Challenges and future directions for data management in the geosciences

Abstract

The open availability and wide accessibility of digital scientific resources, such as articles and datasets, is becoming the norm for twenty-first-century science. Geoscience researchers are now being asked by funding agencies and scientific publishers to archive and cite data to support open access but often struggle to understand, interpret, and fulfill these requirements. To fulfill the promise of new open data initiatives, 1) scientific resources (e.g., data and software) must be collected and documented properly; 2) repository services, including preservation and storage capabilities, must be maintained, supported, and improved over time; and 3) governance institutions must be established.

These issues were discussed in the Geoscience Digital Data Resource and Repository Service (GeoDaRRS) workshop,1 held in August 2018, at NCAR. The workshop brought together more than 60 geoscience researchers, technology experts, scientific publishers, funders, and data repository personnel to discuss data management challenges and opportunities within the geosciences. This included exploring whether new services are needed to complement existing data facilities, particularly in the areas of 1) data management planning support resources and 2) repository services for geoscience researchers who have data that do not fit in any existing repository. More details on the workshop agenda and recommendations are available in the final workshop report (Mayernik et al. 2018).