[Esip-documentation] ACDD-1.3 documentation change request: Descriptions of "resolution" attributes

[Bob Simons - NOAA Federal]

Is that an error in ACDD or in ncISO? (I don't know. I think it is
debatable.) It is probably easier to change ncISO than to change ACDD
(at least until the next version which is probably far off) and all
datasets which follow the recommendations of the ACDD documentation.

On Wed, Feb 25, 2015 at 9:11 AM, Aaron Sweeney via Esip-documentation
<esip-documentation at lists.esipfed.org> wrote:
> Hi, folks,
>
>       I want to bring to your attention a problem with the ACDD-1.3
> documentation that is leading to the creation of invalid ISO 19115-2
> metadata records.
>
>       Specifically, I am referring to the Descriptions of the following
> Suggested global attributes: geospatial_lat_resolution,
> geospatial_lon_resolution, and geospatial_vertical_resolution.  For
> reference and clarity, I've included these attributes (as well as their
> related units attributes) and their descriptions from the ACDD-1.3
> documentation below this message.
>
>       There are two problems with the Description of these "resolutions."
> The first is the recommendation to include both a numerical value and unit.
> The ncISO tool expects these resolutions to be numeric only.  This leads to
> the creation of invalid ISO 19115-2 records.  The second problem is that the
> Description does not require the unit of resolution to be the same as the
> corresponding "geospatial_[lat|lon|vertical]_unit."
>
>       I would advocate that the Description of resolution explicitly state
> that a numeric value is expected and that the value be expressed in the same
> unit as specified in the corresponding "geospatial_[lat|lon|vertical]_unit"
> attribute.
>
> Cordially,
> Aaron
>
> ----relevant ACDD-1.3 documentation follows----
>
> geospatial_lat_units: Units for the latitude axis described in
> "geospatial_lat_min" and "geospatial_lat_max" attributes. These are presumed
> to be "degree_north"; other options from udunits may be specified instead.
> geospatial_lat_resolution: Information about the targeted spacing of points
> in latitude. Recommend describing resolution as a number value followed by
> the units. Examples: '100 meters', '0.1 degree'
> geospatial_lon_units: Units for the longitude axis described in
> "geospatial_lon_min" and "geospatial_lon_max" attributes. These are presumed
> to be "degree_east"; other options from udunits may be specified instead.
> geospatial_lon_resolution: Information about the targeted spacing of points
> in longitude. Recommend describing resolution as a number value followed by
> units. Examples: '100 meters', '0.1 degree'
> geospatial_vertical_units: Units for the vertical axis described in
> "geospatial_vertical_min" and "geospatial_vertical_max" attributes. The
> default is EPSG:4979 (height above the ellipsoid, in meters); other vertical
> coordinate reference systems may be specified. Note that the common
> oceanographic practice of using pressure for a vertical coordinate, while
> not strictly a depth, can be specified using the unit bar. Examples:
> 'EPSG:5829' (instantaneous height above sea level), 'EPSG:5831'
> (instantaneous depth below sea level).
> geospatial_vertical_resolution: Information about the targeted vertical
> spacing of points. Example: '25 meters'
>
>
>
> --
> Aaron D. Sweeney
> Water Level Data Manager
>
> Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)
> University of Colorado at Boulder
> and
> NOAA National Geophysical Data Center
> Marine Geology and Geophysics Division
> 325 Broadway, E/GC3
> Boulder, CO 80305-3328
>
> Phone: 303-497-4797, Fax: 303-497-6513
>
> DISCLAIMER: The contents of this message are mine personally and do not
> necessarily reflect any position of NOAA.
>
>
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>



-- 
Sincerely,

Bob Simons
IT Specialist
Environmental Research Division
NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center
99 Pacific St., Suite 255A      (New!)
Monterey, CA 93940               (New!)
Phone: (831)333-9878            (New!)
Fax:   (831)648-8440
Email: bob.simons at noaa.gov

The contents of this message are mine personally and
do not necessarily reflect any position of the
Government or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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