Rapid change demands rapid data access. We envision a PIC system where investigators quickly expose their data to the world and share them, without restriction, through open protocols on the internet. Data descriptions (metadata) are not necessarily registered in formal repositories or catalogues. They may simply be exposed to search engines or broadcast through syndication services such as RSS or Atom. The data are labelled or branded as part of the PIC and are, therefore, open for use without restriction.

The PIC label also alerts data centers around the world to new polar data. These data centers then assess and acquire important data for formal archiving, curation, and access through national and global data systems. The intent is to enable rapid data access without qualification, while establishing a process for long term preservation and stewardship of critical data.

The figure below outlines a conceptual architecture of the system.