WDC Panel - Liaison Report
David Clark
WDC Panel, Assistant Secretary
CEOS/WGISS – 21
Budapest, Hungary
May 11, 2006
WDC Panel – Current Events
• WDC Recertification Process
continuing
• 50th anniversary celebration of IGY and
WDC system
• New Officers of the WDC Panel
Recertification of WDCs
• Two phase process
– Phase 1 completed for 53 WDCs
• 2 WDCs decertified, 3 dropped to Associate status
• On-site visit to Chinese WDCs only (July 2005)
– Great improvement in capabilities of Chinese WDCs
– Phase 2 beginning
• Evaluation of the “significance” of the data held by WDC
• Evaluation done by WDC Panel and its agents
• Endorsement or challenge of results by relevant ICSU
body
– e.g., IAGA, IGBP, IHDP, WCRP, etc.
Recertification Criteria
The WDCs are certified according to the following criteria:
World Data Center
1. Has significant holdings.
2. Provides data on a nondiscriminatory basis, without restriction, for no more than the cost of
reproduction.
2. Maintains a web-accessible directory of holdings. The directory should adhere to national or
international standards.
4. Provides a means for users to find and download data online.
5. Reports to the WDC Panel as requested.
Associate Data Center
1. Provides data on a nondiscriminatory basis, without restriction, for no more than the cost of
reproduction.
2. Maintains a directory of holdings.
3. Provides a means for users to obtain data.
4. Reports to the WDC Panel as requested.
Centers Under Development
Centers working to achieve associate or world data center status. The Panel has not yet established
criteria for these centers, which are generally located in developing countries.
50th WDC and IGY Anniversary
• Participation in 2007 IUGG General Assembly
in Perugia, Italy, July 2007
– Encourage WDC papers in Association sessions
– Participate in IGY celebrations
• All WDC Conference in Bremen, Germany,
April 2007
– Developing theme for Conference, for example:
– Data Directory/catalog for WDCs (currently node of GCMD)
– WDCs role in GEO
– WDCs new role in ICSU’s Data and Information environment
New WDC Panel Officers
Chair - Dr. Hartmut Grassl
Professor Emeritus
Max Planck Institute for Meteorology
Hamburg, Germany
Vice-Chair - Dr. Jean-Bernard Minster
Professor of Geophysics
Scripps Institution of Oceanography
LaJolla, California, USA