Antarctic and Southern Ocean Sediment Core Collection

Over 30 kilometers of refrigerated sediment core from the world's oceans are managed by the Oregon State University Marine and Geology Repository. This collection includes the Antarctic and Southern Ocean National Collection of Rock and Sediment Cores, curated since 1963 and relocated to OSU. The repository's data and facility were updated as of 2022.

Use Cases

• Analyzing sediment core layers for paleoclimate proxy data like foraminifera or isotopic ratios.
• Correlating core sample locations with geospatial coordinates to map historical ocean sediment deposition.
• Studying core metadata such as collection date, depth, and location to reconstruct past environmental timelines.

Strengths

• Collection contains over 30 km of physical sediment core, providing a substantial material archive.
• Curation history spans from 1963 to the present, indicating long-term preservation.

Limitations

• Specific sample counts, analytical measurements, and digital data availability are not detailed.
• The dataset's primary description focuses on physical stewardship rather than structured digital data.

Provenance

Source

AMD_USAPDC, via NASA Earthdata.

Collection Method

Physical collection and curation of marine sediment cores from ocean drilling expeditions.

Time Range

Collection began in 1963; core samples cover geological timescales.

Freshness

2022-08-13

Geography

Primarily the Antarctic region and the Southern Ocean, with a global ocean collection.