Summary

Description

<p><strong>Software for processing time series of satellite remote sensing data was packaged together with a computer code that uses web services to download the data sets from a NASA data archive and distribution system. The new application package was able to be quickly deployed on a cloud computing platform when, and <em>only for as long as</em>, processing of the time series data is required to support emergency response. Fast network connection between the cloud system and the data archive enabled remote processing of the satellite data without the need for downloading the input data to a local computer system: only the output data products are transferred for further analysis.</strong></p><p><strong>NASA was a pioneer in cloud computing by having established its own private cloud computing data center called Nebula in 2009 at the Ames Research Center (Ames). Nebula provided high-capacity computing and data storage services to NASA Centers, Mission Directorates, and external customers. In 2012, NASA shut down Nebula based on the results of a 5-month test that benchmarked Nebula’s capabilities against those of Amazon and Microsoft. The test found that public clouds were more reliable and cost effective and offered much greater computing capacity and better IT support services than Nebula.</strong></p>