generate HTML

SummaryThe Unaami time series data are representative of

changes in the Arctic region since 1970. 

Unaami data collection access system integrates several modern web technologies for easy,

interactive access to this unique collection of time series.

provides a useful tool for studying and understanding recent atmospheric, oceanic, and terrestrial changes in the Arctic.

Future Plan Data analyses will be included as they are completed. The Unaami Data Collection will be expanded to include

new time series as they are discovered.

If you know of any time series that represents any aspect of Arctic change, please contact us:

Dr. James E. Overland NOAA/Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory

overland@pmel.noaa.gov

http://www.unaami.noaa.gov