U.S. DEPARTMENTOF COMMERCE

National Oceanicand AtmosphericAdministration

Vol. 7, No.1 ● September 1996

EARTH SYSTEM MONITOREnhancing NOAA’s image

A guide toNOAA's data and

informationservices

INSIDE

Imagery in print, on walls, and on the World Wide Web

3News briefs

6Coastal

environmental quality

8Looking at NCDC'svery eventful year

12Unique and innovative

descriptions of theenvironment released

by NCDC

15Data productsand services

16New director named

at NODC

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UN

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Peter W. SlossMarine Geology and Geophysics DivisionNational Geophysical Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS

The National Geophysical Data Center(NGDC) is using imagery to heighten publicawareness of earth science data and to createnew products for scientific and educational uses.Examples of NGDC graphics described belowdemonstrate the diversity of our data holdingsand the importance of those data to science,education, and commercial interests.

Images produced for NGDC are popping upin many places, some because we put them onour World Wide Web (WWW) site, and some

because someone liked what they saw elsewhere.Solicited graphics have appeared, with appropri-ate credit lines, in U.S. and international publica-tions, including National Geographic, ScientificAmerican, Geo, Newsweek, and Encyclo- paediaBritannica.

On computer media, credited illustrationswere supplied for the award-winning Small BluePlanet CD-ROM by NowWhat Software and forMicrosoft’s Oceans CD-ROM. The Weather Chan-nel used a NGDC relief image on the back coverof their 1994 calendar. The PBS television seriesNewton’s Apple needed relief images for a seg-ment on late-Cretaceous species extinctions. Asexamples of more exotic locations for NGDCimagery, relief globes have appeared on the coverof an internal report on the Secretary of Energy’stravels, seen fleetingly on the evening TV news,on the cover of an Italian refrigeration-equip-ment catalog, and in a syndicated comic strip.Icons made from NGDC globe images appear on

▲ Figure 1. Mercator-projection shaded relief image of global topography. Modeled illumination is fromthe west, with shading based on a logarithmic function of slope to emphasize smaller features. Data resolu-tion is 5 minutes of latitude and longitude (about 8 km at the equator).

Marine Geology and Geophysics DivisionNational Geophysical Data Center E/GC3325 BroadwayBoulder, CO 80303-3328E-mail: psloss@ngdc.noaa.gov – continued on page 2

2 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

The Earth System Monitor (ISSN 1068-2678) is published quarterly by the NOAAEnvironmental Information Services office.Questions, comments, or suggestions forarticles should be directed to the Editor,Sheri A. Phillips. Requests for subscriptionsand changes of address should be directedto the Associate Editor, Nancy O’Donnell.

The mailing address for the EarthSystem Monitor is:

National Oceanographic Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS E/OC1SSMC3, 4th Floor1315 East-West HighwaySilver Spring, MD 20910-3282

EDITORSheri Phillips

Telephone: 301-713-3279 ext.127Fax: 301-713-3302

E-mail: sphillips@nodc.noaa.gov

ASSOCIATE EDITORNancy O’Donnell

Telephone: 301-713-3279 ext. 126Fax: 301-713-3302

E-mail: nodonnell@nodc.noaa.gov

DISCLAIMERMention in the Earth System Monitor ofcommercial companies or commercialproducts does not constitute an endorse-ment or recommendation by the NationalOceanic and Atmospheric Administrationor the U.S. Department of Commerce.Use for publicity or advertising purposes ofinformation published in the Earth SystemMonitor concerning proprietary productsor the tests of such products is notauthorized.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCEMichael Kantor, Secretary

National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration

D. James Baker,Under Secretary and Administrator

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diverse Web pages to indicate world-wide coverage. The Swiss shareware pro-gram Home Planet uses a NGDC reliefmap as a background for its world-timedisplay.

Without the resources of a special-ized graphic arts department or Holly-wood-style multiprocessor graphicsworkstations, there are still many rea-sonably-priced choices of powerful soft-ware for desktop personal computersthat can manipulate images, turn datainto 3D graphics, and compose every-thing into film-ready color separationfiles or digital images for the Web. To-pographic data are one of the most“imagable” types and form the basis forthe graphics presented here. The fol-lowing are a few basic image types thatwork well with topographic data.

Planar color-shade relief mapsThese products started with digital

raster elevation data from ETOPO51 thatwere processed into color-shaded reliefimagery. Homegrown software was writ-ten to compute color according to apredetermined algorithm representingelevation as hues and slope as bright-ness on a specified geometric projection.A nonlinear brightness function allowedsmaller slopes to remain visible withoutoveremphasizing the high relief areas.Products made using this techniquewere Surface of the Earth2 (Report MGG-5) poster (Figure 1) and the Surface of theEarth Icosahedron Globe3 (Figure 2). TheIcosahedron has proven very popularwith educational users, and the firstprinting of 7500 copies was used up injust a few months; 3000 copies of the

▲ Figure 2. The Icosahedron Globe as it would appear when assembled.

NOAA’s image, from page 1

– continued on page 4

3September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

News briefs

ronmental degradation: ozone layerdepletion, increased ultraviolet radiation,climate change, water and air pollution.

For more information, please contactConference Chair, Bruce Torrie, SkiesAbove Foundation, 2701 Seaview Road,Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, V8N1K7, (604) 477-0555, e-mail: skies@islandnet.com.

NOAA hosts WebShop '96NESDIS was well represented at

WebShop '96 held in Silver Spring, Md.,June 26-28. Peter Sloss, of the NationalGeophysical Data Center, presented apaper “Browser Bruising—Things that GoBump in the Net,” that addressed theproblems in making a Web Page “lookgood on several different computer sys-tems.” Ethan Davis and Eric Kihn pre-sented two papers: “Space PhysicsInteractive Data Resource (SPIDR)” and“Data Visualization on the Web Using anIDL Server.” Other papers presented were“NOAA, the Web, and Education” by TedHabermann; “Pictures and Words on theWeb: Comprehensive Image and CaptionPresentation System” by Kevin Frender,Ted Habermann, R. Fozzard and K.Tanaka; and “Exploring Personal Web Sitesas the Next Step in NOAA Web Develop-ment” by Ted Habermann and RichFozzard.

In addition, Chris Haggerty, NationalSnow and Ice Data Center, presentedNSIDC’s work on Eurasian glacier inven-tory in a session on database access.NSIDVC plans to adopt some of the tech-nologies presented by other NOAA facili-ties. These would include online data visu-alization and possibly a Java interface tothe glacier inventory.

NCDC assists Virginia middleschool science curriculum

The National Climatic Data Centerwas contacted by the Summer Produc-tions Company in Virginia for help in thedevelopment of a national middle schoolscience curriculum entitled AssignmentDiscovery. The company takes past epi-sodes of Discovery Channel programs andtransforms them into interactive classroomstudy material. The NCDC’s role will be toupdate climatological data previously pre-sented in the programming. Data from

NCDC Storm Data publications and Re-search Service Group Technical Reportswere provided.

NESDIS prepares for Eco-Informa’96 Conference on global networksThe NESDIS national data centers andSatellite Archive will be presenting papersand demonstrating interactive online ses-sions at the Eco-Informa ’96 Conference:Global Networks for Environmental Infor-mation at Lake Buena Vista, Florida, No-vember 4–7, 1996.

Included in the presentations will beweb sites, home pages, in situ and remotedata and information on NODC CD-ROMproducts. In addition, the NOAA Librarywill give a special demonstration of Inter-net search strategies distributing reportsand brochures.

For more information, see the Eco-Informa WWW site at : http://www.erim.org/CONF/ECOINF/ECO. html.

Nature museum features NGDCearthquake CD-ROM

The National Geophysical DataCenter’s two–volume earthquake CD–ROM collection is being featured by Na-ture magazine in an exhibit at the mu-seum in their London, Englandheadquarters. The exhibit shows variousearthquake displays created using theGeoVu software. The public is attending inrecords numbers, up 78% compared tolast year according to museum staff.

NGDC personnel worked with editorsand graphic artists at Nature in prepara-tion for this exhibit which began July 1and continues throughout the summer.

Mariners Weather Log continuespublication

The Spring 1996 issue of the MarinersWeather Log resumed publication of thishighly–acclaimed NOAA publication.NOAA’s National Weather Service hastaken the lead for production of the Logwith support from the NOAA NationalEnvironmental Satellite, Data, and Infor-mation Service and the U.S. Navy.Founded in 1957, the Log is a quarterlypublication providing information formariners, shipboard weather observers,and others whose lives and livelihoodsdepend on knowledge of the sea. Sub-scriptions are $12/yr. For information,contact the Superintendent of Docu-ments, P.O. Box 371954, Pittsburgh, PA15250-7954.

OAII Science Management Officenewsletter call for articles

The Ocean Atmosphere Ice Interac-tion Science Management Office (OAII)located in the Center for Coastal PhysicalOceanography at Old Dominion Univer-sity, Norfolk, Va., requests articles, photo-graphs and figures for their annual news-letter, ARCSS-OAII. Submissions to ArcticSystem Science-AOII, if appropriate, mayalso be posted to the OAII Home Page. Forfurther information about length, style orformat, contact anne@ccpo.odu.edu,lou@ccpo.odu.edu or write Anne S. West–Valle, CCPO, Old Dominion University,Crittenton Hall, Norfolk, VA 23529.

NCDC participates in South Ameri-can climate data meeting

Ken Davidson, director of the Na-tional Climatic Data Center, chaired aWorld Meteorological Organization meet-ing held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in April1996. The meeting looked at the monitor-ing of climate messages and productstransmitted over the Global Telecommuni-cation System. For the past year, NCDChas studied the transmissions from SouthAmerica and has dramatically increasedthe flow of data through intensive trainingand request efforts in cooperation withArgentina.

NODC exhibits at TOS scientificmeeting in Amsterdam

Oceanographers Don Collins andMary Hollinger represented the NationalOceanographic Data Center at the SixthScientific Meeting of the OceanographySociety in Amsterdam, The Netherlandson July 8-11, 1996.

Demonstrations were provided usingtwo notebook PCs: one displayed a slideshow simulation of the NODC Website,the other displayed a slide show presenta-tion ”NODC: 35 Years of Ocean Data Ser-vice.”

The keynote speaker for the confer-ence was NOAA Administrator Dr. D.James Baker, who spoke on “Our Worldand the Sea: Global Change and GlobalSecurity.”

Conference on environmental deg-radation scheduled

The Skies Above Foundation and co-sponsoring partners will hold an interdisci-plinary conference on Vancouver Island InBritish Columbia, Canada, April 30–May 3,1997. The conference will focus on envi-

4 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

larger Mercator poster have been dis-tributed since its introduction in 1994.

Both publications used the sameshading algorithm, but the map projec-tions used were Mercator for the posterand gnomonic for the Icosahedron(with a different projection referencepole for each of the 20 triangular fac-ets). All of these projects went fromconcept to final files on a desktopMacintosh computer. The Earth’s Frac-tured Surface map (Figure 3) publishedas a folded insert in National Geographic(April 1995) used the same shadingalgorithm as the images in Figures 1and 2, but the color palette was speci-fied by National Geographic Societycartographers to correspond to theirstandards. Annotations and identifierswere added to the base image file at theNational Geographic computer com–positing system.

Textured surfacesDesktop PC software can render

global views using texture mapping tosimulate the lighting of topographyand to apply a specific coloration to thesimulated landscape. While these pro-grams can produce a stereoscopic pairof images from any 3D modeled object,the mapped texture is revealed to bepainted on a smooth surface. The com-putational rationale for this is obvious— there are far fewer surface polygonsto be computed on a smooth spherethan there would be if the surface

model actually represented the trueshape of the topographic relief. Theshading algorithms that give the ap-pearance of relief shading operate ononly a few hundreds of polygons torepresent the sphere, rather than the

millions necessary to model the actualphysical surface. On the simplisticsmooth sphere, only the colors arechanged to represent lighting, althoughthe modeled effects can include reflec-tive surfaces, transparency, and mul-tiple light sources. Figure 4 shows oneof the 14 global topographic imagesfrom Views of the Globe4 (Report MGG-10). A sun-glint area is visible near thecenter because the modeled surface wasgiven some specular reflectivity.

True perspectiveThe most intensive rendering com-

putations are involved in perspectiveviews of a polygon-modeled surface.NGDC has a new poster in preparationthat uses 2.9 million polygons to repre-sent the age of crustal material on theocean floor draped over world topo-graphic relief5 (Figure 5). As with theglobe view shown in Figure 4, this im-age incorporates some reflectivity togive the appearance of a physical mate-rial such as a vacuum-formed plasticrelief map. The same 3D rendering soft-ware can be used to create close-up

▲ Figure 4. Shaded-relief globe with surface texture mapping on a smooth sphere.ETOPO5 elevation data resampled to about 10-minute resolution.

▲ Figure 3. Winkel-Tripel projection shaded relief map for a National Geographic articleon global tectonics.

NOAA’s image, from page 2

5September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

views of the ocean floor, for example, a1-degree-square area of the Gulf ofMexico being investigated for methaneseepage (Figure 6).

Images on the Web and on requestPreviews of many of these printed

graphical products are available onNGDC’s Web Site at http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/image/images.html. Alsoincluded here are experimental itemssuch as an animated fly-over of theGreat Lakes and rotating global images.Computer image formats are chosen formulti-platform compatibility so that nouser is excluded from access by com-puter type (PC, Mac, UNIX) or Webbrowser (Netscape, Mosaic, America On-Line, MS Internet Explorer). Please seeother NGDC Web pages for more graph-ics. For example, visit the Defense Me-teorological Satellite Program imagearchive in our Solar-Terrestrial PhysicsDivision site at http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/dmsp/.

Printed materials range in size from24”x24” for the Views of the Globe posterto 32”x43” for the Surface of the Earthposter. Special requests have included awall-size blowup of the latter (printed inthree 8-foot strips on a commercial ink-jet plotter), and film transparencies ofmany images for classroom or publica-tion use. The Intergovernmental Ocean-ographic Commission (IOC) has beensupplied with full-size CMYK color sepa-ration films for the cover of the Pacific

volume of their ocean atlas series. In-creasingly, outside and NOAA-basedpublishers have been requesting com-puter files rather than film or hard copyfor reproduction.

Other projectsCooperative projects with organiza-

tions such as the National GeographicSociety, the Scripps Institution ofOceanography, and various consortiawill continue to present opportunitiesfor new and colorful displays of justhow much data and expertise we have

in NOAA, NESDIS, and NGDC. Watchour Web site and printed circulars forannouncements. For further informa-tion and special requests, contact theauthor at NGDC:

Peter W. SlossMarine Geology and GeophysicsDivisionNational Geographical Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS E/GC3325 BroadwayBoulder, CO 80303-3328Phone: 303-497-6119E-mail: psloss@ngdc.noaa.gov

Notes1 5-minute gridded global topographic datafrom US Naval Oceanographic Office, DefenseMapping Agency, and others. See details on theWeb at: http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/global/seltopo.html

2 See http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/announce-ments/announce_surface.html

3 See http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/announce-ments/announce_icosahedron.html

4 See http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/announce-ments/announce_map10.html

5 See http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/global/crustage.HTML ■

▲ Figure 5. True-perspective view of relief colored with ocean crustal age bands. Notethat the apparent tilt of topographic features depends on their distance from the view’scenter. To be published as a 24”x36” NGDC poster.

▲ Figure 6. Oblique view of Gulf of Mexico floor, generated from NOS gridded multi-beam soundings. Data resolution was 250m. Images on the WWW and on request.

6 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

Coastal Monitoring BranchOffice of Ocean Resources Conservationand Assessment (N/ORCA21)NOAA/NOSSSMC4, Room 106501305 East–West HighwaySilver Spring, MD 20910E-mail: ACantillo@rdc.noaa.gov

A. Y. Cantillo , T. P. O’Connor,and G. G. LauensteinCoastal Monitoring BranchOffice of Ocean Resources Conservationand Assessment (N/ORCA21)NOAA/NOS

In response to the need for infor-mation on effects of human activitieson environmental quality in coastaland estuarine areas, and the need todevelop management strategies to dealwith these conditions, NOAA initiated,in 1984, the National Status and Trends(NS&T) Program for Marine Environ-mental Quality. The purpose of thisprogram is to determine the status anddetect changes in the environmentalquality of our Nation’s estuarine andcoastal waters. The NS&T Quality Assur-ance Project is one of the seven compo-nents of the Program and applies to thetwo monitoring projects: the NationalBenthic Surveillance Project (NBSP) andthe Mussel Watch Project (MWP).

The NBSP collected and analyzedbenthic fish and sediments from sitesaround the coastal and estuarineUnited States, including Alaska. Thiseffort was performed primarily byNOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Ser-vice. The MWP collects and analyzesbivalve mollusks and associated sedi-ments from around the United States,including the Great Lakes, Alaska, Ha-waii, and Puerto Rico. This effort isadministered by NOAA, with collectionand analyses being performed undercontract.

From 1986 through 1994, theGeochemical and Environmental Re-search Group, Texas A&M University,College Station, Tx., collected and ana-lyzed samples from the Gulf Coast.During this time, Battelle MemorialInstitute, Duxbury, Mass., and Sequim,

Wash., collected and analyzed samplesfrom the U.S. East and West Coasts,including sites in the Hawaiian Islandsand Alaska. During 1986-1989, samplesfrom along the California and Hawaiiancoasts were collected and analyzed byScience Applications International Cor-poration, Inc. The analytes include 24polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 20polychlorinated biphenyl congeners,DDT and its metabolites, nine otherchlorinated pesticides, organotins, fivemajor elements, and twelve trace ele-ments. Sampling sites and analyticalprotocols are described in several NOS/ORCA publications.

The elements are all potential con-taminants in the sense that their con-centrations in the environment havebeen altered by human activities. Theorganic groups include chlorinatedpesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls,and tributyltin, all of which are totallysynthetic products of human inven-tion. Another group of organic com-pounds, the polycyclic aromatichydrocarbons, are like metals in thesense that they occur naturally, buttheir environmental concentrationshave been enhanced by human activ-ity. All of these chemicals can, at suffi-ciently high concentration, pose ahazard to wildlife and to humans. Inrecent years the list of chemicals hasbeen expanded to include contempo-rary pesticides with sufficiently hightendencies to accumulate in the mol-lusks.

Quality assuranceLong-term monitoring studies,

whether local, regional, or global, re-quire that data of known quality begenerated by all participants. Thesedata must be comparable to one an-other, be traceable to a common refer-ence point, and meet data qualityparameters needed to substantiate theconclusions of the monitoring pro-gram. The quality of the analytical datagenerated by the NS&T Program is over-seen by the performance-based QualityAssurance Project. This Project has beenin operation since 1985 and is designedto document sampling protocols, ana-lytical procedures and laboratory per-

formance, and to reduce intralabora-tory and interlaboratory variation. Inaddition, the QA Project facilitatescomparisons among different monitor-ing programs with QA activities andthus extend the temporal and spatialscale of such programs.

To document laboratory expertise,the QA Project requires that all NS&Tlaboratories participate in a continuingseries of intercomparison exercises uti-lizing a variety of materials. The or-ganic analytical intercomparisonexercises are coordinated by the Na-tional Institute of Standards and Tech-nology and the inorganic exercises bythe National Research Council ofCanada.

Sampling sites and methodsThe NS&T Mussel Watch Project is

designed to represent chemical distribu-tions over national and regional scales.Therefore, it is important for samplingsites to be representative of rather largeareas rather than the small-scale patch-es of contamination commonly referredto as “hot spots.” To this end, no siteswere knowingly selected near wastedischarge points. Furthermore, sincethe Mussel Watch Project is based onanalyzing indigenous mussels and oys-ters, a site must support a sufficientpopulation of these mollusks to provideannual samples.

There are 300 sites currentlysampled as part of the NS&T MusselWatch Project (Figure 1). At each site,bivalves and sediments are collectedfrom three stations at each site (a sta-tion is generally within 100 m of a sitecenter). The bivalves are dredged orpicked in intertidal to shallow subtidalzones, brushed clean, packed in dry ice,and shipped to the analytical labora-tory. Once in the laboratory, tissue andsediment samples are composited fromeach site before being analyzed. Eachmussel composite contains 30 individu-als and each oyster composite contains20 individuals, while each sedimentcomposite is made from three samples.

The composites are analyzed forconcentrations of organic and metalcontaminants. Nationwide, data arecollected for several species of bivalves:

Coastal environmental qualityNOAA’s NS&T Program presents results from the Mussel Watch Project

7September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

– continued on page 14

blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) from theU.S. North Atlantic, blue mussels(Mytilus sp.) and California mussels (M.californianus) from the Pacific coast,eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica)from the South Atlantic and the Gulf ofMexico, smooth-edge jewelbox (Chamasinuosa) from the Florida Keys, Carib-bean oyster (C. rhizophorae) from PuertoRico, tropical oysters (Ostrea sand–vicensis) from Hawaii, and zebra mus-sels (Dreissena polymorpha) from theGreat Lakes.

Data availabilityThere are currently nine years of

NS&T data and trends in the concentra-tions of analytes can be determined.The first eight years of data from collec-tion and analysis of mussels displayedclear evidence, on a national scale, ofdecreases in concentrations of: chlori-nated hydrocarbons, whose use hasbeen banned; tributyltin, whose use asan antifoulant on recreational boats hasbeen banned; cadmium and arsenic,whose uses have been severely cur-tailed; and copper, whose use has notdeceased but whose discharges appar-ently have diminished. For otherchemicals there was no evidence fordecreasing or increasing trends in con-centration.

Sediment data describe the status,or spatial distribution, of contamina-tion on a national scale. The molluscandata, on the other hand, are used pri-marily to describe and follow temporaltrends in contaminant concentrations.Published results indicate that highlevels of chemical contamination aregenerally limited to relatively smallareas near urban centers, that concen-trations are decreasing for chemicalswhose use has been banned or severelycurtailed, and that no measured chemi-cals exhibit increasing trends.

Correlations between concentrationsand population

The overall concentration distribu-tions for each chemical in sediment areapproximately log normal, and “high”concentrations were defined as thoseexceeding the mean plus one standarddeviation of the log normal distribu-tion. Those “high” concentrations areuseful for comparisons within theNS&T data set and with other reportson sediment contamination. The“high” concentrations in units of mi-crogram/gram (ug/g) of dry fine-grainedsediment for each contaminant are (inparentheses): Ag (1.2), As (24), Cd(1.2), Cr (230), Cu (84), Hg (0.49), Pb(89), Sn (8.5), Zn (270), total PAHs

(3.9), DDT and metabolites (0.037), andtotal PCBs (0.20).

There is a correlation between con-centrations of most of these chemicalsand numbers of people (1990 data fromthe U. S. Census Bureau) living within20 km of each site. This simply meansthat, in general; human activity ac-counts for most of the high concentra-tions. There are a few exceptional traceelements (e.g., As, Cr, and Ni) wherethe high concentrations are not associ-ated with human activities.

Temporal trendsChemical concentrations in mus-

sels and oysters are determined by theextent to which the organisms accumu-late chemicals from the food they filterfrom their surrounding water and fromthe water itself. When chemical con-centrations increase or decrease in theirsurroundings, the organisms are ca-pable of increasing or decreasing thecorresponding concentrations in theirtissues. This, and the fact that they areimmobile, make them ideal for moni-toring temporal trends, i.e. correlationbetween concentration and time.

The trends sought in the MusselWatch data were correlations betweenconcentrations and year for the years of

▲ Figure 1. NOAA Mussel Watch sites.

8 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

National Climatic Data Center’s very eventful yearA new complex and a line of new online products, CD-ROMs, and publications

Neal LottClimate Services DivisionNational Climatic Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS

The past fiscal year has been abusy and eventful one at the NationalClimatic Data Center in Asheville, NC.After moving into our new facility inthe spring of 1995, we became verycomfortable and accustomed to ournew surroundings. Despite the disrup-tion, there were many advances andadditions in our products, and we hopeour customer and research communi-ties have benefited from what we’veaccomplished. This article provides abrief review of NCDC online productsand services, CD–ROM, articles andreports published, and satellite dataservices.

CD–ROM productsRecently added or updated: NCDC

CD-ROM products include the follow-ing:• International Station MeteorologicalClimate Summary (ISMCS) Version 4.0:this CD–ROM now provides detailedclimatological summaries for 2600 lo-cations worldwide. These locationsinclude National Weather Service sta-tions, domestic and overseas Navy/AirForce sites, and numerous foreign sta-tions. Limited summaries are also givenfor approximately 5000 other world-wide sites.

Tabular and statistical data can beexported to a printer or spreadsheetand some of the tables can be bar-graphed. Version 4.0 (released in Sep96) adds 400 new foreign stations,precipitation tables for 1100 foreignstations, and updated U.S. station sum-maries through 1995.• Global Upper Air Statistics: this CD–ROM uses 16-year (1980-1995) 2.5–degree gridded upper air summariesderived from the European Centre

for Medium–Range Weather Forecasts(ECMWF) model analyses. The CD pre-sents upper air statistics for 15 differentvertical levels in the Northern andSouthern Hemisphere for dry bulb anddewpoint temperature, geopotentialheight, air density, and vector and sca-lar wind speed.

The previously completed ‘atlas’CD (Global Upper Air Climate Atlas—‘GUACA’) provided access/display soft-ware, contouring capability for user-defined areas, and vertical profiles for1980-1991. This new CD simply pro-vides the ASCII data (no graphic inter-face) for users desiring quick/easy accessto the data files, and adds the 1992-95period.• Global Tropical and ExtratropicalCyclone Climatic Atlas (GTECCA)Version 2.0: this CD–ROM (released inSeptember 1996), as its predecessor,contains global tropical storm trackdata from as early as the 1870’sthrough 1995 for the five tropical stormbasins, along with northern hemi-spheric extratropical storm track datafor 1965–1995. The new version has

updated global track data through 1995along with several added functions,such as plot capability by Saffir-Simpson category. Also, narratives fortropical storms from the 1950s topresent, narratives for extratropicalstorms since 1980, and basin–wide cli-matology graphics have been added.

As before, the tropical track dataincludes time, position, and storm stage(maximum wind, central pressure whenavailable). The user is even able to se-lect storm tracks passing within a user–defined radius of any point.• Coastal-Marine Automated Network(C–MAN) Station and Buoy Reports andSummarized Elements (SeaBreeze): Anew 2-volume CD-ROM set containingclimatic summaries and archived obser-vations measured by National DataBuoy Center (NDBC) moored buoysand C-MAN stations for 197 sites. Theperiod of record generally covers a 3- to20–year period depending on the sta-tion and ends with December 1993.

The CD–ROM set consists ofarchived observations and climaticsummary tables. All measurements are

Climate Services DivisionNational Climatic Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS151 Patton AvenueAsheville, NC 28801-5001E-mail: nlott@ncdc.noaa.gov

▲ Figure 1. Gray scale rendition of Antarctic station data plotted utilizing NCDC'spopular CLIMVIS (Climate Visualization) System.

Henry (Antarctica)Nico (Antarctica)

FahrenheitFahr

enhe

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Day of the month June 1996

Mean temperature

9September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

included except for spectral wave dataand subsurface measurements. A mapshows the station locations, and datainventories show measurements andtime periods for each station.

The following elements are sum-marized into monthly frequency distri-butions: Wind speed, wind gust, sealevel pressure, air and sea temperature,air-sea temperature difference, dewpoint (where available), significantwave height, and the average anddominant wave period. Additionaltables include: Wind speed versus di-rection, significant wave height versusdominant and average wave periods,and significant wave height versuswind speed. We’ve also included theindividual monthly means and ex-tremes for all measurements.• NOAA Weather Charts Via CD-ROMSubscription: A new series available asa subscription (one year basis only) oras individual copies and containingnumerous types of weather charts.They are archived as PCX files on amonthly basis and serve as a continua-tion of NCDC’s microfilm archive. Theseries includes monthly CD editions of:Surface and Upper Air Weather Charts;Initial Analysis and Forecast Charts;and Tropical Strip/Precipitation andObserved Weather Charts. They’reavailable approximately eight weeksafter the close of the data month. Sub-scription orders begin with the Febru-ary 1996 charts, and the period sinceOctober 1994 will also be added.

It is important to note that NCDCCD–ROM products were initially pro-duced to be used in a DOS PC environ-ment and will usually not work in aMacintosh environment. However,they will usually work in a Windowsenvironment if the user goes to theDOS prompt to access the CD. Also,NCDC has help sheets for users, includ-ing those now using Windows-95. ACD-ROM help desk has been estab-lished (704-271-4702) for answeringusers’ questions after they’ve orderedand received a CD. The basic cost of theCD-ROMs is $120 per CD (+ $5 servicecharge) although discounts are pro-vided for larger volume orders.

Online products and servicesThe following are several products

and services that were added (or had

▲ Figure 2. Sample renditions of climatic data graphics demonstrating different pa-rameters that may be color plotted with CLIMVIS. The upper plot was generated fromdata collected at Needles Airport, Calif; the lower plot was generated from precipitationdata collected in China. NCDC‘s interactive CLIMVIS system may be accessed throughthe WWW at URL: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/.– continued on page 10

Day of the month: June 1996

Mean dew pointMean temperature

Fahr

enhe

it

Needles Airport, California

Precipitation

Day of the month: June 1996

Huang Shan (MTNS) (People‘s Republic of China)Shangchuan Island (People‘s Republic of China)

InchesFahrenheit

Inch

es

10 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

significant updates) during the pastfiscal year. Our WWW address is http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov, and all of the fol-lowing items can be accessed there ei-ther through the On Line Data Accessicon or through the Products, Publica-tions, and Services icon. Data underOn Line Data Access have been re-orga-nized for easier user-recognitionof what’s available.• CLIMVIS: This has quickly becomeour most popular new system. ClimateVisualization (CLIMVIS) provides vari-ous graphic capabilities for U.S. divi-sional monthly data and U.S./Globalsurface daily data (over 8000 stations,available about 4 weeks after end of thedata month). It generates bar/linegraphs (Figures 1-2) along with con-tour/vector maps from the data. Then,the user can download the actual datavalues used in generating the plot. Cli-matic data not only from U.S. cities butfrom as far away as Antarctica, Siberia,Indonesia, and any other country canbe explored with this system.• NCDC Products and Services Guide:This has been updated with more infor-mation on available datasets, products,and publications.• New technical reports are now avail-able on various topics (Table 1, Figures5–6) including : reports on 1995 flood-

ing in California, Hurricane Opal, the1995 hurricane season, the winter of1995-1996, the probabilities for a whiteChristmas, and billion–dollar weatherdisasters of 1980-1996.• Online images: This new system pro-vides easy access to over 200 images,(Figure 3) with the main emphasis onsatellite images. Hurricanes from asearly as 1970, and all 1995-1996 tropi-cal storms and hurricanes are included.

We also have historical storms such asGilbert, Hugo, and Andrew.• Inventories: A new system for access-ing online inventories for datasets suchas global upper air data, global surfacedata, and NEXRAD data.• NEXRAD Page: A new page devotedto NEXRAD products, including inven-tories of available data by station, soft-ware for using the data, and links tonear real-time radar images.• Global Surface Summary of Day Data:Numerous new files and capabilitieswere added, including special weatherevent files, interactive graphics (Figures1–2), and station-selection capability asdescribed above (CLIMVIS).• Global and U.S. Historical ClimateNetwork Data: New web pages forthese long-term monthly datasets.Datasets contain monthly climatologi-cal data for over 10,000 U.S./globalstations with periods of record of over100 years for some of the locations.• Special Sensor Microwave Imager/DMSP Data: New page linking to SSM/Iproducts from the DMSP archives, suchas satellite-derived snow cover/sea ice,cloud cover, cloud liquid water content,precipitable water, precipitationamount, and ocean surface wind speed.• Upper Air Browse/Inventory System:New system to browse and obtaininventories for NCDC’s new upper airsounding database—the Comprehen-sive Aerological Reference Data Set(CARDS).

NCDC’s year, from page 8

Temperature (degrees Farenheit)

▲ Figure 3. GOES satellite image of Hurricane Bertha.

▲ Figure 4. Contour plot of lowest temperatures recorded (degrees Fahrenheit) fromFebruary 1-5, 1996.

11September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

Table 1. Selected articles and reports, 1995-96

Easterling, D.R., T.R. Karl, E.H. Mason, P.Y. Hughes, andD. P. Bowman, 1996: United States Historical Clima-tology Network (U.S. HCN). Monthly Temperature andPrecipitation Data, Bulletin 4500, NDP-0l/R3.

Graumann, A., D. Ross, and N. Lott: The 1995 HurricaneSeason, A View from the NOAA Satellites. TechnicalReport 96-01. [Asheville, N.C.]: National ClimaticData Center, Research Customer Service Group, 1996.

Guttman, N.B. and R.G. Quayle, 1995: A Historical Per-spective of U.S. Climate Divisions. Bulletin of theAmerican Meteorological Society 77, 293-303.

Groisman, P.Y., D.R. Easterling, R.G. Quayle, V.S.Golubev, A.N. Krenke, and A.Y. Mikhailov, 1996: Re-ducing Biases in Estimates of Precipitation Over theUnited States: Phase 3 adjustments. Journal of Geo-physical Research 101, D3, 7185-7195

Guttman, N.B., 1995: Climate of North America, in Ency-clopedia of Climate and Weather, Oxford UniversityPress.

Guttman, N.B., 1996: Statistical Characteristics of U.S.Historical Climatology Network Temperature Distribu-tions. Inter-Research 6, 33-43.

Guttman, N.B. and C.B. Baker, 1996: Exploratory Analy-sis of the Difference Between Temperature Observa-tions Recorded by ASOS and Conventional Methods.Bulletin of American Meteorological Society, in press.

Karl, T.R., R.W. Knight, D.R. Easterling, and R.G. Quayle,1996: Indices of Climate Change for the UnitedStates. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society.77, 279-292.

Lott, N.l and T. Ross: NCDC Products and Services Guide.[Asheville, N.C.]: National Climatic Data Center, Re-search Customer Service Group, 1996.

Lott, N., T. Ross, and M. Sittel: The Winter of 95-’96, ASeason of Extremes. Technical Report 96-02. [Asheville,N.C.]: National Climatic Data Center, Research Cus-tomer Service Group, 1996.

Lott, N., T. Ross, and M. Sittel: White Christmas? Techni-cal Report 95-03. [Asheville, N.C.]: National ClimaticData Center, Research Customer Service Group, 1995.

Lott, N., A. Graumann, J. Kobar, D. Ross, K. Ross, T. Ross,and M. Sittel: Hurricane Opal. Technical Report 95-02. [Asheville, N.C.]: National Climatic Data Center,Research Customer Service Group, 1995.

Lott, N. and M. Sittel: January and March 1995: A Califor-nia Cloudburst. Technical Report 95-01. [Asheville,N.C.]: National Climatic Data Center, Research Cus-tomer Service Group, 1995.

Peterson, T.C., V.S. Golubev, and P.Y. Groisman, 1995:Evaporation Losing its Strength. Nature, 377 (6551),687-688.

Ross, T. and N. Lott: Billion Dollar U.S. Weather Disasters1980-1996. [Asheville, N.C.]: National Climatic DataCenter, Research Customer Service Group, 1996.

Steurer, P.M., 1996: Comparison of Probability Distribu-tions Used in Estimating the 100-Year Return Period ofthe Air-Freezing Index. Journal of Cold RegionsEngineering 10(1): 25-35.

Viront-Lazar, A. and P.M. Steurer, 1996: Metadata forClimate Data. Proceedings of the 1st IEEE MetadataConference, Silver Spring, Md.

Zhai, Panmao and R.E. Eskridge, 1996: Analyses ofInhomogeneities in Radiosonde Temperature andHumidity Time Series. Journal of Climate 9, 884-894.

many (too numerous to mention here)types of satellite products, digital data,and printed images available. For fur-ther information or requests:

E-mail: satorder@ncdc.noaa.govPhone: 704-271-4850Fax: 704-271-4876

The Satellite Active Archive (SAA) iseven more automated, allowing userswith Internet access to view inventoriesof POES AVHRR and TOVS Level 1bdata, to browse them, and to order se-lected datasets for further processingand analyses without any human inter-vention. Furthermore, the data can beretrieved via FTP within a matter ofhours at no charge. The SAA is acces-sible via NCDC’s homepage at URL:http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov.

ConclusionWe hope this has provided a good

overview of NCDC’s recent additionsto its products and services, andthereby given readers some insightinto how we can be of service. Pleasecontact:

National Climatic Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS151 Patton AvenueAsheville, NC 28801-5001Attn: Climate Services BranchTelephone: 704-271-4800Fax: 704-271-4876Internet: orders@ncdc.noaa.gov ■

▲ Figure 5. A gray scale version of a color plot, “Blizzard of ‘96” snowfalltotals, January 6-8, 1996.

Satellite Data ServicesOn July 10, 1995, NCDC

began servicing retrospectivesatellite data requests from itsmain office in Asheville, N.C.With the advent of the Inter-net, NCDC realized that itwould be more efficient andcost effective to service therequests from its home base.In anticipation of the transi-tion, thousands of magnetictapes were shipped from theover-crowded archive at theSatellite Data Services Divisionin Suitland, Md., to a brandnew, environmentally con-trolled site in Asheville.NCDC archives the originaland processed data fromNOAA’s Polar Orbiting Envi-ronmental Satellites (POES)and from selected instrumentson the Defense MeteorologicalSatellite Program (DMSP) satel-lites.

Recently, NCDC has begunarchiving the GeostationaryOperational EnvironmentalSatellite (GOES) Day-OneProducts, while the Space Sci-ence Engineering Center(SSEC) at the University ofWisconsin continues to ar-chive the GOES data. Requestsfor GOES data are routinelysubmitted via e-mail fromNCDC to SSEC, where the dataare processed and then sub-mitted to a dedicated fileserver for FTP.

Therefore, orders for any ofthe above data types can besubmitted to NCDC, and we’llhandle the request. NCDC has

Inches

12 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

Unique and innovative descriptions of theenvironment released by NGDC

Kathy Martin and John KinsfatherInformation Services DivisionNational Geophysical Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS

NOAA continues to provide newinformation about the environmentand makes this information availableon various media to businesses, educa-tors, scientists and the general public.The following new environmental dataproducts were developed during 1996and are now available from the Na-tional Environmental Satellite Data andInformation Service’s (NESDIS) Na-tional Geophysical Data Center(NGDC):• 1995 Atlantic Hurricanes Poster fromDMSP Satellites. The 1995 Atlantic hur-ricane season was one of the mostactive and destructive seasons on re-cord. Eleven tropical cyclones reachedhurricane strength when sustainedwinds exceeded 64 knots (73 mph).More than twice the 1885-1994 averageof 4.9 hurricanes per year were re-corded, and this is second only to 1933when thirteen hurricanes were reported.

The eleven hurricanes were cap-tured in numerous images recorded bytwo Defense Meteorological SatelliteProgram (DMSP) satellites. The 1995Hurricanes and Typhoons Slide Sets area group of 22 slides showing the 1995season hurricanes and a set of 23 slidesshowing the typhoons from 1995. TheDMSP satellites’ unique points of viewallow studies of the structure, magni-tude and location of storms. Each slidedisplays a storm in either visible orinfrared wavelengths. The name of thestorm and the time of image are print-ed on the slide. Captions, in an at-tached information booklet, describethe magnitude and path of each storm.• Age of the Ocean Floor. (Figure 1) is afull-color poster showing plate bound-

aries, tectonic patterns, and crustal ageof the seafloor draped over relief data.Ages for ocean floor between the oldestidentified magnetic anomalies and con-tinental crust were interpolated by sci-entists by estimating the ages of passivecontinental margin segments from geo-logical data and published plate models.• The Bathymetry of Lake Michigan in-cludes a full-color poster and digitaldata on CD-ROM. The poster depictsthe bathymetric contours of Lake

Michigan in 10 meter contours, andincludes color diffracting glasses forviewing in 3D. The CD contains 5–meter bathymetric contours, 9 arc sec-ond grid with a 9 arc second interval, agraphic image showing sounding loca-tions, and a file to plot the poster.• Earthquake Strong Motion CD-ROMCollection, a 3 volume collection con-tains NGDC’s entire strong motionarchive - over 15,000 digitized and pro-cessed accelerograph records from 1933

Information Services DivisionNational Geophysical Data CenterNOAA/NESDIS325 BroadwayBoulder, CO 80303E-mail: kmartin@ngdc.noaa.gov ▲ Figure 1. Gray scale rendition of NGDC’s “Age of the Ocean Floor” full-color poster.

Visually exciting data products and collections offered in a wide range of media

13September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

near infrared radiance at night. Withthe OLS VIS banked data it is possibleto detect clouds illuminated by moon-light, plus lights from cities, industrialsites, gas flares, and ephemeral eventssuch as fires and lightning illuminatedclouds. The poster (Figure 2) was de-rived from cloud-free portions of 231orbits of DMSP OLS data. The majorityof the detected features are lights fromurban areas.• NOS Hydrographic Survey Data - U.S.Coastal Waters. This new CD-ROM setfeatures the complete National OceanService (NOS) Hydrographic SurveyDigital Database which includes over44 million soundings from 4,961 sur-veys providing 1.7 gigabytes of data.The database consists of depths andnavigation features digitized from theplots of hydrographic surveys com-pleted between 1930 and 1965, andsurvey data acquired digitally in thefield since 1965.

The NOS Survey Data provides themost extensive digital bathymetric dataavailable for the coastal waters of thecontinental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, andPuerto Rico/Virgin Islands. The denseinshore and shallow-water data are wellsuited for computer generation of gridsto be used in hydrodynamic models ofestuaries and other coastal systems.GEODAS access software is included fordata access and display.• Coral sampling for climate reconstruc-tion. The Paleoclimatology EducationalSlide Project includes vivid photo-

▲ Figure 2. Nighttime lights of the USA from DMSP satellites, a poster released fromNGDC in 1996.

▲ Figure 3. Coral sampling for climatereconstruction studies.

to 1994. The data represent a broadrange of structural and geologic record-ing environments. Records were con-tributed to the archive from variousworldwide industrial, academic andgovernmental sources.• The Ionospheric Digital Database ofWorldwide Vertical Incidence Parametersis available on two compact discs withcustom-designed access and displaysoftware. The CDs contain 40,000 sta-tion months (1.3 gigabytes) of digitizedvertical incidence parameters from 130sites worldwide for the period from1957 through 1990. These data havebeen contributed through a major ef-fort among the World Data Centers andionosonde network organizations.• Marine Trackline Geophysics, Version3.2, a CD-ROM set, contains marinegeophysical trackline data includingnew data which have been acquiredand assimilated by NGDC through1995. The total amount of new datacovers 854,000 kilometers of bathym-etry, magnetics and gravity from 169surveys, and includes over 2.4 millionadditional digital records. The GEODASsoftware developed by NGDC allowscustomized searches and producestrackline plots on both PC and UNIXsystems. The companion WWWGEODAS system provides post-releaseupdates until the next CD is released. • Nighttime Lights of the USA fromDMSP Satellites. The DMSP OperationalLinescan System (OLS) has a uniquecapability to detect low levels of visible-

graphs of field research (Figure 3), high-quality graphics of important datasets,and descriptive diagrams. Included ineach set is a narrative to accompany theslides, a bibliography and, in mostcases, a vocabulary list. The Coral Pa-leoclimatology (Natural Recorders ofInterannual Climatic Variability in theTropical Oceans and Seas) set furnishes20 slides; the Low-Latitude Ice Cores(High Resolution Records of ClimaticChange and Variability in the Tropicsand Subtropics) has 20 slides; the PolarIce Cores (Records of Climatic Changeand Variability from the Ends of theEarth) totals 37 slides; and the RockVarnish (Microlaminations as a Paleo-climatic Indicator in Drylands) set has22 slides.• The Seismicity Catalog CD-ROM Collec-tion. A compilation of seismicity cata-logs from NGDC and the U.S.Geological Survey’s National Earth-quake Information Center. This 2-vol-ume set includes data from more than 4million earthquakes dating from 2100B.C. to 1995 A.D. The data include in-formation on epicentral time of origin,location, magnitudes, depth, and otherearthquake-related parameters.

For more information on these andother new products contact the NGDCInformation Services Group atinfo@ngdc.noaa.gov or (303) 497-6826 orsee the NGDC WWW site at http:/www.ngdc.noaa.gov/. ■

14 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

site-by-site and chemical-by-chemicalcorrelations, correlations were calcu-lated for 14 chemicals at the 154 siteswith 6 or more years of data. Correla-tions were also sought for the annualgeometric mean concentrations foreach chemical.

The most common result was a lackof trends. Among the 2373 combina-tions of 14 chemicals at 154 sites, thereare only 41 increases and 217 decreasesat the 95% level of confidence. Given a5% probability of random data showingtrends, there could be 59 increases and59 decreases that are not real trends.Conceivably, none of the 41 increasesare real.

The important point, however, isthat decreases greatly outnumber in-creases. Decreases exceed increases by afactor of three or more for all the chlo-rinated hydrocarbons, tributyltin, ar-senic, cadmium, copper, and selenium.Because of species differences, concen-trations in mussels have been separatedfrom those in oysters for Cu, Pb, andZn prior to calculating annual geomet-ric means. Decreasing geometric meanswere found for As, Cd, Cu (in mussels),all the chlorinated organics and totalbutyltins (Figure 2). Except for sele-nium, this list highlights the same de-creasing trends found by countingtrends site-by-site.

Decreasing trends are not unex-pected. All the monitored chlorinatedhydrocarbons have been banned for usein the United States and tributyltin hasbeen banned as a biocide on recre-ational boats. There have also beendecreases in the uses of cadmium andarsenic.

Exceedances of public health limitsFor the most part, chemical con-

centrations in mussels and oysters areused to identify temporal trends in con-tamination. In that context, it is thechanges in concentration rather thanthe concentrations themselves that areof interest. However, the concentra-tions are examined for instances wherepublic health guidelines are exceeded.There are U.S. Federal Drug Administra-tion standards for chlorinated hydro-carbons and for mercury, such that fishand shellfish with higher concentra-tions are prohibited from interstatecommerce.

Environmental quality, from page 7 lation. In terms of temporal trends,there were many more decreases thanincreases in chemical concentrationsbetween 1986 and 1993. The chemicalsfor which most of these trends exist are:chlorinated hydrocarbons whose usehas been banned; tributyltin,whose useas an antifoulant on recreational boatshas been banned; cadmium and ar-senic, whose uses have been severelycurtailed; and copper, whose use hasnot deceased but whose discharges ap-parently have diminished. Lead is theonly chemical showing concentrationsin excess of public health guidelines atseveral sites.

Further readingOver 500 publications, reports,

presentations, and technical memo-randa have been derived from NS&Tdata already. Many of these reports areavailable from the NS&T Program uponrequest (a list of publications is avail-able). NS&T data can be obtained inprinted or electronic form from theProgram office (301-713-3028 x 147, e-mail: ACantillo@rdc.noaa.gov) or can bedownloaded from the NS&T Home Pageon the World Wide Web at: http://www-orca.nos.noaa.gov/projects/nsandt/nsandt.html (NS&T raw data). ■

None of the standards were ex-ceeded for: Hg; DDT and metabolites;dieldrin, endrin and aldrin; or thecyclopentadiene pesticides at any sitein any year. The 10,000 ng/g (dryweight) standard for total PCBs wasexceeded in 1989 at one site in Buz-zards Bay, MA, but not in any otheryear.

In1993 the FDA issued human con-sumption guidelines for concentrationsof five trace elements in molluscan andcrustacean shellfish that vary with theage of consumer and rate of consump-tion. For three of those elements (ar-senic, chromium, and nickel), there areno cases where mussels or oysters col-lected in the Mussel Watch Programexceeded even the most stringentguideline. In 1991, the only year it wassuccessfully sampled, the site in LakePontchartrain near New Orleansyielded oysters whose cadmium con-centrations exceeded the lowest guide-line. The lowest guideline for Pb hasbeen exceeded in some years at severalsites in urban areas. Children shouldnot eat mussels or oysters from theselocations. However, these are generallyareas where shellfishing is already pro-hibited due to bacterial contamination.

ConclusionsFor the most part, the high levels

of chemical contamination are foundin proximity to centers of human popu-

▲ Figure 2. Decreasing annual mean concentrations of chlorinated organics and totalbutylins demonstrated from mussel tissues.

15September 1996 EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

Data productsand services

NGDC announces first releaseof ionospheric digital database

The National Climatic Data Center(NCDC) has released the IonosphericDigital Database of Worldwide VerticalIncidence Parameters on two CD-ROMs,with custom designed access and displaysoftware. The CDs contain 40,000 stationmonths (1.3 gigabytes) of digitized verti-cal incidence parameters from 130 sitesworldwide for the period from 1957through 1990. These data have been con-tributed through a major effort amongthe World Data Centers and ionosondenetwork organizations.Contact: NGDC

NGDC announces first releaseof geomatic data

The National Geophysical Data Cen-ter (NGDC) is pleased to announce theavailability of the complete Project Mag-net data collection on CD-ROM. From1951 through 1994, the U.S. Navy, underits Project Magnet Program, continuouslycollected vector aeromagnetic survey datato support the U.S. Defense MappingAgency’s world magnetic modeling andcharting program.

The CD-ROM is expected to simplifythe work of scientists performing regionaland global geophysical studies. NGDC'smulti-platform browse and retrieval soft-ware, GeoVu, is included with the CD-ROM.Contact: NGDC

NCDC completes productionof marine station CD-ROM

The National Climatic Data Center(NCDC) is offering a 2-disc CD-ROM set,C-MAN/Buoy Reports and SummarizedElements. These joint NCDC/NWS CD-ROMs contain data and summaries for197 marine stations. The data includehourly buoy and C-MAN station elements(excluding spectral wave data) through1993. Summaries include frequency ofoccurrence tables (elements); bivariatedistributions of wind speed and diection;wave period and height by month andseason; and year-month time seriesmeans and extremes.Contact: NCDC

NGDC acquires images depictingseismic creep

The National Geophysical Data Cen-ter (NGDC) recently acquired imagesdepicting fault creep from Dr. Susan

CONTACT POINTS

National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)704-271-4800

Fax: 704-271-4876E-mail: Climate Services - orders@ncdc.noaa.gov Satellite Services -

satorder@ncdc.noaa.govWWW: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/

National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC)303-497-6419

Fax: 303-497-6513E-mail: info@ngdc.noaa.gov

WWW: http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/

National Oceanographic Data Center(NODC)

301-713-3277Fax: 301-713-3302

E-mail: services@nodc.noaa.govWWW: http://www.nodc.noaa.gov

NOAA Environmental Services Data Directory

301-713-0572(Gerry Barton)

Fax: 301-713-1249E-mail: barton@esdim.noaa.gov

WWW: http://www.esdim.noaa.gov/#data-products

NOAA Central LibraryReference Services:

301-713-2600Fax: 301-713-4599

E-mail: reference@nodc.noaa.govWWW: http://www.lib.noaa.gov/

Hirschfeld, Department of GeologicalSciences, California State University inHayward, CA. These images are in addi-tion to 50 images of fault creep primarilyin Hollister, Calif, were acquired from JoeDellinger, Amoco, Tulsa, OK, earlier thisyear. Twenty images have been selectedfrom the above collection to include in asoon-to-be published set of slides entitledSeismic Creep.Contact: NGDC

Hurricane Bertha images onlinecourtesy of GOES-8

The National Climatic Data Center’s(NCDC) Satellite Services Group hasplaced a dozen GOES-8 satellite imagesand four movie loops of Hurricane Berthaon its World Wide Web Home Page. Ber-tha can be found under the heading “On-line Data Access” link on the NODCHome Page.

The Web Page includes a brief stormnarrative, numerous satellite images (vis-ible and infrared) of the storm, and aNEXRAD reflectivity image of the hurri-cane near landfall. One movie loop con-tains 40 images acquired at five-minuteintervals showing the hurricane regainingstrength and re-forming an eye whileapproaching the North Carolina OuterBanks on July 12, 1996. The images andmovie loops are unique in that they cre-ated data while GOES-8 was in a rapidscan mode.

Satellite and other images haveproven to be among the most popularfeatures of NCDC’s web site, with morethan 15,000 images downloaded in June(over 2.5 gigabytes) from a separateWWW page devoted entirely to them.Included along with the Bertha imagesare ones of hurricanes and other stormsgoing back to 1970. Super Typhoon Herbimages are the most recent ones linked tothis page. These images are available atURL: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/images/olimages.html.Contact: NCDC

New NGDC Seismicity Catalog CD-ROM popular around the country

The National Geophysical DataCenter’s new Seismicity Catalog CD-ROMcollection is being used in demos andexhibits in the U.S. and around the world.Institutions featured described belowcontacted NGDC for information aboutthe collection.

Dorothy Tao of the National Centerfor Earthquake Engineering Researchinlcuding the CDs in the agenda for asecondary school teachers workshop onearthquakes and earthquake engineeringheld at the University of Buffalo, NewYork, August 14,1996.

The Cleveland Museum of NaturalHistory has also obtained the CD Collec-tion. They are currently designing 10 newgalleries and 189 exhibitds that will openin 1997. They plan to use the SeismicityCatalog CDs in one of their interactivedisplays.

The Seismicity Catalog CD and thenew Strong Motion CD collections wereboth demonstrated at the Hazards Re-search and Application Workshop held inDenver, Colo, July 7–10, 1996. Over 300people from all over the world attendedthe workshop.Contact: NGDC

16 September 1996EARTH SYSTEM MONITOR

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40

Dr. Henry R. Frey, an oceanogra-pher, diver, author, and former acade-mician has been named director of theNational Oceanographic Data Center.Dr. Frey’s professional experience isbroad in scope—including private in-dustry, nonprofit research institutions,domestic and foreign consulting, andthe federal government.

A physical oceanographer by train-ing, Dr. Frey joined NOAA/NESDIS afterserving as Deputy Director, Office ofOceanic Research Programs, in NOAA’sOffice of Oceanic and Atmospheric Re-search. His activities there includedmanagement of the National Sea GrantCollege Program and the National Un-dersea Research Program.

Prior to joining NOAA/OAR, Dr.Frey served as Chief, Coastal and Estua-rine Oceanography Branch, NationalOcean Service (NOS). At NOS, he man-aged applied and mission–oriented re-search in oceanography, field measure-ments, data analysis, and computermodeling of circulation and water levelsin the nation’s estuaries, bays, andcoastal seas. He placed a special focus ondata quality assurance.

For this leadership and participa-tion in a major oceanographic projectrelating to the National Strategic Petro-leum Reserve Program, he was given theDepartment of Commerce Silver MedalAward. He won a second DOC SilverMedal Award for his scientific, engineer-ing, and managerial leadership thatresulted in the nations’s first fully inte-grated, physical oceanographic real–time system (PORTS) in Tampa Bay.This system has proved to be invaluablefor the safety of life, property, and theenvironment, and is currently beingreplicated in other ports.

He was recognized nationally by theCooperative Education (Charles F.Kettering Award) and given the NOAAAdministrator’s Award for Equal Em-ployment Opportunity in recognitionfor his painstaking work to develop aunique, barrier-free environment fordeaf and hard–of–hearing workers atNOS.

After receiving a B.S. in physicsfrom Queen College, CUNY, he beganhis career in underwater acoustics andundersea technology at Uniroyal’s Cor-porate Research Center, he became

Chairman of the corporate–wideUniroyal Ocean Engineering Group anda member of the USN SEALAB II ProjectTeam. He then returned to academia,received a Ph.D. in Oceanography fromNew York University, and rose to Direc-tor of Ocean Engineering at New YorkUniversity and then later at the Poly-technic University, where he advancedto Associate Professor of Oceanography.He supervised graduate students, taughtat the undergraduate and graduate lev-els, and performed research. During thisperiod, he was the principal investigatoron grants from NSF, Sea Grant, and theARCA Foundation.

His diving experience includes bothcommercial and science project diving.He served as divemaster and diver onNYU’s R/V Kyma and on NOAA, CoastGuard and Jamaican research ships. Histotal number of logged dives exceeds3,000 hours under water.

As NODC Director, Dr. Frey plans toplace special focus on data quality assur-ance, scientifically excellent data andanalysis products, intra-NOAA and in-teragency cooperation and collabora-tion, relationships with the academicresearch community, and customer–focussed management strategies.

— Nancy O’DonnellUser Services Branch

National Oceanographic Data CenterSSMC3, 4th floor

1315 East-West HighwaySilver Spring, MD 20910

E-mail: nodonnell@nodc.noaa.gov ■

▲ In July 1996 Dr. Henry Frey becamethe National Oceanographic Data Center‘sseventh director.

New Director Named at NODC