World Data Centers

The World Data Center system was created to archive and distribute data collected from the observational programs of the 1957–1958 International Geophysical Year. Originally established in the United States, Europe, Russia, and Japan, the World Data Center system has since expanded to other countries and to new scientific disciplines. Its holdings include a wide variety of data that cover timescales ranging from seconds to millennia. These data provide baseline information for research in many disciplines, especially for monitoring changes in the geosphere and biosphere.

The World Data Center for Meteorology, Asheville

The World Data Center for Meteorology, Asheville, is one component of a global network of sub-centers that acquire, catalog, archive, and facilitate international exchange of scientific data without restriction. The World Data Center for Meteorology, Asheville, is maintained by the U.S. Department of Commerce and NOAA, and it is collocated with and operated by NCDC in Asheville, NC. The World Data Center for Meteorology, Asheville, also works closely with the U.S. Global Climate Observing System program and strives to work closely with entities involved in all aspects of climate observing and related data management efforts, including the operation of the Global Observing Systems Information Center.

The World Data Center for Meteorology, Asheville is a full member of the International Council for Science (ICSU) World Data System (WDS). The ICSU WDS concept aims at a transition from existing stand-alone services to a common globally interoperable distributed data system that incorporates emerging technologies and new scientific data activities.

The World Data Center for Paleoclimatology, Boulder

The World Data Center for Paleoclimatology is one of 52 World Data Centers that house a wide range of solar, geophysical, environmental, and human dimensions data, and the only World Data Center devoted to paleoclimatic data. The World Data Center for Paleoclimatology makes paleoclimate data and information as useful as possible for understanding climate variability and change. The World Data Center for Paleoclimatology also follows standardized guidelines for data archive and distribution, which supports strengthening international science for the benefit of society and making all data freely available without restriction. The World Data Center for Paleoclimatology is collocated with the Paleoclimatology branch of NCDC in Boulder, CO.