Spampinato, L., Indovina, E., Geyer, A., Júlíusdóttir, R., Reitano, D., Puglisi, G., Nave, R., Santangelo, I., Vogfjörd, K., Labazuy, P., Cacciola, L., Domínguez-Cerdeña, I., Guehenneux, Y., Komorowski, J.-C., & Saurel, J.-M. (2024). Data and service management of the EPOS Volcano Observations Thematic Core Service by the European volcanological community. Bulletin of Volcanology, 87(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00445-024-01780-2

Abstract

The Volcano Observations Thematic Core Service (VOLC-TCS) is one of ten core services forming the European Research Infrastructure Consortium for the European Plate Observing System (EPOS ERIC). The main objective of the VOLC-TCS is the implementation of a technical, financial, and legal framework compliant with EPOS ERIC to (i) strengthen the European volcanology community represented by Volcano Observatories (VOs) and Volcanological Research Institutions (VRIs), and (ii) provide virtual access to the community’s data, data products software and services (DDSSs) from volcanoes in Europe and European overseas territories. The efforts of the VOLC-TCS community began prior to the appointment of EPOS as an ERIC and have followed a long-term work plan that started in 2002. One of the main challenges for the management of volcanological data has consisted in their great heterogeneity regarding technical characteristics and also legal aspects (e.g. different data policies among the data providers, different purposes for the use of data, ranging from science to monitoring, early-warning and crisis response, and communication and outreach). Another challenge has derived from the consistency of the VOLC-TCS’ products with the overall service provision of EPOS, which merges services from different Earth Science communities (seismology, GNSS, geomagnetic, geochemistry, geology, etc.). Some of the services used in volcanology are in common with the other communities, thus the implementation work was also devoted to harmonising the data and products with standards defined by other TCSs. Yet another important task has been the implementation of the community Gateway to expose and enable access to services not fully compliant with EPOS, or to services implemented by institutions outside the EPOS perimeter, as well as to create a platform that can act as an interface between the VOLC-TCS and data infrastructures operating at a global level (e.g. WOVOdat). Based on the experience gained and the results achieved, we report here on the state of the art of the VOLC-TCS implementation since 2018 and propose future actions to address some of the main technical challenges and measures to ensure mid-to-long term sustainability of the services.