sesar

System for Earth & Extra-terrestrial Sample Registration

Vocabularies

This page contains the controlled or recommended vocabularies used for select SESAR² metadata fields. Controlled lists are marked with an asterisk (*).

See the SESAR² Quick Guide for the complete list of SESAR² metadata fields and their definitions.

If you have questions about metadata content, please contact the SESAR² Curator at info@54.224.199.193.

Registration Metadata

Sample Type (Object)*

SESAR² registers specimens and related sampling features collected from the natural environment.

Core – long cylindrical cores
Core Catcher – material recovered from the core catcher of a sedimentary core and which is treated as a separate section from the core.
Core Half Round – half-cylindrical products of along-axis split of a whole round
Core Piece – material occurring between unambiguous [as curated] breaks in recovery.
Core Quarter Round – quarter-cylindrical products of along-axis split of a half round.
Core Section – arbitrarily cut segments of a “core”
Core Section Half – half-cylindrical products of along-axis split of a section or its component fragments through a selected diameter.
Core Slab – rectangular prism of material taken from a core where one dimension is significantly shorter than the others.
Core Sub-Piece – unambiguously mated portion of a larger piece noted for curatorial management of the material.
Core U-Channel – long rectangular prism of material for continuous measurement.
Core Whole Round – cylindrical segments of core or core section material.
CTD – a CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) cast sample.
Cuttings – loose, coarse, unconsolidated material suspended in drilling fluid.
Dredge – a group of rocks collected by dragging a dredge along the seafloor.
Experimental Specimen– a synthetic material used during an experiment
Grab – a sample (sometimes mechanically collected) from a deposit or area, not intended to be representative of the deposit or area.
Hole – hole cavity and walls surrounding that cavity.
Individual Sample – a sample that is an individual unit, including rock hand samples, a biological specimen, or a bottle of fluid.
Oriented Core – core that can be positioned on the surface in the same way that it was arranged in the borehole before extraction.
Other – a sample that does not fit any of the existing type designations. It is expected that further detailed description of the particular sample will be provided.
Rock Powder – a sample created from pulverizing a rock to powder.
Site – a place where a sample is collected.
Terrestrial Section – a sample of a section of the near-surface Earth, generally in the critical zone.

Is your sample not in the list?

If you would like to register a sample type that is not listed above, please contact info@geosamples.org.

Material*

Material that the sample consists of “Rock”, “Mineral”, “Liquid>aqueous”

Biology
Gas
Ice
Liquid>aqueous
Liquid>organic
Mineral
NotApplicable
Organic Material
Other
Particulate
Plant Structure
Rock
Sediment
Soil
Synthetic

Sub-Object Type*

If the object type for a sample is Individual Sample or Experimental Specimen, users may elect to enter a sub-object type.

Individual Sample

Bead– Bead pressed from a powder.
Chemical Fraction- Parts of a parent sample separated chemically.
Cube- Equidimensional prism of material.
Culture- Biological material cultured in geological material.
Cylinder- Cylinders of material.
Gas- A gaseous material.
Liquid- A liquid material.
Mechanical Fraction- Parts of a parent sample separated mechanically.
Powder- Fine-grained (<62 micron), dry, granular material.
Slab- Rectangular prism of material where one dimension is significantly shorter than the others.
Smear- A toothpick sample suspended in liquid and fixed on slide.
Specimen- Material of any shape or form selected for specific characteristics of interest.
Squeeze Cake- Solid fraction remaining after forced expulsion of interstitial fluids from a source sample; typically has the shape of a cylindrical disc.
Thin Section- A sub-millimeter thick slice of material mounted on a glass slide.
Toothpick- Minute amount of material taken for observation.
Wedge- Sample form factor named for the tool used to extract it. Typically 5-20 ml in volume.

Experimental Specimen

Thin Section
Other

Classification (Rock)*

* Controlled List

Formal Rock categorization of sample.

Hydrothermal
Hydrothermal>Breccia
Hydrothermal>Carbonate
Hydrothermal>Oxide
Hydrothermal>Stockwork
Hydrothermal>Sulfate
Hydrothermal>Sulfide
Igneous
Igneous>Plutonic
Igneous>Plutonic>Exotic
Igneous>Plutonic>Felsic
Igneous>Plutonic>Intermediate
Igneous>Plutonic>Mafic
Igneous>Plutonic>Ultramafic
Igneous>Volcanic
Igneous>Volcanic>Exotic
Igneous>Volcanic>Felsic
Igneous>Volcanic>Intermediate
Igneous>Volcanic>Mafic
Igneous>Volcanic>Ultramafic
Metamorphic
Metamorphic>Calc-Silicate
Metamorphic>Eclogite
Metamorphic>Gneiss
Metamorphic>Granofels
Metamorphic>Granulite
Metamorphic>MechanicallyBroken
Metamorphic>Meta-Carbonate
Metamorphic>Metasomatic
Metamorphic>Meta-Ultramafic
Metamorphic>Schist
Metamorphic>Slate
Ore
Ore>Other
Ore>Oxide
Ore>Sulfide
Sedimentary
Sedimentary>Carbonate
Sedimentary>ConglomerateAndOrBreccia
Sedimentary>Evaporite
Sedimentary>Glacial&Paleosol
Sedimentary>Hybrid
Sedimentary>Ironstone
Sedimentary>MixedCarbAndOrSiliciclastic
Sedimentary>MnNoduleAndOrCrust
Sedimentary>Phosphorite
Sedimentary>SiliceousBiogenic
Sedimentary>Siliciclastic
Sedimentary>Volcaniclastic
Unknown
Xenolithic
Xenolithic>Igneous
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic>Exotic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic>Felsic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic>Intermediate
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic>Mafic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Plutonic>Ultramafic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic>Exotic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic>Felsic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic>Intermediate
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic>Mafic
Xenolithic>Igneous>Volcanic>Ultramafic
Xenolithic>Metamorphic
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Calc-Silicate
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Eclogite
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Gneiss
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Granofels
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Granulite
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>MechanicallyBroken
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Meta-Carbonate
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Metasomatic
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Meta-Ultramafic
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Schist
Xenolithic>Metamorphic>Slate

Classification (Mineral)*

Formal categorization of sample.

Macrobiology
Macrobiology>Coral
Microbiology

Biology classifications are under review. If you would like to take part in the discussion, contact info@geosamples.org.

Classification (Biology)*

Method by which a sample was collected.

Blasting
Camera SledCamera tow
Coring
Coring>BoxCorer
Coring>CameraMounted
Coring>DrillCorer
Coring>FreeFallCorer
Coring>GravityCorer
Coring>GravityCorer>Giant
Coring>GravityCorer>Pilot
Coring>HandHeldCorer
Coring>KastenlotCorer
Coring>MultiCorer
Coring>PistonCorer
Coring>PistonCorer>Giant
Coring>RockCorer
Coring>SideSaddleCorer
Coring>SubmersibleMountedCorer
Coring>TriggerWeightCorer
Coring>VibratingCorer
Dredging
Dredging>Chain Bag
Dredging>ChainBagDredge
Experimental Apparatus
Grab
Grab>HOV
Grab>ROV
Manual
Manual>Hammer
Probe
Sediment trap
Suspended sediment
Unknown

Collection Method

Country*

*Controlled List

Country where the sample was collected

Afghanistan
Åland Islands
Albania
Algeria
American Samoa
Andorra
Angola
Anguilla
Antarctica
Antigua And Barbuda
Argentina
Armenia
Aruba
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bhutan
Bolivia
Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba
Bosnia And Herzegovina
Botswana
Bouvet Island
Brazil
British Indian Ocean Territory
Brunei Darussalam
Bulgaria
Burkina Faso
Burundi
Cambodia
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Central African Republic
Chad
Chile
China
Christmas Island
Cocos (keeling) Islands
Colombia
Comoros
Congo
Congo, The Democratic Republic Of The
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Cote D’ivoire
Croatia
Cuba
Curaçao
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Djibouti
Dominica
Dominican Republic
East Timor
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Eritrea
Estonia
Ethiopia
Falkland Islands (Malvinas)
Faroe Islands
Fiji
Finland
France
French Guiana
French Polynesia
French Southern Territories
Gabon
Gambia
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea
Guinea-Bissau
Guyana
Haiti
Heard Island And Mcdonald Islands
Holy See (Vatican City State)
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Isle of Man
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jersey
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kiribati
South Korea
North Korea
Kosovo
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Lao People’s Democratic Republic
Latvia
Lebanon
Lesotho
Liberia
Libya
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macao
Macedonia
Madagascar
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Mali
Malta
Marshall Islands
Martinique
Mauritania
Mauritius
Mayotte
Mexico
Micronesia, Federated States Of
Moldova, Republic Of
Monaco
Mongolia
Montserrat
Montenegro
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar (Burma)
Namibia
Nauru
Nepal
Netherlands
Netherlands Antilles
New Caledonia
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Niger
Nigeria
Niue
Norfolk Island
North Macedonia
Northern Mariana Islands
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Palestine
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Pitcairn
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Qatar
Reunion
Romania
Russia
Rwanda
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Helena
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
St. Kitts And Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Martin (French part)
Saint Pierre And Miquelon
Saint Vincent And The Grenadines
Samoa
San Marino
Sao Tome And Principe
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Solomon Islands
Somalia
South Africa
South Georgia And The South Sandwich Islands
South Sudan
Spain
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Suriname
Svalbard And Jan Mayen
Swaziland
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
Taiwan
Taiwan, Republic Of China
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Thailand
Timor-Leste
Togo
Tokelau
Tonga
Trinidad And Tobago
Tunisia
Turkey
Türkiye
Turkmenistan
Turks And Caicos Islands
Tuvalu
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
United States Minor Outlying Islands
Uruguay
Uzbekistan
Vanuatu
Venezuela
Viet Nam
British Virgin Islands
U.S. Virgin Islands
Wallis And Futuna
Western Sahara
Yemen
Zambia