Internet Data Distribution – extending real-time data sharing throughout the Americas

Abstract. The Unidata Program Center (Unidata) of the University Corporation of Atmospheric Research (UCAR) is involved in three international collaborations whose goals are extension of real-time data delivery-to and sharing-of locally held datasets-by educational institutions throughout the Americas. These efforts are based on the use of Unidata's Internet Data Distribution (IDD) system which is built on top of its proven Local Data Manager Version 6 (LDM-6) technology. The Unidata IDD is an event-driven network of cooperating Unidata LDM servers that distributes discipline-neutral data products in near real-time over wide-area networks. The IDD, a collaboration of over 150 mostly North American institutions of higher education, has been the primary source of real-time atmospheric science data for the US university community for over a decade,. In addition to providing a highly reliable mechanism for delivering real-time data, the IDD allows users to easily share locally held datasets.