Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Once these datasets are recorded as time series, data center operations teams can reconstruct
the circumstances that lead to outages, plan upgrades by looking at trends, or even detect
many kinds of security intrusion by noticing changes in the volume and patterns of data
transfer between servers and the outside world.
Environmental Monitoring: Satellites, Robots, and More
The historic time series dataset for measurements of atmospheric CO
2
concentrations de-
scribed in
Chapter 1
is just one part of the very large field of environmental monitoring that
makes use of time series data. Not only do the CO
2
studies continue, but similar types of
long-term observations are used in various studies of meteorology and atmospheric condi-
tions, in oceanography, and in monitoring seismic changes on land and under the ocean. Re-
mote sensors from satellites collect huge amounts of data globally related to atmospheric hu-
midity, wind direction, ocean currents, and temperatures, ozone concentrations in the atmo-
sphere, and more. Satellite sensors can help scientists determine the amounts of photosyn-
thesis taking place in the upper waters of the oceans by measuring concentrations of the
light-collecting pigments such as chlorophyll.
For ocean conditions, additional readings are made from ships and from new technologies
such as ocean-going robots. For example, the company Liquid Robotics headquartered in
Sunnyvale, California, makes ocean-going robots known as wave gliders. There are several
models, but the wave glider is basically an unmanned platform that carries a wide variety of
equipment for measuring various ocean conditions. The ocean data collectors are powered by
solar panels on the wave gliders, but the wave gliders themselves are propelled by wave en-
ergy. These self-propelled robotic sensors are not much bigger than a surfboard, and yet they
have been able to travel from San Francisco to Hawaii and on to Japan and Australia, making
measurements all along the way. They have even survived tropical storms and shark attacks.
The amount of data they collect is staggering, and more and more of them are being
launched.
Another new company involved in environmental monitoring also headquartered in
Sunnyvale is Planet OS. They are a data aggregation company that uses data from satellites,
in-situ instruments, HF radar, sonar, and more. Their sophisticated data handling includes
very complicated time series databases related to a wide range of sensor data. These ex-
amples are just a few among the many projects involved in collecting environmental data to
build highly detailed, global, long-term views of our planet.
