Standard names: *echo_intensity_test_quality_flag

[fgayanilo]

As part of the procedure to quality check ADCP data, data providers are REQUIRED to execute the QC check for the echo intensity values for multi beam ADCPs (https://cdn.ioos.noaa.gov/media/2019/08/QARTOD_Currents_Update_Second_Final.pdf; see page 26). I am proposing the introduction of the term, echo_intensity_test_quality_flag. This parameter may contain numeric values, as adapted by NOAA IOOS group, or any character(s) they find suitable for their application.

It has been a practice to use numbers for QC flags, however, I do not think we need to limit it to only numbers. There had been cases where data users prefer that we use the words themselves (e.g., pass, not evaluated, suspect, failed, missing data), hence the suggestions that we should not limit the values to simply numbers.

Note that an ADCP data will undergo up to 20 QC test, and each will have a QC flag.

[github-actions]

Thank you for your proposal. These terms will be added to the cfeditor (http://cfeditor.ceda.ac.uk/proposals/1) shortly. Your proposal will then be reviewed and commented on by the community and Standard Names moderator.

[JonathanGregory]

The standard name echo_intensity_test_quality_flag would be fine, given a suitable definition, as it conforms to the same pattern as other X_test_quality_flag standard names. You can use the flag_values, flag_meanings and flag_masks attributes to provide strings that are equivalent to the numbers in the variable. In effect, this gives you a string-valued data variable which has been encoded as numbers.

[eileenhertwig-dkrz]

Dear @fgayanilo,

Do you have a description for the standard name? I have added it to the CF standard names editor now and looking at existing descriptions of terms in the form X_test_quality_flag I would propose the following description, but you might have a better idea:

echo_intensity_test_quality_flag: https://cfeditor.ceda.ac.uk/proposal/5815/
A quality flag that reports the result of the Echo Intensity test, which checks that beams in adjacent bins do not differ by more than an operator-provided amount. The linkage between the data variable and this variable is achieved using the ancillary_variables attribute. There are standard names for other specific quality tests which take the form of X_quality_flag. Quality information that does not match any of the specific quantities should be given the more general standard name of quality_flag.
Unit: 1

Best regards,
Eileen

[fgayanilo]

@eileenhertwig-dkrz the proposed description is well written and I agree

[eileenhertwig-dkrz]

Hi @fgayanilo,

everything seems to be sorted out, so I will put the 7-days label on this issue. If no further comments are received in the next 7 days, the new term will be accepted.

Best regards,
Eileen

[fgayanilo]

@eileenhertwig-dkrz, that is good news, and I hope all goes well.

[eileenhertwig-dkrz]

Hi all,

There haven't been any further comments in the past weeks and therefore I will mark the term as accepted.

Best regards,
Eileen

[fgayanilo]

Thank you for all the efforts -- now, I know what the process is :)