$1.25M grant to expand mineral data ecosystem, advance Idaho’s and the world’s mining future

MOSCOW, Idaho — Scientists at University of Idaho, Rutgers University and Carnegie Science are improving worldwide scientific discovery by creating an intelligent open data platform for the largest global database of mineral species. The project highlights U of I’s role as Idaho’s leading university in computer science, mining research and workforce development.

Led by U of I College of Engineering Professor Xiaogang “Marshall” Ma, Rutgers Professor Shaunna Morrison and Carnegie scientist Anirudh Prabhu, the project, OneMineralogy, recently received a $1.25 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) supporting data system construction to advance research and learning.

The project will focus on expanding and organizing mineral data to meet the needs of a wide range of scientists, developing easy-to-use tools that help researchers analyze data more quickly, as well as providing training and outreach to build skills and partnerships with educators and industrial sectors. Together, these efforts will create a lasting and thriving community that supports new discoveries and advances education in data science and geoscience.

The NSF grant is one of several installments made over the past three years to enhance Mindat, the world’s largest online mineral database, which provides detailed information on mineral species, their properties and locations worldwide. From July 2023 to June 2024, the site had about 50 million page views from over 9.8 million visitors around the world.

OpenMindat, an earlier project that made Mindat’s data more open and usable, has garnered a community of more than 40 researchers from fields including earth science, space science, biology and data science. OneMineralogy will continue and expand these open data and open science efforts while also developing the people, tools and practices needed to share and reuse scientific knowledge responsibly.

“Mindat isn’t just for scientists. It’s also widely used by students, educators and the general public,” Ma said.

In partnership with the Idaho Mining Association and Idaho Geological Survey, the project will engage communities and apply AI and data science in mineral exploration — building on existing outreach efforts and cutting-edge work in mapping critical minerals like cobalt and rare earth elements across Idaho’s mineral-rich regions.

“Idaho is rich in mineral resources, including many of the critical minerals essential for national security and infrastructure, reliable and affordable energy and innovative technology,” said Bradley Ritts, senior associate vice president for research and professor of geology at U of I. “U of I has a long-standing focus on these geological resources and is continuing to develop partnerships and collaboration with the state’s mining industry. We are happy to see that the OneMineralogy project will bring new data-driven approaches to the ecosystem that we’ve built here.”

The Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration estimates more than half of the mining workforce will retire by 2029. To fill this critical workforce gap, U of I, North Idaho College and leaders from across the state’s mining industries are preparing students for high-paying careers in safe, efficient and environmentally responsible mining operations by relaunching Idaho’s undergraduate geological engineering degree. The OneMineralogy data resources and data science tools will provide solid support to those educational programs. The project will also organize workshops for data curators, researchers and educators to introduce the new functionality of Mindat and engage wide and efficient usage.

“The rapidly expanding body of data on mineral diversity, distribution and properties is driving a new era of data-powered discovery in geoscience. Among these resources, Mindat stands out as a globally utilized platform accessed by thousands of researchers,” said Robert Hazen, a senior staff scientist at the Earth and Planets Laboratory of Carnegie Science. “By applying a wide range of analytical and visualization techniques, scientists are gaining deeper insights into Earth processes and uncovering innovative approaches to address critical socio-economic challenges.”

Media contact

Xiaogang “Marshall” Ma 
College of Engineering professor
208-885-1547
max@uidaho.edu