UNAVCO GPS Support to the National Science Foundation Office of Polar Programs

DATA ARCHIVING

A large amount of raw GPS data is generated from most field campaigns, and safe storage of these data is critical. All of the data managed by UNAVCO field engineers are backed up on optical disks at McMurdo Station for local access and are transferred electronically to the UNAVCO archive in Boulder for safe storage. In the Boulder archive, the data are sorted by project event number and stored in a data repository. Project members can easily request access to their data after the field season through the UNAVCO web site. This also ensures future availability of the data even if the principal investigator who collected it no longer has the data.

Data collected to geodetic standards at properly monumented sites (sites that are documented and of a permanent nature) such as benchmarks are formally archived at UNAVCO. These high quality geodetic data are of interest as they improve geodetic control on the continent, provide base site coordinates for future projects, and may provide first epoch measurements for future crustal deformation projects in the area. The data are stored in the UNAVCO archive on a file by file basis and all of the meta-data (descriptive information about the data) are also entered. This allows the data to be identified by multiple characteristics such as project, location, station name, receiver type, antenna type, and monument type. A complete description of where and how the data were collected makes such data increasingly valuable over time.

One of the post-season tasks that UNAVCO will undertake is the processing of benchmark data that are likely to be of use for future GPS campaigns. The resulting coordinates will then be immediately available to provide valuable control for upcoming GPS projects. The New Zealand Department of Survey and Lands Information (DOSLI) is currently undertaking a similar project for the Ross Sea region, and the Facility has already contacted DOSLI regarding cooperation to obtain and disseminate geodetic coordinate information. The USGS (S-052) has also been contacted regarding similar cooperation for benchmark data and coordinates that should be accessible to Polar investigators performing GPS surveys. Recent experience has shown that information about precise benchmark coordinates will assist with planning and in-field data processing and should be known before deployment. UNAVCO is planning to make the geodetic information for these marks readily accessible under the planned Polar Programs section of the UNAVCO web site, with appropriate pointers to other sources of pertinent benchmark information.

Last modified Monday, 26-Nov-2007 22:31:09 UTC

Home | About Us | Contact Us | Support | Search | Facility | PBO | Education & Outreach

Comments: webmasterunavco.org
© 2009 UNAVCO, Inc.