Initial dissemination of MBARI’s unique deep-sea biodiversity data
Nancy Jacobsen Stout, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, 7700 Sandholdt Road , Moss Landing , California 95039 USA.The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) has developed a software and hardware system, Video Annotation and Reference System (VARS), to facilitate the creation, storage, and retrieval of video annotations based on remotely operated vehicle (ROV) deep-sea dive video . This video library contains footage of the biological, chemical, geological, and physical aspects of the Monterey Bay submarine canyon, other regions of the Pacific and the Gulf of California . The VARS software components reference a knowledge database of over 3,500 known biological, geological and technical concepts. This hierarchical information allows for consistent and rapid classification, description, and complex querying of objects observed on video. Recently, MBARI released a prototype of the query tool on its website ( www.mbari.org\vars). U sers can request observation times, locations, and conditions, as well as still images, when available. In addition, plans are underway for modifying the database schema to be more readily shared among global databases. This includes discussions with OBIS on becoming a data contributor specializing in the deep-sea. MBARI is eager to receive feedback and to continue improving worldwide access to this annotation data.