Special Study Report on the Requirements for Archiving Astromaterials Samples Data

In March 2022, NASA commissioned the Astromaterials Data Archiving (ADA) Special Study to gather requirements for the archiving of astromaterials data from sample-return missions and other samples astromaterials such as meteorites, that can fulfill the demands of NASA’s Open Science and data archiving policies, international repository standards, and respond to the needs outlined in the Sample Analysis Appendix to the OSIRIS-REx Data Management Plan. The ADA Special Study produced a preliminary report that was submitted to NASA on August 3, 2022, to seek feedback from NASA SMD prior to preparing an Implementation Plan that is based on the recommendations of this report. The Special Study investigated the current state of the astromaterials samples data ecosystem, and gathered, analyzed, and synthesized the perspectives of diverse members of the astromaterials samples data community to define the requirements for archiving astromaterials samples data. As part of this study, representatives of the astromaterials samples data community were interviewed to elicit knowledge about their needs and expectations for archiving astromaterials samples data to enable continuing use of those data by an interdisciplinary research community and by members of the general public. Interviewees represented a variety of roles that reflected their diverse experiences working within the astromaterials samples data ecosystem throughout the data lifecycle. Field notes from the interviews were analyzed in conjunction with recent NASA policies and related reports, yielding recommendations for archiving and disseminating astromaterials samples data to facilitate their discovery and use by current and future members of the interdisciplinary community of astromaterials samples data researchers and the general public. The recommendations are organized across stages of data lifecycle activities that are conducted to produce and use astromaterials samples data. The report also describes two possible approaches for the implementation of infrastructure and capabilities that address the requirements identified in the Special Study for the archiving of astromaterials samples data. These approaches take advantage of the expertise and existing capabilities of the Astromaterials Data System (AstroMat) to support the evolution of the astromaterials samples data ecosystem. The report describes the kinds of enhancements that would be needed for AstroMat to serve the multidisciplinary user community of data producers, data users, and other stakeholders, including the general public, as well as the benefits and challenges that are associated with each approach. Based on comments about the draft report that were received from NASA in August 2022, an Implementation Plan has been prepared for developing the capabilities needed to archive and disseminate astromaterials samples data. The implementation plan is aligned with the immediate sample analysis data archiving needs captured in the Sample Analysis Appendix to the OSIRIS-REx Data Management Plan to ensure that the plan for enhancing AstroMat capabilities complements the capabilities that are currently being established for the deposit and transfer of OSIRIS-REx sample data by mission investigators. It will also serve as a roadmap for NASA to establish capabilities for data produced by future sample-return mission investigators and by past, present, and future studies of astromaterials samples. The Implementation plan, which includes elements that define the scope, needed resources, and the timeline for enhancing AstroMat to meet the requirements and expectations of the astromaterials samples data community and the general public, will be made accessible separately.