Unlocking the Power of Mineral Data in Global Geochemical Databases

Abstract

Novel methods of data analysis have led to numerous innovations in mineralogical research in recent years, requiring increasingly larger precompiled datasets. Whilst dedicated, high-quality expert compilations are invaluable for addressing specific research questions, comprehensive and curated global databases, such as GEOROC and PetDB, are essential for realising the full scientific potential of mineralogical data. Since the late 90s, the GEOROC and PetDB databases have collated, archived and curated over a century’s worth of geochemical analyses of natural minerals. The databases currently contain 17,531,666 and 2,664,189 individual mineral data values, respectively, which makes up over half of their total data holdings. These data are compiled together with carefully selected metadata that capture the diversity of mineral geochemical data, while also enabling targeted data quality assessment. To continue to obtain new insights from the accumulated data collected by mineralogists worldwide, our community needs to come together to ensure the continued improvement and sustainability of such curated databases.