Open Data Policy
Data provided by NASA and ESA from Earth observing satellites, field campaigns, and algorithms shall be fully and openly available to all users as soon as the data becomes available. There should be no period of exclusive access to the data. This follows the NASA Data and Information Policy and the ESA Open Access Policy.
Additionally, any data shared to the MAAP data store (MDS) by users shall be fully and openly available to all users as soon as the data becomes available.
For more information see Addendum #2 (MAAP Data Access Policy) and the End User License Agreement.
Open Source Code Policy
All software developed for the MAAP platform implementation shall be made available to the public as Open Source Software (OSS) via use of a permissive license. This includes software developed to produce data products along with any software created to aid in discovering, accessing, analyzing, visualizing, and transforming data. OSS is defined as software that can be accessed, used, modified, and shared by anyone. OSS is often distributed under licenses that comply with the definition of “Open Source” provided by the Open Source Initiative or meet the definition of “Free Software” provided by the Free Software Foundation. This policy also requires that all developed code be delivered to a publicly accessible repository hosting service, such as Github, that is widely recognized by a large, active OSS community and used by developers of Earth science data and tools. This also allows adherence to the NASA ESDS Open Source Policy.
Additionally, any algorithms shared to the MAAP data store by users shall be fully and openly available to all users as soon as the algorithm becomes available. Algorithms retained within a private collaboration space will not be subject to the open source code policy unless it is shared to the MAAP by the user.
NASA
NASA’s Earth Science Data Systems (ESDS) Program requires that all software developed through research and technology awards or in-house, government funded development is to be made available to the public as Open Source Software (OSS). This includes all software developed with ESDS funding used in the production of data products, as well as software developed to discover, access, analyze, visualize, and transform NASA data. Please review the NASA ESDS Open Source Policy for details, including preferred licenses.
ESA
In 2011 ESA has defined and adopted and Open Source Code Policy (OSS) that allows the use of Open Source software for ESA space programmes. Together with the policy a set of ESA OSS licenses has been defined, but they are valid only for the territory of the ESA member states. Therefore it has been decided to release the MAAP pilot under the Apache 2 license that has no territorial validity restrictions. The license to be used for the full MAAP is not defined yet.
MAAP Data Access Policy
MAAP Data and Information Policy
All data and algorithms made available in the MAAP shall conform to NASA’s Data and Information policy[1]and ESA’s Revised Earth Observation Data Policy[2]. This includes data and algorithms from NASA, ESA and other data providers. The MAAP promotes the full and open sharing of all data with the research and applications communities, private industry, academia, and the general public. The greater the availability of the data, the more quickly and effectively the user communities can utilize the information to address basic Earth science questions and provide the basis for developing innovative practical applications to benefit the general public. For data access, the MAAP’s policy includes the following:
- The MAAP commits to the full and open sharing of Earth science data obtained from Earth observing satellites, sub-orbital platforms and field campaigns with all users as soon as such data become available.
- There will be no period of exclusive access to MAAP Earth science data. Following a post-launch checkout period, all science data will be made available to the user community. Any variation in access will result solely from user capability, equipment, and connectivity.
- The MAAP will make available all standard products along with the source code for algorithm software, coefficients, and ancillary data used to generate these products.
- The MAAP will enforce a principle of non-discriminatory data access so that all users will be treated equally.
- The MAAP will engage in ongoing partnerships with other institutions to increase the effectiveness of the MAAP. This interagency cooperation shall include: sharing of data from satellites and other sources, mutual validation and calibration data, and consolidation of duplicative capabilities and functions.
- The MAAP will negotiate and implement arrangements with its international partners, with an emphasis on meeting the data acquisition, distribution, and archival needs of the MAAP.
Data Rights
Data exchanged between NASA and ESA will be exchanged without restriction as to its disclosure, use, or duplication except as otherwise provided. The exchanged data will be subject to NASA’s data rights clause[3].
To facilitate open collaboration between NASA and ESA, a list of all data to be included in the MAAP will be shared. Each agency will review the identified datasets to identify any potential data access concerns and will approve the list once all concerns have been addressed. Each agency will agree to a method for sharing data across the infrastructures and will openly communicate when data has been added to the respective infrastructures. Attribution and provenance of a data product will be clearly defined in the appropriate metadata and other relevant documentation.
Similarly, data and algorithms developed by MAAP users shall be shared to the MAAP without restriction as to its disclosure, use, or duplication except as otherwise provided. Following a reasonable verification period, all data and algorithms generated by MAAP users will be made available to the user community. Algorithms and other relevant software created by users will also be subject to the open source process.
Non-discriminatory Data Access
In accordance with NASA’s and ESA’s data policies, data access within the MAAP shall be consistent and non-discriminatory so that all users of the MAAP are treated equally. Specific implementation details concerning data access will be described in the MAAP interoperability document.
Additionally, data access to user provided data shall also be consistent and non-discriminatory so that all users of the MAAP are treated equally. MAAP users should understand that the sharing of data and algorithms is expected within the platform. Therefore, restricted or limited access data and proprietary software should be avoided by users. More specific details on the required timeframe for sharing data and algorithms will be explained in the MAAP governance document and the MAAP user agreement policy (TBD**).