As part of our ongoing transition to modern, cloud-native infrastructure that provides exceptional scalability and performance, we are continuously evaluating how to best ingest, manage, and deliver geophysical data and products to researchers, educators, and operational partners around the globe. Usage metrics are a valuable tool in this effort because they help us evaluate where to place our effort and they provide accountability to the NSF who may use the information to justify continued support of the NSF NGF.
In order to gather this valuable information, we will require user authentication for all data and product downloads beginning December 15, 2026. There will be no restrictions on who may become an authenticated user and user authentication will only be required for data and product downloads; it will not be required for browsing, searching metadata, etc.
All researchers, institutions, and script maintainers who download NSF NGF data or products should set up an EarthScope account and integrate authentication into automated workflows as soon as possible:
- Create & Manage Your Account: EarthScope User Account Documentation
- Authentication & API Integration: EarthScope API Documentation
We welcome your feedback, questions, or use-case inquiries as we roll out this change. Reach us through our help desk at help@earthscope.org.