Data rescue in the Southeast Asia and South Pacific region - Challenges and opportunities

Maximizing the availability of digitized historical data and metadata is important for long-term climate monitoring. The archiving of metadata in the country of origin, in both original and digital forms, is considered part of best practice" for stations in the Global Climate Observing System surface network. While some countries have made progress toward the development of digital datasets of metadata, and others have published detailed station histories for key locations, metadata archives are often inadequate. Through the collective efforts of national meteorological and hydrological services (NMHS), the WMO Commission for Climatology, the APN, and other bodies interested in furthering and understanding of regional and global climate change, progress can be made in this regard.