Overview of the CanWIN Site
The CanWIN site is the main portal for accessing, visualizing, and downloading research data in our Data Catalogue, as well as a gateway to other DataHub portals such as ERDDAP and Geonode.
Summary
Discover, visualize, and download research outputs across freshwater, marine, and terrestrial systems.
🚀 Quick Start Guide
Getting started with CanWIN is simple:
- 🔍 Search → Use keywords, themes, or filters to find datasets, projects, or publications.
- 📂 Explore → View metadata, related collections, instruments, and campaigns to understand the context of the data.
- ⬇️ Download → Access data resources (e.g.,
csv,xlsx, scripts, documents) and export metadata in multiple formats.
Tip
For detailed instructions on finding and publishing data, visit the Data Catalogue Help pages.
Key CanWIN Terminology
Below are the definitions of key terms you will see on the CanWIN site:
| Term | Description |
|---|---|
| 📊 Dataset | A collection of data; one or more files |
| 📁 Project | A program spanning years, may include sub‑projects |
| 📦 Collection | Grouping of datasets by category (e.g., all datasets from moorings under Moorings) |
| 🏢 Organization | A site or institution conducting research activities (companies, government, labs, vessels, etc.) |
| 🛠️ Platform | Structure from which instruments are deployed (e.g., mooring, meteorological station) |
| 🌍 Theme | Atmosphere, cryosphere, freshwater, marine, remote sensing |
| 🔑 Keyword | Search term for finding data on a specific topic |
The Data Catalogue
CanWIN’s Data Catalogue is a listing of all the research outputs (data pages) hosted by CanWIN. This includes:
- ✅ Projects
- ✅ Datasets
- ✅ Publications
- ✅ Campaign details
- ✅ Instrument details
- ✅ Platform details
Info
The Data Catalogue is CanWIN’s main data and metadata repository.
Page Structure
Each page in the Data Catalogue (dataset, project, publication, etc.) has specific sections:
| Section | Description |
|---|---|
| Related Collections and Datasets | Collections and dataset pages associated with a project or publication |
| Sub‑projects | Sub‑project pages under the current project (project pages only) |
| Data and Resources | Data files that make up a dataset, publication, or project |
| Related Platforms | Platform pages with details about facilities or vessels used for data collection |
| Instruments | Instrument pages with details about equipment used in data collection |
| Deployments | Deployment pages with information about instrument deployments |
| Campaign | Campaign pages describing data collection over a period of time |
| Related Publications | Reports, field logs, or published work associated with the current page |
| Keywords | Standardized terms from the Polar Data Catalogue describing research concepts |
| Metadata | Metadata associated with the dataset, project, or publication page |
Data Resources
Note
Data resources are all the actual data files (e.g., csv, xlsx) or supplemental files (images, videos, documents) uploaded to a page.
On a dataset, project, or publication page, resources can be found under Data and Resources. Categories include:
| Resource Type | Description |
|---|---|
| 📊 Data | Processed data |
| 📈 Raw data | Unprocessed data |
| 💻 Scripts | Code for data processing or modelling |
| 📄 Documents | Documentation or publications generated from the data |
| 📎 Supplemental | Additional information or internal documentation useful for data users |
| 🌐 Web Services | Digital web content openly available and associated with the data |
Example of categories on a dataset page:
Metadata
On each CanWIN page, metadata is organized by categories at the bottom of the page. Metadata can be exported in multiple formats: JSON, JSON-LD, RDF/XML, HTML, and PDF.
Use the Export metadata button below the page description.
| Metadata Section | Description |
|---|---|
| ⏱️ Time & Location | When and where the data were collected |
| 🧾 Provenance | How the data were collected and analyzed |
| ⚖️ Constraints | Rules for how the data can be used and shared |
| 👥 Credits | Who collected the data |
| 📎 Supplemental Resources | Other related resources hosted elsewhere |
| 📚 Publications | Published documents produced about the data |