OneGeology is an international
collaborative project in the field of
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ea ...
supported by 118 countries,
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
, and
major global geoscience bodies. It is an
International Year of Planet Earth
The United Nations General Assembly declared 2008 as the International Year of Planet Earth to increase awareness of the importance of Earth sciences for the advancement of sustainable development. UNESCO was designated as the lead agency. The ...
flagship initiative that aims to enable online access to dynamic digital
geological map
A geologic map or geological map is a special-purpose map made to show various geological features. Rock (geology), Rock units or stratum, geologic strata are shown by color or symbols. Bed (geology), Bedding planes and structural features such ...
of the world for everyone. The project uses the
GeoSciML GeoSciML or Geoscience Markup Language is a GML Application Schema that can be used to transfer information about geology, with an emphasis on the "interpreted geology" that is conventionally portrayed on geologic maps. Its feature-type catalogue ...
markup language and initially targets a
scale of approximately 1:1 million. Downstream uses could be to identify areas suitable for mining,
oil and gas exploration or areas at risk from
landslides or
earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, fr ...
s, to help understanding of formations which store
groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated ...
for drinking or irrigation, and to help locate
porous
Porosity or void fraction is a measure of the void (i.e. "empty") spaces in a material, and is a fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0 and 1, or as a percentage between 0% and 100%. Strictly speaking, some tests measure ...
rocks suitable for burying emissions of
greenhouse gases. The project portal was launched on August 6, 2008 at the 33rd
International Geological Congress (IGC) in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
.
See also
*
Systems geology
References
*
*
External links
OneGeology website: OneGeology.org— "''Making Geological Map Data for Earth Accessible.''"
Geology organizations
Collaborative projects
Systems geology
Web mapping
2008 in the environment
Environmental organizations established in 2008
Scientific organizations established in 2008
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