MetPetDB: A Database for Metamorphic Geochemistry

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy NY

Investigators

Abstract

MetPetDB (Metamorphic Petrology Database) is a database and collaboration suite developed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute through a previous Geoinformatics grant. MetPetDB is designed for archival of published data for ready access, an access point for researchers and students to the enormous volume of available information, a collaboration tool among researchers working in different institutions, and a source for data analysis and networking interactions among researchers with the ultimate goal of fostering new and innovative science. It provides a first step for a robust cyberinfrastructure in the geosciences where published and unpublished data can be shared with the community, used in research collectively, and curated by its use through selections, comments and references. In this project, the PIs will develop a number of new and innovative functionalities to enhance the current system and continue populating it with data to further improve on this vision of a completely new science through the use of cyberinfrastructure. The data model of the MetPetDB system is based on metamorphic samples and subsamples and incorporates seamless integration between sample characteristics, images and chemical analyses as a fundamental design element. This aspect of MetPetDB is unique in the geosciences, and their results have application in other, image intensive, disciplines. Several hundreds of samples and thousands of chemical analyses are already uploaded to the system.