Preserving valuable research data: TUD supports the preservation of data from cli-mate and environmental sciences

TUD Dresden University of Technology, in collaboration with other institutions, is developing a strategy for the long-term preservation of valuable research data from Earth system sciences. The German Research Foundation (DFG) is funding the collaborative project "Secure ENDangered Earth Data – SEND Earth Data" with approximately EUR 3 million over the next 18 months. The focus is on datasets whose long-term availability is at risk, for example, due to global political developments, including those currently unfolding in the United States.

In addition to TUD, the German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ) and the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research, as well as four Helmholtz centers, are participating in the research project: the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), and the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research (AWI).

All of these institutions already have experience in safeguarding at-risk datasets or are already in dialog with relevant international institutions, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The SEND Earth Data project will develop practical measures for preserving data across all areas of the Earth system sciences — from the atmosphere and the water cycle to the solid Earth. The project partners are also developing guidelines for resilient data infrastructures, issuing legal guidance, and drafting a strategic roadmap for long-term data sovereignty.

"SEND Earth Data therefore makes an essential contribution to preserving the scientific data that underpins climate, environmental, and biodiversity research. These data sets provide a crucial foundation for analyses, model simulations, and future scenario modeling." “We are very pleased that the DFG has approved funding for the project at short notice”, says Prof. Lars Bernard, spokesperson for NFDI4Earth and Chair of Geoinformatics at TUD.

The project builds on the structures of NFDI4Earth, the consortium of the National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI) for Earth System Sciences. This enables at-risk datasets to be quickly secured, gaps in data processing to be closed, and national activities to be closely intertwined with European and international initiatives. The goal is to establish a permanent national network for data resilience that is anchored in NFDI4Earth and strategically integrated into both the European and international research landscape.

Contact

TUD Dresden University of Technology
Chair of Geoinformatics
Prof. Lars Bernard

Jörg Seegert