Multi-dimensional raster data and, more generally, coverages, are responsible for a large part of the "Big Data" tsunami flooding us today.
Undoubtedly, there is a strong push for both open, semantically high level standards allowing access and interchange and technology that allows doing so in a versatile and high-performance manner.
You may also want to look at the EarthServer initiative which is advancing both rasdaman technology and OGC coverage standards, while establishing large-scale operational WCPS-based data offerings.
