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Re: 950502: Help on importing netCDF to SGI Explorer

> >Keywords: 199505021747.AA01020

Hi Dr. Li,

>    I am writing to seek help about importing netCDF files for data 
> visulization using SGI explorer. I wonder whether you know of any existing
> explorer module that can read netCDF data. Many thanks.

Yes, there are at least two such modules.  I've appended descriptions of
them, extracted from the the WWW document "Software for Manipulating or
Displaying NetCDF Data" available at 

    <URL:http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/packages/netcdf/utilities.html>

If you have a WWW browser such as Netscape or Mosaic, it would be useful to
read these descriptions from the document referred to above, as it contains
links to more information about the packages than is contained in the
appended text descriptions.

--Russ
______________________________________________________________________________

Russ Rew                                           UCAR Unidata Program
address@hidden                              http://www.unidata.ucar.edu



SGI Iris Explorer Module

The Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Group at the National Center for
Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) and the Mesoscale Dynamics and
Precipitation Branch at NASA-Goddard Space Flight Center have developed the
NCSA PATHFINDER module set for SGI Iris Explorer One of the modules, ReadDF,
is capable of reading from NCSA HDF files, MFHDF/3.3 files, and Unidata
netCDF files. The format translation is handled transparently. Up to five
unique lattices may be generated from the file (as these files can contain
multiple data fields) using a single module.  A variety of dimensionalities
and data types are supported also. Multiple variables may be combined in a
single lattice to generate vector data. All three Explorer coordinate
systems are supported. A user-friendly interface provides control and
information about the contents of arbitrary HDF and netCDF files. For more
information on the NCSA PATHFINDER project and other available modules,
visit the WWW/Mosaic PATHFINDER Home Page at
http://redrock.ncsa.uiuc.edu/PATHFINDER/pathrel2/top/top.html The ReadDF
module may be downloaded either via the WWW server or anonymous ftp at
redrock.ncsa.uiuc.edu in the /pub/PATHFINDER directory. For more information
please send email to: address@hidden See also the
information on DDI for another way to use netCDF data with IRIS Explorer.


DDI

The Data and Dimensions Interface ( DDI) addresses a significant problem in
the visualization of large data sets: Extracting only the relevant data and
providing it to a chosen graphics engine in the required form without undue
effort.

DDI transfers data between files, formats and visualization systems. It
works within the specifications of each supported format to promote
compatibility. DDI provides the following capabilities:

      Browsing through the contents of DRS, NetCDF, and HDF files 
      Randomly selecting data variables 
      Rearranging variables into the desired form 
      Modifying or creating new variable attributes 
      Saving variables into new files 
      Feeding variables directly to a visualization system 

DDI operates in two modes: 

      As a module in a data flow environment such as AVS or IRIS Explorer 
      As a stand-alone application capable of sending data over the network
      to AVS, IRIS Explorer, IDL, NCSA Collage, and PV-WAVE 

DDI is available for a number of computer systems via anonymous FTP from
sas.nersc.gov in the directory /pub/DDI.

The Introduction to DDI and DDI Reference Manual are Www-accessible:
http://www.nersc.gov/doc/Services/Applications/Graphics/DDI/DDI.html

DDI was developed as a collaboration between the Program for Climate Model
Diagnosis and Intercomparison (PCMDI), and the National Energy Research
Supercomputer Center (NERSC), both of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
(LLNL). DDI was developed by Chris L. Anderson, Robert S. Drach, and Dean
N. Williams.