About the DOE Data Explorer

The DOE Data Explorer (DDE) is an information tool which includes a database of citations prepared by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) based on the information found at various data-hosting Web sites. The DOE Data Explorer can be used to find collections of scientific research data, such as computer simulations, figures and plots, interactive maps, multimedia, numeric files, and scientific images. It is intended to be particularly useful to students, the public, and to researchers who are new to a field or looking for experimental or observational data outside their normal field of expertise. Each collection is funded either in whole or in part by the Department of Energy.

The collections reside at national laboratories, data centers, user facilities, colleges and universities, or the Web sites of professional organizations, consortiums, corporate institutions, or international organizations. All of the collections are available for free access, although some require password registration.

A key component of each database citation is a link that takes you directly to the data collection Web site. This allows you to see and utilize the highly specialized interfaces that have been developed for many of these collections. The interfaces provide customized ways to search data, compare sets of data, visualize data, and package it for download and reuse.

Use the Browse or Search functionalities to learn what data are available to you, where those collections are, and then link to them. You can group the collections by subject area, main content type, sponsor, or location at a DOE Data Center or user facility.

A new citation is added to the database whenever a data collection is found which meets the criteria for inclusion in the DOE Data Explorer. If you manage, use, or know of a collection that you believe we should include, we encourage you to notify us via the comment form.

The DOE Data Explorer was developed and is maintained by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI), within the Office of Science.