How to Use iSamples
Get started exploring 6.7 million scientific samples
Quick Start
- Open the Interactive Explorer — a 3D globe loads with clustered sample data
- Zoom in — clusters break into finer detail as you zoom (resolution 4 → 6 → 8 → individual samples)
- Filter by source — use the checkboxes to show/hide data from SESAR, OpenContext, GEOME, or Smithsonian
- Click a cluster — see sample count and nearby samples with links to source records
- Click an individual sample — view metadata and follow the “View at source” link to the original repository
- Share your view — copy the URL to share your exact position, zoom level, and selected sample
What’s in the Data?
| Source | Samples | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| SESAR | 4.6M | Earth science — rocks, minerals, sediments, soils |
| OpenContext | 1M | Archaeology — artifacts, excavation materials |
| GEOME | 605K | Biology — genomic and tissue specimens |
| Smithsonian | 322K | Natural history — museum collections |
No Installation Required
Everything runs in your browser using:
- DuckDB-WASM — a fast analytical database running client-side
- HTTP range requests — only the data you need is downloaded (typically < 1 MB to start)
- Cesium — 3D globe visualization
Works in Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, and Brave. No plugins, no downloads, no accounts.
For Developers
All code is visible and foldable on tutorial pages. Want to build your own analysis?
- Tutorials — step-by-step guides from basic exploration to advanced analysis
- Deep-Dive Analysis — statistical exploration with Observable Plot
- GitHub — all source code and data pipelines
- Zenodo — archived datasets for reproducible research
Data Files
All data is hosted on Cloudflare R2 with HTTP range request support:
| File | Size | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Wide format (H3-indexed) | ~292 MB | 20M rows, all entity types with H3 spatial indices |
| H3 summary (res4) | ~70 KB | Pre-aggregated cluster counts for instant globe load |
| H3 summary (res6) | ~200 KB | Mid-zoom cluster detail |
| H3 summary (res8) | ~600 KB | Fine-zoom cluster detail |
| Samples lite | ~150 MB | Individual sample points with coordinates |
| Facet summaries | 2 KB | Pre-computed filter counts (source, material, context, specimen type) |