Observation Package (ObsPack) Data Products
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Introduction

Observation Package (ObsPack) data products are intended to stimulate and support carbon cycle modeling studies. A variety of ObsPack products are available and vary from one another depending on their intended use. Products may include providers' original data and metadata reformatted into the ObsPack framework or may contain averages or subsets of original data. ObsPack data products are prepared by NOAA in consultation with data providers.

The ObsPack framework is designed to bring together direct atmospheric greenhouse gas measurements derived from one or more national or university laboratories, prepare them with specific applications in mind, and package and distribute them in a set of self-documenting files. ObsPack products include a set of prepared data sets and metadata, a summary of included data sets, an e-mail address list of all data providers, and the complete set of configuration files used by NOAA to prepare the product.

While some ObsPack data products may contain actual data, we do not intend these products to be a primary source of data. We also recognize that while each data set includes extensive metadata, the included metadata is not comprehensive. If you are interested in source data used to construct a product or would like more complete documentation on measurements, please contact the data provider directly (contact information is included in each data set). Source data may also be available from the WMO World Data Center for Greenhouse Gases (WDCGG).

Acknowledgement

These products are possible because carbon cycle scientists have graciously agreed to share their high-precision atmospheric measurements for this work. Whether contributing a single data set or many data sets, their ongoing efforts require ongoing support from their funding agencies. The value of their observations is assessed, in part, by usage and contribution to scientific research. The ObsPack Fair Use Statement below requires users to establish contact with the data providers to determine the appropriate level of acknowledgement for use of their data. Your cooperation will help to ensure these measurements are available in the future.

Fair Use Statement

These cooperative data products are made freely available to the scientific community and are intended to stimulate and support carbon cycle modeling studies. We rely on the ethics and integrity of the user to assure that each contributing national and university laboratory receives fair credit for their work. Fair credit will depend on the nature of the work and the requirements of the institutions involved. Your use of an ObsPack data product implies an agreement to contact each contributing laboratory to discuss the nature of the work and the appropriate level of acknowledgement. If an ObsPack data product is essential to the work, or if an important result or conclusion depends on an ObsPack product, co-authorship may be appropriate. This should be discussed with each data provider at an early stage in the work. Contacting the data providers is not optional; if you use an ObsPack data product, you must contact the data providers. To help you meet your obligation, each data product includes an e-mail distribution list of all data providers. ObsPack data products must be obtained directly from the ObsPack Data Portal at www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/obspack/ and may not be re-distributed.

EXCEPTION! If you download a GLOBALVIEW data product (any product with "GLOBALVIEW" in the product name), you are currently NOT required to contact GLOBALVIEW data providers. Please continue to reference GLOBALVIEW as you have in the past (click here for details). We apologize for any confusion and will notify you if there are any changes to the GLOBALVIEW data policy.

Citation

The ObsPack framework will be described in the on-line journal Earth System Science Data (ESSD). You will be asked to cite this reference once it is available. You are also required to contact each data provider to determine the appropriate level of acknowledgement for use of their data (see Fair Use Statement above). A list of data providers and their contact information is included with each product.

Product Download

ObsPack data products are freely available from this site. You may download a data product immediately after providing your contact information. Registration ensures that data providers can track data usage and notify users when measurements are reprocessed or updated.

This site serves complete ObsPack data products only. If you are interested in individual ObsPack data sets, you must download the entire product. If you are interested in actual data or would like more comprehensive documentation on measurements, please contact data providers directly.

ATTENTION! When you download a data product from this site, an automatic e-mail containing your contact information will be sent to contributing data providers. When you download a minor revision to a product you have previously downloaded, data providers will NOT be contacted. The version numbering scheme is described here.

Please DO NOT re-distribute this product. It is freely available to all users from this site.

Future Work

The ObsPack framework is being developed using measurements of atmospheric CO2. Once the framework is stable, we will introduce data products for other parameters including CH4, CO, SF6, and the stable isotopes of CO2.

We expect the majority of ObsPack data products will be updated annually. Product demand will ultimately determine the update schedule.

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