CFR Part 950

CFR Part 950
in effect

15 C.F.R. § 950.1 Scope and purpose.

This part describes the Environmental Data and Information Service (EDIS), a major program element of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and EDIS management of environmental data and information.

15 C.F.R. § 950.2 Environmental Data and Information Service (EDIS).

The Environmental Data and Information Service is the first Federal organization created specifically to manage environmental data and information. EDIS acquires, processes, archives, analyzes, and disseminates worldwide environmental (atmospheric, marine, solar, and solid Earth) data and information for use by commerce, industry, the scientific and engineering communities, and the general public, as well as by Federal, State, and local governments. It also provides experiment design and data management support to large-scale environmental experiments; assesses the impact of environmental fluctuations on food production, energy production and consumption, environmental quality, and other economic systems; and manages or provides functional guidance for NOAA's scientific and technical publication and library activities. In addition, EDIS operates related World Data Center-A subcenters and participates in other international data and information exchange programs. To carry out this mission, EDIS operates a network of specialized service centers and a computerized environmental data and information retrieval service.

15 C.F.R. § 950.3 National Climatic Center (NCC).

The National Climatic Center acquires, processes, archives, analyzes, and disseminates climatological data; develops analytical and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for the World Data Center-A (Meteorology). It is the collection center and custodian of all United States weather records, the largest of the EDIS centers, and the largest climatic center in the world. (a) Climatic data available from NCC include: (1) Hourly Surface Observations from Land Stations (ceiling, sky cover, visibility, precipitation or other weather phenomena, obstructions to vision, pressure, temperature, dew point, wind direction, wind speed, gustiness). (2) Three-Hourly and Six-Hourly Surface Observations from Land Stations, Ocean Weather Stations, and Moving Ships (variable data content). (3) Upper Air Observations (radiosondes, rawinsondes, rocketsondes, low-level soundings, pilot-balloon winds, aircraft reports). (4) Radar Observations (radar log sheets, radar scope photography). (5) Selected Maps and Charts (National Meteorological Center products). (6) Derived and Summary Data (grid points, computer tabulations, digital summary data). (7) Special Collections (Barbados Oceanographic and Meteorological Experiment meteorological data, Global Atmospheric Research Program basic data set, solar radiation data, many others). (b) Queries should be addressed to: National Climatic Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Asheville, NC 28801, tel. 704-258-2850, Ext. 683.

15 C.F.R. § 950.4 National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC).

The National Oceanographic Data Center acquires, processes, archives, analyzes, and disseminates oceanographic data; develops analytical and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for the World Data Center-A (Oceanography). It was the first NODC established and houses the world's largest usuable collection of marine data. (a) Oceanographic data available from NODC include: (1) Mechanical and expendable bathytheremograph data in analog and digital form. (2) Oceanographic station data for surface and serial depths, giving values of temperature, salinity, oxygen, inorganic phosphate, total phosphorus, nitrite-nitrogen, nitrate-nitrogen, silicate-silicon, and pH. (3) Continuously recorded salinity-temperature-depth data in digital form. (4) Surface current information obtained by using drift bottle or calculated from ship set and drift. (5) Biological data, giving values of plankton standing crop, chlorophyll concentrations, and rates of primary productivity. (6) Other marine environmental data obtained by diverse techniques, e.g., instrumented buoy data, and current meter data. (b) Queries should be addressed to: National Oceanographic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, DC 20235, tel. 202-634-7500.

15 C.F.R. § 950.5 National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center (NGSDC).

The National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center acquires, processes, archives, analyzes, and disseminates solid Earth and marine geophysical data as well as ionospheric, solar, and other space environment data; develops analytical, climatological, and descriptive products to meet user requirements; and provides facilities for World Data Center-A (Solid-Earth Geophysics, Solar Terrestrial Physics, and Glaciology). (a) Geophysical and solar-terrestrial data available from NGSDC include: (1) Marine geology and geophysics. Bathymetric measurement; seismic reflection profiles; gravimetric measurements; geomagnetic total field measurements; and geological data, including data on heat flow, cores, samples, and sediments. (2) Solar-Terrestrial physics. Ionosphere data, including ionograms, frequency plots, riometer and field-strength strip charts, and tabulations; solar activity data; geomagnetic variation data, including magnetograms; auroral data; cosmic ray data; and airglow data. (3) Seismology. Seismograms; accelerograms; digitized strong-motion accelerograms; earthquake data list (events since January 1900); earthquake data service with updates on a monthly basis. (4) Geomagnetic main field. Magnetic survey data and secular-change data tables. (b) Queries should be addressed to: National Geophysical and Solar-Terrestrial Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, CO 80303, tel. 303-499-1000, ext. 6215.

15 C.F.R. § 950.6 Environmental Science Information Center (ESIC).

ESIC is NOAA's information specialist, librarian, and publisher. ESIC coordinates NOAA's library and information services and its participation in the national network of scientific information centers and libraries. Computerized literature searches provide information from over 80 data bases. The complete list of data bases is available on request. All ESIC information facilities provide the normal library tailored information and reference services. As NOAA's publisher of scientific and technical information, ESIC reviews, edits, and processes NOAA manuscripts for publication. (a) Services available from ESIC include: (1) Reference services. Some services are provided on a cost-recovery basis to non-NOAA individuals. (2) Publication copy services. Copies of NOAA publications are provided on request from qualified users, including governments, universities, non-profit organizations, professional societies, chambers of commerce, public information media, and individuals and organizations having cooperative or exchange agreements with NOAA. (3) Bibliographies. Special bibliographies are prepared on request. When provided to non-NOAA individuals, service is on a full cost-recovery basis. (4) Current awareness services. Periodically provides announcements of titles of newly published NOAA scientific and technical publications. (5) Lending services. Materials are loaned to other libraries and to NOAA employees. (6) On-site use of library collections. (7) Publishing services. Includes providing refereeing, reviewing, editing, and publishing services for NOAA authors of manuscripts destined for both NOAA and non-NOAA publication series. (b) Queries should be addressed to: Environmental Science Information Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Rockville, MD 20852, tel. 301-443-8137.

15 C.F.R. § 950.7 Center for Environmental Assessment Services (CEAS).

EDIS assists National decisionmakers in solving problems by providing data analyses, applications, assessments, and interpretations to meet their particular requirements. Many of these services are provided by the EDIS Center for Environmental Assessment Services (CEAS). (a) The following are examples of CEAS projects and services: (1) CEAS prepares data-based studies and weekly assessments of potential effects of climatic fluctuations on National and global grain production. (2) CEAS provides environmental analyses and assessments to support efficient and effective planning, site selection, design, construction, and operation of supertanker ports and offshore drilling rigs. Such planning depends heavily upon environmental assessments. (3) During the heating season, CEAS issues monthly and seasonal projections of natural gas demand for multi-State regions of the conterminous United States. Similar projections are made for electricity during the cooling season. (4) CEAS has developed and makes available when needed a statistical oil spill trajectory risk model based on historical meteorological and oceanographic data. (5) The center has analyzed the potential ecological effects of the planned disposal of huge volumes of saturated brine into Gulf waters for the National Strategic Petroleum Reserve and may be called on to provide similar services in other subject areas. (6) CEAS provides experiment design, data analysis, and data management support to project managers and produces merged, validated multidisciplinary data sets for international and national study (such undertakings as the recent key role in the Global Atmospheric Research Program (GARP) experiments). (7) CEAS provides special data or information as required. Currently the Center is assembling an inventory of cruises and a global oceanographic data base from observations taken during the First GARP Global Experiment (FGGE). (b) Additional information on these or related services can be obtained by writing: Director, Center for Environmental Assessment Services, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Washington, DC 20235; or by calling (202) 634-7251.

15 C.F.R. § 950.8 Satellite Data Services Division (SDSD).

The Satellite Data Services Division of the EDIS National Climatic Center provides environmental and earth resources satellite data to other users once the original collection purposes (i.e., weather forecasting) have been satisfied. The division also provides photographs collected during NASA's SKYLAB missions. (a) Satellite data available from SDSD include: (1) Data from the TIROS (Television InfraRed Observational Satellite) series of experimental spacecraft; much of the imagery gathered by spacecraft of the NASA experimental NIMBUS series; full-earth disc photographs from NASA's Applications Technology Satellites (ATS) I and III geostationary research spacecraft; tens of thousands of images from the original ESSA and current NOAA series of Improved TIROS Operational Satellites; and both full-disc and sectorized images from the Synchronous Meteorological Satellites (SMS) 1 and 2, the current operational geostationary spacecraft. In addition to visible light imagery, infrared data are available from the NIMBUS, NOAA, and SMS satellites. Each day, SDSD receives about 239 negatives from the polar-orbiting NOAA spacecraft, more than 235 SMS-1 and 2 negatives, and several special negatives and movie film loops. (2) Photographs (both color and black-and-white) taken during the three SKYLAB missions (May through June, 1973, July through September, 1973, and November 1973 through February 1974). (b) Queries should be addressed to: Satellite Data Services Division, World Weather Building, Room 606, Washington, DC 20233, tel. 301-763-8111.

15 C.F.R. § 950.9 Computerized Environmental Data and Information Retrieval Service.

The Environmental Data Index (ENDEX) provides rapid, automated referral to multidiscipline environmental data files of NOAA, other Federal agencies, state and local governments, and universities, research institutes, and private industry. A computerized, information retrieval service provides a parallel subject-author-abstract referral service. A telephone call to any EDIS data or information center or NOAA library will allow a user access to these services.

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