Enabling Analysis in the Cloud Using NASA Earth Science Data

A Hybrid workshop, remotely and in person at AGU Fall 2023 Meeting

Author

NASA Openscapes Mentors

Welcome

Welcome to the 2023 NASA Openscapes AGU Workshop hosted by NASA Openscapes!

The workshop will take place in person and virtually at AGU on Sunday, December 10, 2023 from 1pm-4:30pm PST (UTC-7).

About

Workshop Goals

  • Provide an inclusive place to learn about and experience working with NASA Earthdata Cloud;
  • Provide strategies and best practices for finding and accessing NASA Earthdata Cloud data to help promote interdisciplinary research. Specifically, participants will learn how to access data from AWS S3 buckets and have a better understanding of the Python ecosystem used to analyze the data depending on size and data formats;
  • Better understand the needs of Earthdata data scientists by providing a pre/post survey and engaging in discussions with workshop participants;
  • Identify and practice using popular open source tools and utilities.

Workshop Description

Earth science data, including NASA Earthdata, is increasingly more available from the cloud. By leveraging cloud compute resources, open science principles, and technologies that foster transparency and reproducibility, science can be done at rates and scales that are not achievable by using personal/local machines. Building modern data skills in a friendly environment is crucial for accelerating science and reducing barriers to inclusive scientific research. In this workshop, NASA Openscapes Mentors from NASA’s Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) DAACs (data centers) will teach the foundations of an open science mindset and apply these concepts to work in the cloud with NASA Earthdata. Participants will take part in hands-on tutorials using a JupyterHub managed by 2i2c in AWS. Participants will leave with a better understanding of how to leverage data and services from NASA Earthdata Cloud within their work across a variety of disciplines and data types, as well as how to apply the concepts of open science as a daily practice. The workshop will encourage discussion and reflection on how Earth science is evolving. Tutorials will be taught in Python. The target audience is anyone interested in using NASA Earth Science data within the AWS cloud. Previous experience in the AWS cloud is not necessary. Experience using Python is recommended but not required.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the proposed workshop, participants will leave with a better understanding of how NASA Earthdata Cloud data and services can best be leveraged and integrated within their work across a variety of disciplines and data types, while being exposed to open science practices and workflows in Python. Participants will be engaged on two different levels: (1) through an open science mindset, and (2) through science use cases that demonstrate capabilities for efficient data discovery, access, and use within the cloud. These learning objectives will encourage discussion and reflection on how the Earth science, data science, and informatics communities are evolving, and how this evolution presents challenges and opportunities in scientific research.

Acknowledgements

This Workshop has been developed as a cross-DAAC collaboration by the NASA-Openscapes Team. Learn more at nasa-openscapes.github.io.