About the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC)
The Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) is building Australia’s research data infrastructure. We provide Australian researchers with access to national research data collections, cloud computing, platforms and digital research skills training.
For over 10 years, we have been providing services to earth and environmental science researchers across Australia. We work with all universities in Australia, government agencies, overseas organisations and more.
Top 3 Resources to Accelerate Your Earth and Environmental Sciences Research Now
Through a number of our services and co-investment projects, we provide earth and environmental science researchers with access to datasets, free digital research tools and upskilling materials.
These include the following 3 resources – and you’ll find more further down:
HOW WE SUPPORT EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE RESEARCHERS
Professor Brendan Mackey is one of the experts behind EcoCommons, developed with co-investment from the ARDC.
Professor Brendan Mackey
Associate Professor Rachael Gallagher used AusTraits, a database developed with co-investment from the ARDC, to inform the prioritisation of recovery actions and national-scale conservation planning following the 2019/20 megafires.
Rachael Gallagher
Dr Tomas Remenyi is a champion of using the ARDC’s cloud computing service to hone digital research skills.
Tomas Remenyi
Stay Up to Date: Get Your Free Guide for Digital Research in Earth and Environmental Sciences
You’ll also receive our fortnightly newsletter ARDC Connect, which shares latest news, events, training and resources for data-intensive research in Australia.
Datasets for Earth and Environment Sciences Research
ARDC Research Data Australia
Find, access and reuse data for research from over 100 Australian data sources.
Research Data Australia is the ARDC’s portal to research data and associated projects, researchers and data services from more than 100 Australian data sources, including research organisations, government agencies and cultural institutions.
Research Data Australia offers access to data in such areas of interest to earth and environmental science researchers as:
Free Tools for Earth and Environmental Sciences Research
ARDC Nectar Research Cloud
Accelerate your research with cloud compute resources, software and data that can be accessed anywhere. Start your 6-month trial.
The Nectar Research Cloud allows fast, remote access to reliable computational capabilities, software and data.
Australian researchers can use the Nectar Research Cloud to develop and host services including databases, data repositories, web services and tools, and large-scale research platforms or virtual research environments.
We host services for earth and environmental science researchers on the Nectar Research Cloud, which can save time, boost your productivity, facilitate collaboration and give you added power to conduct your research:
Virtual Desktop Service
Access extra computing capabilities through GeoDesktop or any of the 5 other desktops we offer, which you can easily set up in minutes.
Jupyter Notebook Service
Develop, combine and export computational notebooks and interactive visualisations in Python, R and SciPy.
National GPU Service
Reserve GPUs and large-memory virtual machines in 16 flavours in advance for your research.
Preemptible Instances service
Access extra computational resources for a short period of time on demand.
The Nectar Research Cloud also hosts digital services provided by ARDC-supported projects and other National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) facilities, including the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA), AuScope, Integrated Marine Observation System (IMOS), Microscopy Australia, National Imaging Facility (NIF) and Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN).
See a list of the services.
We provide hands-on cloud computing training for all researchers. Topics include basic security and using containers on the Nectar Research Cloud.
To access our cloud computing training, visit the Nectar Research Cloud Learning and Training Support Centre.
ARDC Research Vocabularies Australia
Create, find and access controlled vocabularies – which make the meaning of data clear and explicit – to make your research data FAIR and maximise its impact.
Wondering which vocabulary you should use? In partnership with the research community, we’re introducing ‘community lenses’ – domain-specific guides created and maintained by the community for choosing the right vocabulary for a particular purpose.
The prototype guide is now live, covering earth and environmental sciences. Try out the guide and learn more about community lenses, including how you can help create a guide for your research community.
We Are Building the Planet Research Data Commons
To meet the needs of earth and environmental science researchers, the ARDC is co-designing a Planet Research Data Commons (Planet RDC) with partners in academia, industry and government and with other national stakeholders. The Planet RDC will help accelerate your research through cross-sector, multi-disciplinary and nationwide data collaborations by:
- bringing together data from a wide range of sources
- integrating underpinning compute, storage infrastructure and services with analysis platforms and tools supported by expertise, standards and best practices.
The Planet RDC is a long-term national infrastructure program supported by the Australian Government. Learn more and register your interest.