Skip to content

Conversation

@eleanorfrajka
Copy link
Collaborator

@eleanorfrajka eleanorfrajka commented Sep 24, 2025

Description:

Updating the format specification to follow more closely the OceanSITES format, but augmented in places with OG1 format (vocabularies!) and collapsing the creator_*, principal_investigator_* attributes into contributor_*

  • Add complete OceanArray format specification (oceanarray_format.rst) building on OceanSITES 1.4 with OG1 enhancements
  • Add authentic OceanSITES 1.4 reference manual (oceanSITES_manual.rst) with proper cross-reference labels
  • Update documentation index to include both specifications
  • Add oceanographic parameter naming resources to development guidelines

Key Features

  • Format specification: 9-section comprehensive specification covering file organization, global attributes, dimensions, coordinates, data variables, QC flags,
    and reference tables
  • OG1 integration: Incorporates OceanGliders format patterns for contributor metadata and sensor information variables, and time format choices
  • Clear deviations: Documents specific differences from OceanSITES (N_LEVELS vs DEPTH dimension, UDUNITS-2 formatting, comma-separated contributors)
  • Cross-references: Complete RST label system enabling proper documentation linking between specifications
  • Reference tables: Comprehensive units, QC flags, processing levels, and recommended variable name tables

Technical Details

  • Uses N_LEVELS dimension instead of DEPTH to reduce pressure/depth confusion
  • Follows UDUNITS-2 formatting conventions (spaces, negative exponents, no parentheses)
  • Supports comma-separated multi-contributor metadata following OG1 patterns. Note: for institutions with a common in the name, this comma is stripped.
  • Maintains OceanSITES compatibility with OS_ filename prefix
  • Includes sensor information variables as dimensionless following OG1 structure

Documentation Structure

  • oceanarray_format.rst: New comprehensive format specification
  • oceanSITES_manual.rst: Complete authentic OceanSITES 1.4 manual for reference

@eleanorfrajka eleanorfrajka marked this pull request as ready for review September 25, 2025 06:32
@eleanorfrajka eleanorfrajka merged commit 39be817 into main Sep 25, 2025
1 check passed
Sign up for free to join this conversation on GitHub. Already have an account? Sign in to comment

Labels

None yet

Projects

None yet

Development

Successfully merging this pull request may close these issues.

2 participants