Core custody
Long-term indexed storage for diamond core and oriented intervals, including tray reconciliation and condition imaging.
Repository 098 · fictional earth-science facility
Read the ground before you rewrite it.
Core Atlas preserves drill core, cuttings and field samples so engineers, researchers and exploration teams can return to the physical record instead of drilling the same question twice.
61 km
fictional core indexed
18,430
trays in custody
99.7%
interval traceability
Specimen window · CA-17-284.6 m
Pegmatitic interval · coarse quartz/feldspar · orientation retained
About / custody
A library where every shelf has a depth coordinate.
Core is irreplaceable once drilled. We preserve tray order, depth marks, orientation, sample history and custody so later teams can distinguish original geology from later handling.
The archive serves public-interest research and commercial work without pretending those objectives are identical. Access rules make destructive sampling explicit and auditable.
Every submission is photographed, reconciled against logs and assigned a stable identifier before it becomes discoverable. Metadata is treated as part of the specimen.
Offerings / archive services
Viewing sessions
Prepared tray runs, viewing bays, photography stands and staff support for logged inspection without disturbing sequence.
Sample release
Controlled destructive-sample workflow with interval reservation, pre-cut imaging, dispatch record and residue reconciliation.
Legacy rescue
Rebuild inherited collections from field books, tray labels, coordinates and historic reports when archive metadata is incomplete.
Digital catalogue
Searchable borehole, depth, lithology, project and custody metadata with stable references back to the physical shelf.
Process / borehole log
From pallet to permanent interval.
- 0 m
Receive
Check pallet order, tray integrity, hole ID, depth marks and accompanying logs before accepting custody.
- −4 m
Reconcile
Compare physical intervals against digital logs; quarantine gaps, overlaps and mixed trays rather than guessing.
- −18 m
Image
Capture tray-level imagery and condition before any viewing or sampling history begins.
- −42 m
Index
Assign stable identifiers linking hole, tray, interval, project, coordinates and custody events.
- −61 m
Release
Publish discoverable metadata and prepare approved views or sample requests without losing the audit trail.
Projects / returned questions
Old core, new decisions.
Basin East / GE-42
A groundwater team re-logged 1989 core instead of commissioning six new pilot holes. Archived fractures changed the monitoring-well layout before mobilisation.
Ridge Line / MN-11
A university mineralogy group sampled 27 centimetres across four approved intervals and returned thin-section scans to the same catalogue record.
Civic Tunnel / GT-08
Legacy geotechnical trays were reconciled with construction logs, resolving a missing 14 m interval before a neighbouring extension was designed.
6,204
historic custody events
312
approved research requests
17
partner laboratories
0
unlogged destructive cuts
People / keepers
The archive is maintained by people who notice the missing centimetre.
Dr. Amara Ndlovu
Repository geologist
Core logging, legacy reconciliation, destructive-sample governance.
Theo Jacobs
Collections manager
Custody, storage systems, tray standards, loan return and condition control.
Linh Okafor
Geodata librarian
Identifiers, spatial metadata, catalogue quality and research access.
Maya Singh
Sample technician
Imaging, cutting schedules, residue control and dispatch preparation.
Insights / field notes
A missing interval is data
Gaps can indicate poor recovery, handling loss or selective sampling. They should be recorded as gaps, not visually closed.
Orientation survives only by discipline
Once reference marks are separated from the physical sequence, structural interpretation becomes weaker even if every piece of rock remains.
Re-analysis extends the value of drilling
New analytical methods can answer questions the original programme never asked, but only when custody and interval history remain trustworthy.
Objections / access rules
Before you open a tray.
01Can commercial teams inspect archived core?
Yes. Approved visitors receive a tray list, viewing bay and handling brief. Destructive sampling requires a separate request because every cut permanently changes the archive.
02Do you accept privately drilled material?
Yes when location, depth, orientation, custody and tray condition can be reconciled. Unlabelled or mixed intervals are quarantined until provenance is defensible.
03Can samples leave the repository?
Loan is possible for approved analysis. Requested intervals are photographed before dispatch, sealed, tracked and reconciled against returned residue and analytical outputs.
04Is the catalogue a geological interpretation?
No. The catalogue describes what exists and how it was recorded. Interpretation belongs in project reports and is always separated from archive metadata.
Contact / sample request
Bring a coordinate, a depth and a question.
Send the borehole ID or project area, intervals of interest, intended analysis and preferred viewing window. Archive staff reply within two working days with availability and handling requirements.
Prepare requestViewing hall
Bay 4, Geological Collections Campus
Mon–Thu · 08:00–16:30
Viewing by prepared appointment
Catalogue prototype · fictional facility · imagery via Unsplash