Metadata Catalogues in a FAIR Data Space

Metadata catalogs are a key component for making research data findable and most Helmholtz facilities already operate such systems or are currently implementing them. Existing solutions range from established platforms such as SciCat and ICAT to newly developed approaches, e.g. NAPMIX [1] for high-energy physics. To support a harmonized Helmholtz data space, alignment of the underlying metadata schemas in terms of terminology and semantics would be advantageous. Beyond enabling findability, metadata catalogs can support various stages of the FAIR data lifecycle and therefore interact with a range of standards and digital infrastructures, including DataCite for data publication, the NeXus data format [2] for file creation, and the Helmholtz Knowledge Graph [3] for reliable data linking andcontextualization. In this contribution, we compare schemas of metadata catalogs from various Helmholtz large-scale facilities and analyze their content. While a shared core set of metadata elements can be identified, domain- and facility-specific extensions remain necessary. We discuss how a flexible yet harmonized metadata schema can promote interoperability while also meeting the diverse requirements of the Helmholtz research field matter. [1] https://oscars-project.eu/projects/napmix-nuclear-astro-and-particle-metadata-integration-experiments[2] https://doi.org/10.1107/S1600576714027575[3] https://helmholtz-metadaten.de/unhide_helmholtz-kg