The Obs4MIPS.py software package is a front end to an existing free software package written by Lawrence Livermore National Lab, called “Climate Model Output Rewriter” (CMOR2), and reads in a multitude of standard data formats such as netcdf3, netcdf4, Grads control files, MATLAB data files, or a list of netCDF files. The software prepares Earth Science Observational (obs4MIPs) data or Climate Modeling Reanalysis (ana4MIPs) data for publication in the NASA Center for Climate Simulation (NCCS) Earth System Grid Federation system (ESGF). It converts the data into a netCDF file following the Climate and Forecast (CF) metadata convention as specified by Climate Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5). Obs4MIPs.py addresses the differences in input data format, variable definition, and Global Attribute requirements that exist within observational and re-analyses datasets.

The program reads an input file, identifies the input format, makes the necessary unit conversions for each variable if needed, performs time aggregation, creates a netCDF file following the CMIP5 standard output request, and sets the filename and directory path as requested by the user. Time aggregation can also be done automatically using an input list of netCDF files or using a Grid Analysis and Display System (GRaDS) data descriptor file.

The Obs4MIPS.py code is run from the command line on a system with the required supporting libraries and input data files. While all code was written at Goddard Space Flight Center, it is written using Python, a freeware programming language.

This work was done by Denis Nadeau of Goddard Space Flight Center. This software is available for use. To request a copy, please visit here .