Tom Haine is a member of the OpenOceanCloud Working Group (OOCWG), which is aligned with the Poseidon Project. The main goal of the OOCWG is to help the ocean science community, federal agencies, and research institutions align and coordinate a shared vision for data-proximate cloud computing to support research and education. To achieve this goal, the OOCWG is developing recommendations and near-term activities to support the adoption and utilization of cloud resources in ocean sciences.
As part of this activity, a Town hall was held at the 2024 Ocean Sciences Meeting.
Abstract:
Data-proximate computing in the cloud is a potentially massive opportunity for ocean sciences. On-demand cloud computing, combined with analysis-ready, cloud-optimized data and open-source workflows, allows scientists to accelerate and scale their research. It also makes science more open, inclusive, and reproducible. The transition to cloud computing is disrupting the traditional equipment-based infrastructure funding model; eliminating boundaries between agencies, institutions, and individual labs and PIs; and introducing new commercial infrastructure partners to the equation. Due to the transboundary nature of the ocean, close coordination with global Earth-observing systems is a scientific and societal priority. By linking global, national, and regional ocean observations and ocean models, open ocean cloud computing promises to deliver powerful new approaches for understanding, predicting, and managing ocean resources.
This Town Hall will discuss these developments. In particular, it will seek community input on a shared vision for ocean scientists to interact with the cloud in ways that benefit all stakeholders while attracting new users and accelerating new research modalities.
