Section 8

Taxonomies

Taxonomies are controlled vocabularies that establish system-wide data consistency. Taxonomies provide hierarchical dictionaries for filtering and classifying hardware by scientific sector, instrument types, and measured environmental variables.

8.1 Taxonomy Search and Browse

The Taxonomies interface serves as the centralised classification directory, providing users with structured navigation across all controlled vocabularies in the registry. The interface provides a dual-framework classification system to ensure data uniformity and support advanced asset discovery across multiple scientific sectors.

8.1.1 Dual-Classification Framework

The directory is divided into two distinct indexing architectures to balance localised asset tracking with standardised global discovery frameworks:

Custom Taxonomies
Hierarchical dictionaries managed internally by the registry to support custom organisational tracking.
GCMD Taxonomies
Standardised environmental science keywords derived directly from the NASA Global Change Master Directory vocabulary service.

Where possible, users are encouraged to request the addition of missing terms to the GCMD vocabulary rather than creating equivalent custom taxonomy terms.

8.1.2 Search and Browsing Capabilities

The interface offers multi-layered navigational tools designed to streamline how users locate specific terminology:

Dynamic Vocabulary Search
Individual text search fields allow users to filter structural terms and pinpoint obscure classifications instantaneously.
Collapsible Tree Navigation
Interactive, multi-level dropdown hierarchies enable users to expand or collapse parent-child relationships between broader and narrower terms.
Incremental Data Loading
Large datasets utilise on-demand pagination controls, allowing public and registered visitors to expand sub-vocabularies without degrading page performance.

8.1.3 Facet Filtering and Classification Levels

Both taxonomy frameworks organise system-wide terminology into three foundational classification streams to refine data entry and improve overall searchability:

Instruments
Hardware classifications that index individual physical devices, sensors, and similar equipment.
Platforms
Structural terminology mapping out combined multi-device survey arrays, satellite configurations, and operational deployment networks.
Measured Variables
Granular physical properties, phenomena, or environmental metrics that the registered devices are explicitly configured to observe.
Figure 13 Taxonomies search and browsing interface.

Open the Taxonomies directory

8.2 Create / Update / Delete a Taxonomy

Authorised users only

The Taxonomies interface enables authorised users to create, expand, and modify hierarchical controlled dictionaries. This section provides a step-by-step workflow for establishing a new taxonomy registry and organising structured terms within it.

Initiating a fresh classification dictionary requires a high-level registration process. To create a completely new taxonomy structure:

  1. Navigate to the Taxonomies page from the main header and click the + New Taxonomy button.
  2. Title Input a human-readable title that clearly establishes the scope of the controlled vocabulary.
  3. Name Provide a unique system name. If left blank, the application will automatically generate this string from your title entry.
  4. URI Users can optionally provide a custom, resolvable external URI to link this entry with broader vocabulary services. If left empty, the registry automatically mints a local, fully resolvable system URI.
  5. Click Create Taxonomy to commit the record.
Figure 14 Creating a new Taxonomy interface.

Adding taxonomy terms

Once the parent taxonomy is generated, users can populate it with precise, multi-layered scientific terms. The registry supports deep hierarchical structuring, allowing terms to be nested safely within one another for complex data classification:

  1. Open your created taxonomy from the list view and click the + Add Child Term button.
  2. Label and Description Enter the explicit scientific term label along with a concise description detailing its metadata application boundaries.
  3. URI and Extras Just like the parent taxonomy, a resolvable URI is auto-generated upon saving unless a custom URI is manually supplied. Optional metadata properties can be added as a raw JSON object within the Extras block.
  4. Click Create Term to finalise registration.
Figure 15 Creating a new Taxonomy Term interface.

Editing and removing terms

Controlled dictionaries are designed to be dynamic and can change as new geoscience sectors or instrumentation standards evolve:

Modifying Metadata
Authorised administrators can select any active tree layer and click the Edit button to alter descriptive labels, adjust parental nesting structures, or append structural JSON key-value pairs.
Removing Classifications
To completely remove a taxonomy or a specific nested branch from the active workspace, click the red Delete button.
Figure 16 Taxonomy editing interface.
Figure 17 Taxonomy Term editing interface.

New Taxonomy Terms will immediately appear in the Taxonomies (Custom) section of the Taxonomies page. New Taxonomy Terms can be added directly from this interface to the root taxonomy or as a child of another Term using the "+" button. Likewise, existing Terms can be edited or removed from the Taxonomy using the respective buttons.

Figure 18 New Taxonomy is displayed in the list of Taxonomies with options to add new terms, edit and delete existing terms.