Re: [idvusers] selecting data region across 0 meridian

Hi Don, all,

Yes, the netCDF-Java Grid API is the obvious place to put this
capability. The TDS option would be a nice addition but would be built
on top of the netCDF-Java capabilities, so not a replacement for the
Grid API.

Unfortunately, we haven't had the resources to work on this feature.
However, if anyone is interested in contributing some work on this
feature, it could be done a) purely in the IDV, b) as netCDF-Java helper
classes, or c) as part of the netCDF-Java Grid API. Eventually, we'll
want to get it into the Grid API but work done in the IDV or in
netCDF-Java based helper classes should be fairly easy to migrate up to
the Grid API.

If anyone is interested in working on this, please let us know.

Thanks,

Ethan

On 3/21/2012 3:55 PM, Don Murray wrote:
> Ethan-
> 
> On 3/21/12 2:40 PM, Ethan Davis wrote:
>> Yes, we have two issues open that are related to this capability. The
>> one Don mentions [CDM-32] lists a number of improvements for the
>> CDM/netCDF-Java Grid API including cross-seam subsetting.
>>
>> The other one [TDS-143] looks at the cross-seam problem specifically.
>> One of the comments lists a number of possible solutions. Basically it
>> lists some options for what code might be responsible for splitting
>> requests into two and stitching the resulting data together:
>>
>>    a) the client application (e.g., the IDV)
> 
> That would not help other applications (like the TDS) or anyone who
> wants to write some Java code using the netCDF-Java Grid API.
> 
>>    b) helper classes in netCDF-Java
> 
> a possibility, but c seems better.
> 
>>    c) the netCDF-Java Grid API (and other Feature APIs, eventually)
> 
> I think that would be the best place for it because it would be usable
> by applications built on the netCDF-Java library like IDV, TDS, RAMADDA,
> ncWMS, etc.  Otherwise, each application would have to write the same
> (or similar) code.  Other grid libraries (e.g. wgrib2) have this
> functionality without the end user/client having to call special code or
> write their own.
> 
> The GeoGrid.subset method already takes a LatLonRect and could handle
> the special case where it does have a grid that is wrappable.  Perhaps
> use a negative start for Range. Handling it under the covers would make
> it seamless for all client applications.
> 
>>    d) somewhere in the THREDDS Data Server (TDS)
> 
> A TDS solution does not work for local grid files like those that people
> download from NCDC or ECMWF (as HP's message linked from the TDS-143
> states) or many global climate model netCDF files that are available for
> download.
> 
>> The IDV work required for these options decreases as you go down the
>> list. But it never goes away. I think the minimum the IDV will need to
>> do (with options c and d) is:
>>
>>    1) recognize a dataset as a global dataset (asking netCDF-Java
>>       in all but the first option); and
> 
> It already has code to do this by looking at the GridCoordSys.
> 
>>    2) present the subsetting in a way that allows the user to make
>>       a cross-seam requests;
> 
> The IDV used to allow a region to be selected across the edge of a grid,
> but code was added changed because a) this doesn't make sense for all
> grids and b) the underlying netCDF-Java layer wouldn't understand such a
> request.  So, it should just be a matter of undoing the change in the
> GeoSelection class to allow the map to pan.
> 
>> Now, as to the status of this work in the CDM/TDS, it has not been
>> started and isn't currently slated for the 4.3 release (sorry, the JIRA
>> issue is a bit out of date). Options c and d definitely won't make it
>> into 4.3. We might be able to get at least some parts of option b into
>> release 4.3.
> 
> I'm sorry to hear that since it's been a request for several years (long
> before HP's request).
> 
>> I will talk to Yuan, Julien, and Sean about this and perhaps we can put
>> it down as an agenda item for some future IDV/McV telecon.
> 
> Okay, but I probably know the most about how the IDV interfaces with the
> Grid API.
> 
>> I just added a comment to the TDS-143 JIRA issue with some more detailed
>> notes on the options listed above. If anyone has comments on those
>> details, let me know.
> 
> See above.
> 
>> [CDM-32] https://www.unidata.ucar.edu/jira/browse/CDM-32
>> [TDS-143] https://www.unidata.ucar.edu/jira/browse/TDS-143
> 
> In the meantime, for those of you IDV users working with global grids, I
> added a lonFlip Jython routine which will flip a 0-360 grid to -180 to
> 180 and vice versa.  For those of you who work along the prime meridian
> and deal with 0-360 global grids, you can create a formula of
> lonFlip(grid) and pass in the 0-360 grid and have it plot with 0 in the
> center.  This doesn't allow subsetting, but you can use this formula in
> conjunction with the Export grid to netCDF formula and flip a grid,
> write it out to a netCDF file and then read it back in.  At that point,
> you can subset over the old grid boundary.  This is available in the
> latest release.
> 
> Don

-- 
Ethan Davis                                       UCAR Unidata Program
edavis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx                    http://www.unidata.ucar.edu



  • 2012 messages navigation, sorted by:
    1. Thread
    2. Subject
    3. Author
    4. Date
    5. ↑ Table Of Contents
  • Search the idvusers archives: