ABOUT OPENAIR
openair in a nutshell
openair is a set of innovative data analysis tools for the air pollution community. It is intended to provide free, open-source software that allows users to better visualise, analyse and interpret their data. These tools are being developed in R; a powerful programming language developed specifically for the purposes of analysing data, which is also open-source and freely available.
The main objectives of openair are:
- To develop innovative analysis tools for air pollution measurement data and dispersion modelling output;
- To provide those tools to the wider air pollution community;
- To seek the involvement of other researchers nationally and internationally.
Making the tools both open-source (so anyone can scrutinise and modify the code) and free is important. This stems from a belief that those affected by decisions concerning the environment should have free and open access to the tools and data used to reach those decisions. Further, we consider this approach builds trust and is more likely to lead to better, more reliable tools to aid decision-making in the longer term. Also, as scientists working in a university we like the idea of research that is reproducible.
The tools should appeal to a wide range of users including regulators, local authorities, industry, consultancies and university researchers. Users do not require any prior knowledge of R.
The analysis tools are available as an R package, which provides a systematic way of making the analysis tools widely available to users. The openair package is a self-contained set of flexible functions that are fully documented with many examples. R and the openair package will work under Windows, Mac OS and Linux.
As with any collaboration of this type, numerous people and organisations contribute to openair. The openair project is primarily funded by NERC and Defra. We have also received support from AEA, North Lincolnshire Council and Sefton Council. The R Foundation and their collaborators develop and maintain R. openair project management and most of the day to day activities are undertaken by ITS Leeds.
The project officially started in October 2008 and will last 3 years, although the intention is to develop tools that extend well beyond this time frame. The final outcome will be a "package" that makes it easy for users to analyse and interpret their data. Currently, we have made a pre-release version available for interested users.
See some examples of openair's capabilities.
Want to get involved?
openair in a nutshell
openair is a set of innovative data analysis tools for the air pollution community. It is intended to provide free, open-source software that allows users to better visualise, analyse and interpret their data. These tools are being developed in R; a powerful programming language developed specifically for the purposes of analysing data, which is also open-source and freely available.
The main objectives of openair are:
- To develop innovative analysis tools for air pollution measurement data and dispersion modelling output;
- To provide those tools to the wider air pollution community;
- To seek the involvement of other researchers nationally and internationally.
Making the tools both open-source (so anyone can scrutinise and modify the code) and free is important. This stems from a belief that those affected by decisions concerning the environment should have free and open access to the tools and data used to reach those decisions. Further, we consider this approach builds trust and is more likely to lead to better, more reliable tools to aid decision-making in the longer term. Also, as scientists working in a university we like the idea of research that is reproducible.
The tools should appeal to a wide range of users including regulators, local authorities, industry, consultancies and university researchers. Users do not require any prior knowledge of R.
The analysis tools are available as an R package, which provides a systematic way of making the analysis tools widely available to users. The openair package is a self-contained set of flexible functions that are fully documented with many examples. R and the openair package will work under Windows, Mac OS and Linux.
As with any collaboration of this type, numerous people and organisations contribute to openair. The openair project is primarily funded by NERC and Defra. We have also received support from AEA, North Lincolnshire Council and Sefton Council. The R Foundation and their collaborators develop and maintain R. openair project management and most of the day to day activities are undertaken by ITS Leeds.
The project officially started in October 2008 and will last 3 years, although the intention is to develop tools that extend well beyond this time frame. The final outcome will be a "package" that makes it easy for users to analyse and interpret their data. Currently, we have made a pre-release version available for interested users.
See some examples of openair's capabilities.
Want to get involved?