The StraboSpot data system for geological information: An overview

StraboSpot is a geologic data system that is designed to allow researchers to digitally collect, store, and share both field and laboratory data (Walker, J.D., et al., 2019, StraboSpot data system for Structural Geology, Geosphere). It was designed originally for structural geology data, but has been extended to field-based sedimentology and petrology, experimental deformation, and microanalysis. The data system uses two main concepts - spots and tags - to organize data. A spot characterizes a specific area at any spatial scale of observation. Spots are related in a purely spatial manner, and consequently, one spot can enclose multiple other spots that themselves contain spots. Spatial data can thus be tracked from scales of 100’s of km (regional) to several nanometers (microscopic). Tags provide conceptual grouping of spots, allowing linkages between spots independent of their spatial position. We will highlight the current development of the microstructural component of StraboSpot for the desktop environment. The vocabulary underlying this system was developed with participation from EPOS. The use of spatially nested spots and conceptual grouping by tags works identically to the field-based application. Micrograph images obtained through different instruments may be stored, retaining spatial relations between images, along with associated data. The micrograph application will be interoperable with field data, as well as with experimental rock deformation data, providing geologic context for all samples. We will incorporate other communities that participate in microstructural analysis (igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary petrology), after we complete a working version for the structural geology community.