CERNin

CERNin is an information infrastructure project associated with the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) to integrate and make accessible experimental data, publications, and educational resources across CERN experiments and facilities. The project aims to provide a unified discovery layer, standardized metadata, and interoperable interfaces to improve data reuse, reproducibility, and public engagement. CERNin is described as federated rather than a single repository, connecting catalogs, repositories, and portals into a coherent ecosystem.

Origin and governance: The initiative emerged from collaborative efforts among CERN's IT, data management, and science departments to address fragmentation of data and documentation. A governance body, the Data Stewardship Board, coordinates policy, standards, and long-term preservation, with input from experiments, software groups, and external partners in the Open Science community.

Architecture and features: The system uses a federated model with metadata catalogs, data repositories, and documentation portals. It relies on authenticated access via CERN Single Sign-On, persistent identifiers, and APIs to enable programmatic search and data retrieval. Metadata standards emphasize provenance, licensing, and citation, supporting reproducibility and scholarly credit. The project also includes outreach materials and educational resources.

Impact and status: Supporters argue that CERNin reduces discovery friction, improves cross-disciplinary collaboration, and broadens public access to research. Critics raise concerns about governance complexity, resource demands, and long-term sustainability. As a developing program, its scope and exact components continue to evolve with CERN's strategic priorities.

See also: Open Science at CERN; Open Data Portal; Data stewardship.