Research Guides: Geological Sciences: Research Data

Sources for data sets

Earth System Science Data: The Data Publishing Journal
Earth System Science Data (ESSD) is an international, interdisciplinary journal for the publication of articles on original research data (sets), furthering the reuse of high-quality data of benefit to Earth system sciences.
Geoscience Data Journal
Geoscience Data Journal provides an Open Access platform where scientific data can be formally published, in a way that includes scientific peer-review.
Geoscientific Model Development (GMD)
A not-for-profit international scientific journal dedicated to the publication and public discussion of the description, development, and evaluation of numerical models of the Earth system and its components
Global Geo-Referenced Field Photo Library
A community- and citizen- science data portal for people to share, visualize and archive geo-referenced photos from the fields in the world
Dataset Papers in Science (2013-2017)
All previously published articles are available through the Table of Contents (ceased publication)
IEDA | Integrated Earth Data Applications
List of search results in DataONE
IEDA2
A collaborative data infrastructure of three complementary data systems – EarthChem, LEPR/traceDs, SESAR.
IEDA2 is currently undergoing a website reconstruction and will be back soon. [Nov. 2022]
IRI Data Library
The Data Library offers free access to hundreds of high-value datasets and provides the tools and training to perform analysis and inform decisions. From the International Research Institute for Climate and Society
IRIS Data Management Center
IRIS (Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology) is a consortium of over 100 US universities dedicated to the operation of science facilities for the acquisition, management, and distribution of seismological data.
National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC)
Cryospheric data and related geophysical data
OpenGeoscience | British Geological Survey
OpenGeoscience is a free service where you can view maps and download data, scans, photos and other information.
PetDB | EarthChem federation member
PetDB is an integrated data synthesis through which you can access chemical, isotopic, and mineralogical data from peer-reviewed literature. PetDB is a member of the EarthChem federation of geochemistry databases
Science Data Catalog | USGS
Provides seamless access to USGS research and monitoring data from across the nation
Water Data Discovery | USGS
Access real-time and historical water data collected from sites across the U.S.

Data Access | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)
Free access to NCEI's archive of global coastal, oceanographic, geophysical, climate, and historical weather data.
Earthquake Hazards - Data & Tools | USGS
Realtime monitoring, station, and other various seismic data available for download. Access to data products to view and download.
IEDA | Integrated Earth Data Applications
List of search results in DataONE
IEDA2
A collaborative data infrastructure of three complementary data systems – EarthChem, LEPR/traceDs, SESAR.
IEDA2 is currently undergoing a website reconstruction and will be back soon. [Nov. 2022]
GeoPlatform.gov
A cross-agency collaborative effort, the Geospatial Platform's primary role is for discovery of geospatial data assets with special emphasis as the authorized source for all the official National Geospatial Data Assets (NGDAs) across 18 Data themes as guided by the U.S. Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC).
OneGeology Portal
The OneGeology portal is a free online resource that aims to provide access to global geoscience data via web services underpinned by commonly used geodata standards.

American Mineralogist Crystal Structure Database
A crystal structure database that includes every structure published in the American Mineralogist, The Canadian Mineralogist, European Journal of Mineralogy and Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, as well as selected datasets from other journals
EarthChem
Community-driven preservation, discovery, access, and visualization of geochemical, geochronological, and petrological data
mindat.org
Built and maintained by a worldwide community of experts, Mindat.org is the world’s largest open database of minerals, rocks, meteorites and the localities they come from.
Online Geology Databases | Geologynet.com
Several databases related to minerals (rock-forming, economic, petrographic, powder diffraction). Free online version with simpler search interface and fewer features than paid version.
PetDB | EarthChem federation member
PetDB is an integrated data synthesis through which you can access chemical, isotopic, and mineralogical data from peer-reviewed literature. PetDB is a member of the EarthChem federation of geochemistry databases
RRUFF Project
An integrated database of Raman spectra, X-ray diffraction and chemistry data for minerals. Also includes selected full-text articles from Zeitschrift fur Kristallographie and many other chemistry and mineralogy journals.
USGS Mineral Resources On-Line Spatial Data
Interactive maps and downloadable data for regional and global geology, geochemistry, geophysics, and mineral resources.

Data repositories and directories

Repositories are online resources that allow researchers to place their data in a secure location in order to enhance sharing and to meet mandates of granting agencies. Both repositories and directories are good resources for locating data sets. Many repositories are discipline-specific, though some generalist repositories are also available. This list includes both data repositories and lists of repositories related to Geology and the Earth Sciences.

Core Research Center
List of repositories for core samples.
EarthChem
Community-driven preservation, discovery, access, and visualization of geochemical, geochronological, and petrological data
Geoscience Data Exchange (GDEX)
GDEX provides persistent data archiving and distribution for data collections from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Community Programs (UCP), and projects funded by the NSF Geoscience Directorate.
Geosciences Repositories | re3data.org
Directory of repositories filtered by subject Geosciences (including Geography)
GSA Data Repository (on Figshare)
An open file in which authors of articles in GSA journals can place information that supplements and expands on their article. These supplements will not appear in print but may be obtained from GSA. (Geological Society of America)
National Geoscience Data Centre (NGDC)
Geoscience data from British Geological Survey. Part of National Environment Research Council (NERC)
National Tibetan Plateau/Third Pole Environment Data Center (TPDC)
Scientific data for the Tibetan Plateau and surrounding regions
Natural Sciences repositories | re3data.org
Directory of repositories filtered by subject Natural Sciences
Oak Ridge National Laboratory Distributed Active Archive Center (ORNL DAAC)
Biogeochemistry and Geochemistry data
PANGAEA
An Open Access library aimed at archiving, publishing and distributing georeferenced data from earth system research
Polar Data Catalogue
A repository of metadata and data that describes and provides access to diverse data sets generated by Arctic and Antarctic researchers.

Generalist resources

Data Repositories | Open Access Directory
List of repositories and databases for open data
Dryad Digital Repository
The Dryad Digital Repository is a curated resource that makes research data discoverable, freely reusable, and citable. Dryad provides a general-purpose home for a wide diversity of data types.
re3data.org (Registry of Research Data Repositories)
A global registry of research data repositories from different academic disciplines