Center Role

The British Oceanographic Data Centre (BODC) has acted as the Global Center for The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project since it was launched, and is responsible for producing and delivering centralized GEBCO products, such as global bathymetric grids. We work with colleagues at the four Regional Centers to bring together their gridded bathymetric data sets to produce a centralized seamless global gridded GEBCO product and then make this product available online to the international community.

Center Overview

The Global Center comprises the Center Head, Dr Helen Snaith based in Southampton, GEBCO Digital Atlas Manager Pauline Weatherall, responsible for updating GEBCO’s global grid, and Dr Chris Thompson, working on developing the applications for delivering GEBCO’s grids and services. Dr Graham Allen, former Head of BODC, was instrumental in the planning and implementation phases of the Seabed 2030 Project.

BODC is a national facility dedicated to the preservation and distribution of data concerning the marine environment and is part of the UK National Oceanography Centre (NOC). NOC undertakes world-leading research in large-scale oceanography and ocean measurement technology. The NOC has two sites in Southampton and Liverpool, and employs around 650 staff.

BODC’s origins date back to 1969, when the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) created the British Oceanographic Data Service (BODS). It became the BODC in 1989, with a mission to ‘operate as a world-class data centre in support of UK marine science’. BODC operates across both NOC sites, with almost 50 employees.

Since 1990, BODC has been responsible for maintaining, updating and delivering GEBCO’s global bathymetric products on behalf of the project.

BODC is currently working on the development of new digital ways of delivering the GEBCO Grid.