Kevin O’Brien

  • Senior Research Scientist
  • Education:
    • BA (cum laude) Marine Studies, University of San Diego, 1990
    • BS (cum laude) Computer Science, University of San Diego, 1990
  • Email:
  • Phone:
    • 206-526-6751
  • Location:
    • NOAA/PMEL, Building 3

Mr. Kevin O’Brien is a Senior Research Scientist at the University of Washington, and is a member of the Data Integration Group at NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Lab in Seattle, Washington.   As the Vice-Chair for Data and Information for the GOOS Observations Coordination Group (OCG), Mr O’Brien is developing a data implementation strategy for the OCG global ocean networks to improve data interoperability and compliance with FAIR data principles.  Mr. O’Brien is involved with the WMO as the current chair of the WMO Task Team on CF-NetCDF (TT-NetCDF) in an effort to improve data exchange as part of the evolution of the WMO Information System (WIS), or WIS 2.0.   Mr O’Brien has also developed and leads the Open Access to GTS (Open-GTS) project whose aim is to increase the volume of marine in situ data that is available through the WIS/GTS.  The Open-GTS has been endorsed by NOAA as a potential UN Decade of the Ocean project and is supported by the GOOS OCG.

Selected publications

Boyer, T., Zhang, H.M., O’Brien, K., Reagan, J., Diggs, S., et al. (2022).  Effects of the Pandemic on Observing the Global Ocean, Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society (in press)

Tanhua, T., Lauvset, S. K., Lange, N., Olsen, A., Álvarez, M., Diggs, S., Bittig, H. C., Brown, P. J., Carter, B. R., da Cunha, L. C., Feely, R. A., Hoppema, M., Ishii, M., Jeansson, E., Kozyr, A., Murata, A., Pérez, F. F., Pfeil, B., Schirnick, C., …, O’Brien, K.M.,  Key, R. M. (2021). A vision for FAIR ocean data products. Communications Earth & Environment, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-021-00209-4

McMahon, C. R., Roquet, F., Baudel, S., Belbeoch, M., Bestley, S., Blight, C., Boehme, L., Carse, F., Costa, D. P., Fedak, M. A., Guinet, C., Harcourt, R., Heslop, E., Hindell, M. A., Hoenner, X., Holland, K., Holland, M., Jaine, F. R. A., du Dot, T. J., … Woodward, B. (2021). Animal Borne Ocean Sensors – AniBOS – An Essential Component of the Global Ocean Observing System. Frontiers in Marine Science, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.751840

Bakker, D. C. E., Lauvset, S. K., Wanninkhof, R., O’Brien, K. M., Olsen, A., Pfeil, B., Castaño-Primo, R., Currie, K. I., Jones, S. D., Karlsen, M. K., Kozyr, A., Metzl, N., Nakaoka, S.-I., Pierrot, D., Smith, K., Sullivan, K., Sutton, A., Sweeney, C., Takahashi, T., … Woosley, R. J. (2019). Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT) v2019. New and updated individual cruise datasets. [Data set]. PANGAEA. https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.905654

Tanhua, T., Pouliquen, S., Hausman, J., O’Brien, K., Bricher, P., de Bruin, T., Buck, J. J. H., Burger, E. F., Carval, T., Casey, K. S., Diggs, S., Giorgetti, A., Glaves, H., Harscoat, V., Kinkade, D., Muelbert, J. H., Novellino, A., Pfeil, B., Pulsifer, P. L., … Zhao, Z. (2019). Ocean FAIR Data Services. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2019.00440

Wanninkhof, R., Pickers, P. A., Omar, A. M., Sutton, A., Murata, A., Olsen, A., Stephens, B. B., Tilbrook, B., Munro, D., Pierrot, D., Rehder, G., Santana-Casiano, J. M., Müller, J. D., Trinanes, J., Tedesco, K., O’Brien, K., Currie, K., Barbero, L., Telszewski, M., … Schuster, U. (2019). A Surface Ocean CO2 Reference Network, SOCONET and Associated Marine Boundary Layer CO2 Measurements. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2019.00400

Pinardi, N., Stander, J., Legler, D. M., O’Brien, K., Boyer, T., Cuff, T., Bahurel, P., Belbeoch, M., Belov, S., Brunner, S., Burger, E., Carval, T., Chang-Seng, D., Charpentier, E., Ciliberti, S., Coppini, G., Fischer, A., Freeman, E., Gallage, C., … Xinyang, Y. (2019). The Joint IOC (of UNESCO) and WMO Collaborative Effort for Met-Ocean Services. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2019.00410

Snowden, D., Tsontos, V. M., Handegard, N. O., Zarate, M., O’ Brien, K., Casey, K. S., Smith, N., Sagen, H., Bailey, K., Lewis, M. N., & Arms, S. C. (2019). Data Interoperability Between Elements of the Global Ocean Observing System. Frontiers in Marine Science, 6. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2019.00442