HMG NetCDF
Evolving initiative jointly driven with the KIT Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK) Atmospheric Aerosol Research (AAF) and supported by the Helmholtz DataHub.
The NetCDF Metadata Guideline Initiative is a collaborative effort from researchers, research data management, research data infrastructure and metadata experts from several research centers across Germany. We are supported by the Helmholtz DataHub, the central data infrastructure of the Research Field Earth and Environment within the Helmholtz Association. This initiative aims to develop harmonized data handling guidelines to unify the diverse sub-communities within both observational and modeling fields, building towards a unified and consistent infrastructure for environmental research data.
Our approach includes examining existing guidelines, followed by their integration and expansion to address diverse needs within Earth and Environment disciplines. We will produce a set of comprehensive guidelines designed to enhance data interoperability and reusability, along with tools to facilitate their adoption.
Key milestones include:
- Reconciling attributes in former guidelines.
- Implementation of a collaborative and public guidelines document.
- Development of machine-readable templates and validation tools.
- Provision of highly user-friendly tools that support scientists when entering metadata profiles based on the guidelines.
- Integration of our enhanced NetCDF-profiles into selected downstream clients like theEarth Data Portal (EDP).
Outreach
- HMC Conference 2024:NetCDF Metadata Guidelines for the Helmholtz Earth and Environment Community
- Abstract submitted to EGU 2025:Session ITS1.15/ESSI2.1
Partner
- Helmholtz Coastal Data Center (HCDC), Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Geesthacht, Germany
- Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany
- Ocean Research Technology Centre, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel, Germany
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich, Germany
- Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar- and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
- Institute of Coastal Systems - Analysis and Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Geesthacht, Germany
- Ocean Circulation and Climate Dynamics, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Kiel, Germany
- Helmholtz Metadata Collaboration (HMC) & Data and Information Management, GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam, Germany
Contact Person

Data manager
Helmholtz Coastal Data Center, HCDC
Phone: +49 (0) 4152 87-1533