MetPetDB is a relational database

Relational database

A relational database is a database that conforms to relational model theory. The software used in a relational database is called a relational database management system . Colloquial use of the term "relational database" may refer to the RDBMS software, or the relational database itself...

 and repository for global geochemical data on and images collected from metamorphic

Metamorphic rock

Metamorphic rock is the transformation of an existing rock type, the protolith, in a process called metamorphism, which means "change in form". The protolith is subjected to heat and pressure causing profound physical and/or chemical change...

 rocks from the earth's crust. MetPetDB is designed and built by a global community of metamorphic petrologists in collaboration with computer scientists at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...

 as part of the National Cyberinfrastructure

Cyberinfrastructure

United States federal research funders use the term cyberinfrastructure to describe research environments that support advanced data acquisition, data storage, data management, data integration, data mining, data visualization and other computing and information processing services distributed over...

 Initiative and supported by the National Science Foundation

National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...

. MetPetDB is unique in that it incorporates image data collected by a variety of techniques, e.g. photomicrographs, backscattered electron images (SEM), and X-ray maps collected by wavelength dispersive spectroscopy

Wavelength dispersive X-ray spectroscopy

The Wavelength dispersive X-ray spectroscopy is a method used to count the number of X-rays of a specific wavelength diffracted by a crystal. The wavelength of the impinging x-ray and the crystal's lattice spacings are related by Bragg's law and produce constructive interference if they fit the...

 or energy dispersive spectroscopy

Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy

Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy is an analytical technique used for the elemental analysis or chemical characterization of a sample. It relies on the investigation of an interaction of a some source of X-ray excitation and a sample...

.

Purpose

MetPetDB was built for the purpose of archiving published data and for storing new data for ready access to researchers and students in the petrologic community. This database facilitates the gathering of information for researchers beginning new projects and permits browsing and searching for data relating to anywhere on the globe. MetPetDB provides a platform for collaborative studies among researchers anywhere on the planet, serves as a portal for students beginning their studies of metamorphic geology, and acts as a repository of vast quantities of data being collected by researchers globally.

Design

The basic structure of MetPetDB is based on a geologic sample and derivative subsamples. Geochemical data are linked to subsamples and the minerals within them, while image data can relate to samples or subsamples. MetPetDB is designed to store the distinct spatial/textural context of mineral analysis that is a crucial to petrologic interpretation. A web-based user interface allows a user to become members and download their search results. Approved members may become contributors and upload data to catalogue and share with the public. More information about the data model and the design of the database is available on the MetPetDB Support Wiki.

Contents

The database houses a wide range of information available for samples from all over the globe to be grouped into two categories: (a) observations and measurements (e.g. mineral data, images, chemical analyses), for which robust data models already exist, and (b) interpretative results (e.g. P-T conditions, crystallization ages, cooling rates, etc), which are conclusions based on the observational data. Development of a robust data model for interpretative data is currently underway as of December 2010. The database system is beginning to incorporate a number of tools for data analysis and calculation that adds considerable power to the researcher.

MetPetDB differs from other Geochemistry relational databases (e.g. GEOROC, NAVDAT, PetDB

Petrological Database of the Ocean Floor

The Petrological Database of the Ocean Floor is a relational database and repository for global geochemical data on igneous and metamorphic rocks generated at mid-ocean ridges including back-arc basins, young seamounts, and old oceanic crust...

) in that it incorporates unpublished data in addition to data published in peer-reviewed journals. The vast majority of data collected by metamorphic geologists is not presented in publication, and therefore a forum for sharing this data with the public is an objective of MetPetDB. Contributors to MetPetDB also have the ability to store private data and create projects, or collections of private, public, and published data for sharing and organization. A comprehensive list of the publications and their published samples are located at MetPetDB Published Samples

External links

• Metamorphic Petrology Database (MetPetDB) - Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
  Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
  
  
• Petrological Database of the Ocean Floor (PetDB) - Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN), Columbia University
  Columbia University
  Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
  
  
• Earthchem