*A new integrated search interface will become available in the next phase of marineinfo.org.
For the time being, please use this page as the IMIS interface.
Integrated Marine Information System (IMIS)
IMIS is the system that provides catalogues on data, people, institutes, publications, and projects. The database aims to centralise all data regarding the names, education, professional background, affiliation, publications, projects and datasets of scientists. In this way, VLIZ creates a hub that can contribute to and facilitate scientific research. This database also contains professional e-mail addresses and phone numbers to improve the dataflow within the scientific community. VLIZ gathers the information via direct contact, from third-party sources or open sources. This data is stored indefinitely or until a request is made to VLIZ to remove a record.
Next to the public part of IMIS, this system is also used for internal VLIZ activities such as VLIZ memberships, subscriptions to paper publications, etc. This information is limited to address and membership type and is only accessible within the internal VLIZ network.
All IMIS visits and searches are registered and tracked for statistical and bug-fixing purposes, and for IMIS users (i.e. those with a login) their edits are additionally registered and tracked. Search data are stored to provide a better experience for the user and are rendered anonymous as soon as possible.
The dataset submission form facilitates the sharing of your scientific data. You can describe or share your dataset on this webpage, and after a manual check, this metadata may be added to IMIS. VLIZ is not responsible for processing this data but simply provides the service to those who wish to use it. Please ensure that you respect the GDPR when making use of this application. VLIZ is not responsible for the processing of this data but simply provides the service to those who wish to make use of it.
For more information, or to request an account, contact imis-support@vliz.be. You can find out more about the data policy of IMIS here.
Marine Data Archive (MDA)
The Marine Data Archive (MDA) is an online repository specifically developed to independently archive data files in a fully documented manner. The MDA can serve individuals, consortia, working groups and institutes. VLIZ offers a free data archiving service to marine scientists to allow them to archive their data in a secure, sustainable environment. The MDA is a space where you can archive data, share data with others in the MDA (e.g. for multi-user project work), and also make data public (e.g. to make them downloadable from an IMIS dataset record, to provide data to referees). Several copies of the data you upload to the MDA are retained, thus providing security against data loss.
Using the MDA requires having an MDA account so VLIZ can track the source of the data and provide the necessary levels of access and security. Each action within the MDA is subject to logging for legal purposes. For MDA users, who performed what action on each of the files and file groups is visible, as long as they have access to those files or directories.
The number of submits and downloads is also tracked to report on using the MDA in the VLIZ annual report.
For more information, or to request an account, contact mda@vliz.be, You can find out more about the data policy of MDA here.
Publications