AGN Webinar 6: A Global Geochemical Database: More than just geochemistry
Growing a Global Whole Rock Geochemical Database.
In the AGN’s 6th public webinar, Dr Matthew Gard, Dr Derrick Hasterok (both University of Adelaide) and Dr Jacqueline Halpin (University of Tasmania) delivered a webinar on building an internally consistent whole rock geochemical database, and analysis tools that are easily accessible and usable.
Uncovering secrets through an expanded database
Global geochemical datasets contain a wealth of buried secrets about the processes and evolution of the Earth, but accessing those secrets can be difficult. Addressing this is the new whole rock database which is broader and more powerful than previous databases that simply catalogue chemistry and geographic position as it includes relevant geographic metadata, internally consistent classification, and derived physical properties.
A F.A.I.R focus
The goal is to create a database with a set of tools and associated datasets that can be used by a broad range of geoscientists, including those with a limited background in geochemistry. The data primarily includes terrestrial whole rock samples with major element, trace element, and isotope analyses. The geochemical samples contained within the database are derived from a range of academic compilations, government reports, and the literature. Enabling AuScope’s commitment to F.A.I.R data (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable).
Rapid and ready data
Geographical metadata (in prep.) includes several updated and seamless geologic layers that can be used to filter data or add critical context to the sample locations. Derived geophysical properties include density, p- and s-wave velocity, thermal conductivity, and radiogenic heat production. The database is also accompanied by approx. 80,000 lines of MatLab scripts and functions to easily process, characterize and analyze the database. The plotting routines allow for rapid exploration of the dataset and produce near publication ready figures. The database is very similar to the PetroChron database for Antarctica and shares many similar features.
Next Steps
Future versions of the global geochemical database will include improvements implemented in the PetroChron database, specifically to metamorphic characteristics and geochronology. The database is freely available on Zenodo and some codes are available on GitHub with more to be added soon.
You can watch the webinar in full here
You can watch the webinar in full here.
WRITTEN BY
Hayden Dalton and the AGN team