Improved Data Access via Natural Resource Canada’s online Geoscience Data makes Canada a better investment

"The web-browser interface, Oasis montaj, and Dapple interfaces to the Geosoft DAP Server provide our clients with great access, visualization, and data integration tools. They have introduced our databases to a much wider client base. This application helps us fulfill our mandate of making Canada more attractive for investment through the provision of basic resource exploration infrastructure data."
Warner Miles, head of the GSC's Regional Geophysics Section

Summary

Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Geological Survey of Canada has a mandate to improve Canada's competitive advantage by attracting investment in resource exploration. Delivering on this mandate means opening up access to their storehouses of resource exploration data and knowledge assets, so that explorers can use it to spur their exploration projects. With its successful and growing online Geoscience Data Repository, NRCan is at the forefront of online earth data delivery.

Business Need:
Natural Resource Canada needed to make their vast and valuable geoscientific data resources available on-line, and easily downloadable by an international consumer base of geoscientists and explorationists. To meet the diversity of public needs, the information needed to be delivered in several different data types including profile data, random points, grids, maps and images. As a public agency, they required an efficient and cost effective delivery system.

Geosoft Solution:
Natural Resource Canada launched an online Geoscience Data Repository (GDR) which provides free viewing and downloading of national geophysical and geochemical data. Data is delivered via a web mapping application utilizing Geosoft's DAP Server technology. The web application combines a web map server interface with a data delivery system. Clients can interactively select an area, specify an appropriate projection, and download the data in a large number of standard formats, all at no cost.

The GDR has grown immensely since first releasing national aeromagnetic compilation grids in early 2004. The entire Canadian Aeromagnetic Data Base, both profile and gridded data, is now available and integrated with metadata. Approximately 90% of the National Gamma-ray Spectrometry Data Base is similarly available. The Canadian Gravity Anomaly Data Base is also served as point and gridded datasets.

Results:
Having NRCan data available on-line and at no charge has introduced their databases to a larger client base, and has increased data usage by geoscientists worldwide. Before the advent of the online Geoscience Data Repository, 200 to 300 requests for data were processed annually by the Geological Survey of Canada. Over 5,000 geophysical datasets are now downloaded annually through the online GDR. In addition to legacy data, clients can access newly published data in active exploration camps the moment of publication. This is helping to focus exploration projects, and ultimately helping to fulfill NRCan’s mandate of attracting investment in resource exploration within Canada.

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