WGISS Report

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WGISS Report To WGCV Prepared by P.Churchill,
CEOS WGISS Chair Presented by Ivan Petiteville,
ESA - WGISS
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Test Environment Background

• WGISS has been dealing with the issue of
• how to develop and improve its ISS products
• how to improve the availability and take-up of
  those products
• Plenary has been encouraging the WGs to become
  more closely involved with the user
• WGISS initiated a User Vice Chair to address this
  objective
• The Test Environment offers a framework under
  which WGISS will work in partnership with
  selected international science and EO projects
• to test and develop information systems and
  services to meet their requirements
• Specific WGISS Test Facilities (WTF) will be set
  up to address the needs of individual projects.
• By making available Test Facilities for this
  purpose, WGISS ISS products will be demonstrated
  and improved to take account of user requirements
• This is to be undertaken following the Nakodo
  principle learnt from GOIN
• There needs to be partnership between WGISS and
  the projects

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Overview
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Benefits of the Test Environment

• Benefits to Users (e.g. IGOS-P)
• Improved access to data/information through
  improved systems and services
• Access to technical expertise
• Prototype potential operational information
  systems
• Benefits to CEOS
• Increased and more effective use of space agency
  data and services
• Feedback to CEOS to guide future priorities and
  policy
• Benchmark relevance of WGISS activities
• Benefits to WGISS
• Provide a mechanism to work with users on real
  projects
• Demonstrate, promote and verify WGISS tools and
  services within real applications.
• Provide feedback to guide further developments

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What WGISS Can Offer A WTF

• Nakodo
• Provides a cooperative arrangement between WGISS
  technical abilities and GOFC requirements
• By which both parties should benefit
• Coordinate
• Technical assistance to relevant ISS problems
• E.g. Network access in SE Asia
• Institutional assistance
• E.g. Access to the full range of CEOS agency data
  providers
• Facilitate
• Technical developments
• E.g. Access mechanisms to a larger data
  repository
• E.g. Common interoperable interface to data
• E.g. Enable the common use of GOFC tools e.g
  TRFIC
• Input to the formulation of standards
• E.g. Input to standards organizations (OGC,
  TC211) to facilitate GOFC/EO friendly standards
  and vendor COTS components

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What WGISS Can Offer A WTF

• Identify
• WGISS tools to address WTF needs
• E.g. tools that implement the supported set of
  interfaces with different levels of service
• Advise
• On the adoption, use or improvement of WGISS
  tools and services directly related to
• Network
• Data
• Access
• E.g. Advising GOFC users in SE Asia who need
  tools and services to query metadata and
  visualize and download the selected data
• Demonstrate
• The use and functionality of WGISSs portfolio of
  tools and services
• E.g. The potential of interoperable, distributed
  catalogues

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What WGISS Can Offer A WTF

• Enable
• The development of WGISS tools and services in
  response to WTF user needs
• E.g. Implementation of GOFC data access across a
  wide range of agencies (USGS, Univ Md, Michigan
  State, CCRS, NASDA, ESA, JRC) using one
  interoperable interface
• The transfer of WGISS tools and services to an
  operational environment (note a number of
  WGISSs tools and services are already in the
  operational domain)

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Web mapping Visualization
ESA ATSR Fires
ESA NOAA AVHRR
ESA GTOPO30
ESA NASA TOMS
ESA GTOPO30 NASA TOMS
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What WGISS Cannot Do To Support WTF-GOFC

• Cannot build complete GOFC information systems
• Cannot provide data management for GOFC
• Cannot provide support for GOFC requirements
  which are outside the scope of WGISS
• Cannot provide a full IBM Consulting type
  services WGISS cannot be a service provider
• Cannot undertake operational role

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Test Environment Status

• A document describing the concept and plan for
  the Test Environment has been prepared
• Version 0.5 is the latest version
• The concept of the WTE was extremely well
  accepted by CEOS Plenary at Rio
• A WGISS Test Environment Task Team was
  established at WGISS 11
• SG Chairs plus Vice Chairs would oversee the
  day-to-day management of the WTE
• WGISS Sub-Groups should be responsible for the
  management and implementation of the Test
  Facilities
• WGISS Sub-Groups should nominate a technical
  manager for each WTF from within WGISS
• The selected project should also nominate a
  technical manager
• The selection of new WTFs was agreed at WGISS 11
• Multi-agency WGISS commitment required to support
  a WTF
• Commitment on behalf of the project to support
  the WTF
• One agency will take responsibility for the
  development and maintenance of the WGISS Menu
• BNSC was nominated at CEOS Plenary

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Test Facility Status

• The first WTF has been established in partnership
  with the Global Observation of Forest Cover
  (GOFC) project / Terrestrial Carbon IGOS Theme.
• This has been well received by the scientific
  community, and has derived good support from
  various CEOS organisations
• A considerable amount of very hard work has gone
  into developing the GOFC WTF
• A major milestone will be the demonstration at
  CEOS Plenary in November 2001, concerning the WTF
• Initial contact has been made with other
  potential WTFs
• the Disaster Management ad hoc Working Group
• Water Cycle (CEOP) (potential IGOS theme)
• Ocean IGOS theme

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Kyoto Demonstration - Background

• At Plenary 14 the concept of the WGISS Test
  Environment was accepted
• see the WGISS report to Plenary 14 and the
  associated presentation
• See also the Plenary Minutes, and the report of
  the WGISS Chair on Plenary to WGISS
• Plenary wanted to see more of the WTE
• A demonstration was therefore suggested and
  approved
• This is an unique opportunity for WGISS to
  impress Plenary, however the inverse is also true
• The GOFC WTF was well accepted by Plenary
• it is also the first time where we have
  established a WTF,
• It is the first time where requirements have
  been specified, and where technical developments
  have been jointly undertaken.
• The GOFC WTF is therefore the logical choice for
  the focus of the Kyoto demonstration
• Letter received from the CEOS Chair
• April 26th providing overall support and
  guidance

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WGISS and WGCV

• The Chair of WGCV met with WGISS at WGISS11 in
  Ispra in September 2000
• The possibility of WGCV participating in the Test
  Environment was discussed
• No conclusions were reached
• WGISS remains open to this cooperation i.e.
• WGISS providing the information systems and
  services element of a Test Environment
• WGCV providing the calibration and validation
  elements of a Test Environment