IOOS Glider DAC

The mission of the Glider DAC is to provide glider operators with a simple process for submitting glider data sets to a centralized location, enabling the data to be visualized, analyzed, widely distributed via existing web services and the Global Telecommunications System (GTS) and archived at the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI).

As scientists deploy more gliders, they are revolutionizing how we observe our ocean. This data creates a more complete picture of what is happening in the ocean, especially below the surface. The robots collect information by profiling the water from the surface to deep water, at lower cost and less risk than ever before. Currently, the IOOS Regional Associations (RAs), which conduct a combination of routine, sustained, and event driven monitoring, are the main contributors to the IOOS glider DAC. The IOOS Underwater Glider Network Map is a collaborative effort and includes current and historical glider missions dating back to 2005 from Gulf of Mexico (GCOOS), Southern California (SCCOOS), Northern Pacific (NANOOS), Central and Northern California (CeNCOOS), Great Lakes (GLOS), Mid-Atlantic (MARACOOS), and the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Lab (AOML). The gliders displayed have been funded by U.S. IOOS, NOAA, ONR, NSF, EPA, various universities, state agencies and industries.

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Glider Resources

General Info
- IOOS Gliders Homepage
  Summary of IOOS glider and AUV activities
- IOOC Glider Task Team
  The goals of the Interagency Ocean Observation Committee (IOOC) Glider Task Team are to enable increased engagement with the glider community and to advance the coordinated use of glider observing systems to meet global, national and regional sub-surface observing requirements.
- IOOS GliderDAC Benefits
  The Glider DAC provides a number of benefits to glider operators to improve their experience with their glider data including data distribution, quality assurance, and visualization\.

Data Visualization & Access
- Glider Metrics
  Infographic depicting the number of glider datas per regional association from 2008 to 2014
- ERDDAP Catalog
  The ERDDAP Catalog provides direct access to all GliderDAC datasets and allows users to make maps and graphs.
- THREDDS Catalog
  The THREDDS Data Server (TDS) is a web server that provides metadata and data access to all GliderDAC datasets, using a variety of remote data access protocols.
- NCEI Glider Archive Data
  NCEI archives data and metadata independently of the original data providers so that it is available for use by future users.

Documentation
- Manual for Quality Control of Temperature and Salinity Data Observations from Gliders
  This manual describes the tests required to ensure the quality control (QC) of real-time data collected by sensors attached to profiling gliders.
- IOOS National Glider DAC Wiki
  A collection of documents and resources describing the NetCDF file specification, data provider registration and data set submission processes for contributing glider data sets to the GliderDAC\.
- NCEI Submission Information Form for the IOOS National Glider Data Assembly Center
  Describes process used to establish archiving of GliderDAC data with NCEI
- IOOS Underwater Glider Network Plan
  Strategy for using underwater gliders as part of a larger comprehensive three dimensional ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes observing system.
- Glider DAC Quarterly Webinar - April 2017
  Metadata, Archiving and Community Tools
  
  [accompanying slides]
- IOOS DMAC Tech Webinar - October 2022
  Tracking GDAC Data Sets
  
  [accompanying slides]
  [recording]

Data Provider Tools
- IOOS Compliance Checker
  Web-based tool to check local or remote datasets for compliance against a variety of standards, including the IOOS GliderDAC
- GliderDAC Submission Status Page
  Web-based tool for tracking the submission of glider data to the GliderDAC. Provides summary of deployments, WMO IDs, number of profiles, time coverage, and data availability through ERDDAP and THREDDS.