Pipeline for Applications-Based Data Discovery

Abstract:

From disaster response and mitigation to monitoring water quality or protecting wildlife habitat, satellite Earth observation data can be applied in countless ways to meet pressing needs and benefit society. The crucial first step toward successful data application is data discovery. Potential users often know exactly what data they need—what Earth feature or phenomenon they need to observe, how frequently and at what resolution or level of accuracy—but may still struggle to discover the existing observations that best meet their needs. We have developed a pipeline to connect applications-based users to specific data collections within NASA’s Earth observation program of record that are highly relevant to their data needs. This pipeline combines available information on satellite and instrument measurement characteristics with an innovative approach that identifies specific Earth science datasets that are most relevant to the feature or phenomenon of interest. We demonstrate how this pipeline enables users to query and discover the data collections within NASA’s Earth observation program of record that address their measurement needs.