The Global Centre for Risk and Innovation (GCRI)
Where Oceans and Coasts gets its data, on what terms, with what quality and with which known gaps.
The Oceans and Coasts source register lists the datasets and records the platform draws on, such as Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL), each with its producer, licence and permitted uses, quality and known gaps. A source is listed only once its terms permit the use described, and data held by agreement is used under those terms and never republished.
Fig.How a finding is reviewed before it is published. Design, not a record.
Night-time lights and population density, the footprint of electrified, connected activity, framed on Pacific Island states; each layer is a dated NASA product.
The interactive map needs JavaScript; the layer list and sources are below.
Layers 2
Connected activity
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NASA GIBS / EOSDIS · ASTER GDEM (METI, NASA) · Natural Earth
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Night-time lights and population density, the footprint of electrified, connected activity, framed on Pacific Island states.Satellite and model products as NASA publishes them, each with its own date; indicators, not assessments of any place; claim ceiling INTEGRATED.
Layers and dates
Who produces the data and how.
Licence, restrictions and permitted uses.
Coverage, resolution, update frequency and known errors.
How the data reached the platform and what was changed.
What is missing and how the gap is handled.
| Source | What it gives | Terms | Used in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Allen Coral Atlas | Maps of shallow coral reef habitats and bleaching monitoring | Open, CC BY 4.0 | Marine ecosystems |
| Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS and UN-OHRLLS data | SIDS priorities and development statistics | Public, UN terms of use | Island resilience |
| Argo programme data | Global temperature, salinity and biogeochemical profiles | Free and open, Argo data policy | Ocean observation |
| Coastal infrastructure from OpenStreetMap | Locations of ports, roads and facilities | Open, ODbL | Ports and maritime infrastructure |
| Copernicus DEM and lidar where available | Island elevation | Licence per product (to check) | Island resilience |
| Copernicus DEM and other global elevation models | Coastal elevation for exposure analysis | Free, licence per product (to check) | Sea level and coastal flood |
| Copernicus Marine Service biogeochemistry products | Chlorophyll, nutrients and oxygen fields | Free, Copernicus Marine licence | Marine pollution |
| Copernicus Marine Service sea level products | Satellite altimetry sea level and anomalies | Free, Copernicus Marine licence | Sea level and coastal flood |
| Copernicus Marine Service wave and sea level products | Wave and water level hindcasts and forecasts | Free, Copernicus Marine licence | Ports and maritime infrastructure |
| FAO FishStat and the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture | Global catch, aquaculture, trade, employment and stock status | Open, FAO terms (to check) | Fisheries and livelihoods |
| GESAMP reports | Scientific assessments of marine pollution, including plastics | Public, terms per publication | Marine pollution |
| GESLA global extreme sea level archive | High-frequency tide gauge records for extremes | Free with citation, licence per contributor (to check) | Sea level and coastal flood |
| Global Fishing Watch | Fishing activity estimated from vessel tracking | Open, licence per dataset (CC BY-SA or non-commercial, to check) | Fisheries and livelihoods |
| Global Mangrove Watch | Mangrove extent and change | Open, CC BY 4.0 | Marine ecosystems |
| Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network data | Ocean carbonate chemistry observations | Open, terms per data provider (to check) | Marine ecosystems |
| GLOSS tide gauge network | Core network of tide gauges for sea level | Free, terms per data centre | Ocean observation |
| IMF and World Bank debt sustainability analyses | Public debt and fiscal risk | Public, terms per institution | Island resilience |
| IMF PortWatch | Port activity and disruption estimates | Public, IMF terms (to check) | Ports and maritime infrastructure |
| IOC Global Ocean Science Report | National ocean science capacity and investment | Public, UNESCO terms (CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO for many) | Ocean observation |
| IOC-UNESCO marine spatial planning resources | Status and guidance of marine spatial planning | Public, UNESCO terms | Blue economy |
| IPCC AR6 sea level projection tool (NASA) | Regional sea-level projections by scenario | Open, NASA data policy | Sea level and coastal flood |
| IRENA and national offshore energy statistics | Offshore renewable capacity | Public, terms per publisher | Blue economy |
| ITOPF oil tanker spill statistics | Tanker spills by size and year | Public, ITOPF terms | Marine pollution |
| National beach litter monitoring programmes | Standardised beach litter surveys | Open data where published | Marine pollution |
| NOAA Coral Reef Watch | Satellite sea surface temperature and bleaching heat stress products | Public domain, US government data | Marine ecosystems |
| NOAA tides and currents data | Water levels, high-tide flooding outlooks and datums for US stations | Public domain, US government data | Sea level and coastal flood |
| Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) | Marine species occurrence records | Open, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-NC per dataset | Marine ecosystems |
| OceanOPS (WMO and IOC) | Status of ocean observing platforms worldwide | Public, OceanOPS terms | Ocean observation |
| OECD Ocean Economy database and outlooks | Ocean economy value and employment by sector | Public, OECD terms | Blue economy |
| Pacific Data Hub (Pacific Community) | Statistics and geospatial data for Pacific island countries | Open, licence per dataset | Island resilience |
| Permanent Service for Mean Sea Level (PSMSL) | Monthly and annual mean sea level from tide gauges worldwide | Free with citation, PSMSL terms | Sea level and coastal flood |
| PIANC guidance on climate change adaptation for waterborne transport infrastructure | Engineering guidance for ports and waterways | Licence per publication | Ports and maritime infrastructure |
| Post-Disaster Needs Assessments for island states | Damage and loss after major events | Public, terms per publisher | Island resilience |
| Protected Planet (World Database on Protected Areas) | Marine protected areas and OECMs | Free for non-commercial use, terms to check | Marine ecosystems |
| RAM Legacy Stock Assessment Database | Compiled stock assessment results | Open, licence to check | Fisheries and livelihoods |
| Regional fisheries management organization reports | Stock assessments and management measures | Public records, terms per organization | Fisheries and livelihoods |
| Sea Around Us | Reconstructed catches including unreported catch | Open, licence to check | Fisheries and livelihoods |
| UN Statistics SEEA Ocean accounting resources | Methods for ocean economic and ecosystem accounts | Public, UN terms of use | Blue economy |
| UN Tourism statistics | International tourism data | Licence to check | Blue economy |
| UNCTAD climate adaptation of ports reports and surveys | Port exposure and adaptation practice | Public, UNCTAD terms (to check) | Ports and maritime infrastructure |
| UNEP SDG 14.1.1 data and Global Environment Monitoring System | Coastal eutrophication and plastic debris indicators | Public, UNEP terms | Marine pollution |
| World Ocean Database (NOAA NCEI) | Quality-controlled archive of ocean profile data | Public domain, US government data | Ocean observation |
Sources are added to the register as they are reviewed. A source is listed only once its terms permit the use described.
Each term as this page uses it. Where a standard-setting body defines the term, the wording follows that body.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Provenance | Information about the entities, activities and people involved in producing a record, used to judge its quality and reliability, in the W3C PROV model. |
| FAIR principles | Guiding principles that make data findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable by people and machines. |
| Open licence | A licence that allows anyone to access, reuse and redistribute data, sometimes with attribution. |
| Data lineage | The traceable path of data from its origin through each transformation to its current form. |
The bodies and documents this page is read against. Status and editions change; each link goes to the issuing body.
The current service level is R0: information and enquiries. An enquiry receives a reference and names the next step; applications, payments, compute allocations and registrations open only when their team, terms and review capacity exist.