Beacon makes it possible to query (and find) a large number of datasets, is easy to install and provides the possibility to obtain exactly the specific subsets that are needed to feed a model or perform calculations in a Jupyter (Python) notebook.
Beacon ensures that the following question is answered in tenths of a second from various data sources. For example: “Give me all temperature data in the North Sea, from 2010 to 2020, at a depth of 0-10 meters, in degrees Celsius.” The answer from the API is then one NetCDF file that contains exactly the requested data, harmonized by parameter and unit, generated on-the-fly, immediately usable for visualization, in a Jupyter Notebook or for processing in a model.
Suitable for different domains
Although Beacon has its origins in marine projects, the technology is not domain-specific and suitable for every application where large collections of files in different formats must be quickly and uniformly questionable. Think of hydrological time series, monitoring data from rivers and lakes, or climate data that are spread over large numbers of stocks.
Sources
- Beacon is available for free under Open-Source license:
- Documentation:
- GitHub:
- Beacon Studio (user interface for IHM POC):
- Python library:
More information about Beacon can be found on the project page.
