Add support for reading netCDF NC_STRING attributes

[huard]

Addressing a Problem?

Raven fails with

NetCDF error [NetCDF: Attempt to convert between text & numbers] occured.

when trying to read netCDF attributes stored as strings (NC_STRING). It can only read fixed width char arrays (NC_CHAR), using nc_get_att_text.

Potential Solution

Ideally, Raven would be able to read variable length strings commonly used in the NETCDF4 format with nc_get_att_string, but this requires a refactor above my skill level.

Additional context

No response

Contribution

• I would be willing/able to open a Pull Request to contribute this feature.

[analytophile]

Which properties should Raven expect to be stored as strings? Anything that was previously read in as a NC_CHAR? Or just an important subset related to a particular data source?

[huard]

I think it could be any attribute, like time.units but I'm not confident I really understand the nuances.

Can nc_get_att_string also read fixed width chars ?