Using semantics to extend the space physics data environment

The space physics data environment is evolving with the advent of virtual observatories. With the primary function of most virtual observatories being data search and retrieval, an emphasis has been placed on providing value-added data processing services. That is, creating web services that take discovered data and provide common and routine processing such as coordinate transformations and data sub-setting. As these services proliferate, finding, accessing and using them no longer becomes a trivial task. This paper discusses a semantic registry that enables the searching of these services via ontology. We discuss the benefits of such a registry and illustrate how the web and application programming interfaces benefit the space physics community. & 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.