Macrostrat's website presents its data the way geologists are used to seeing them: as maps, as columns, and as pages about named units and terms. Everything shown is built on the public Data services. Before version 2 the map, the columns and the "Sift" lexicon explorer were separate applications; since October 2026 they are one website, and columns are drawn on the site for the first time.
Geologic map (/map)
An interactive map of the integrated geologic map of the world. Click anywhere to see
the map unit there, its age, lithologies and stratigraphic names, the column beneath
it, nearby fossil collections, and the original map the unit comes from. Layers and
filters let you highlight units by age, lithology or name. A usage guide and changelog
for the map are published with the website's own documentation (/docs/website/map).
Maps (/maps)
A catalog of every map source in Macrostrat, with each map's reference, scale and extent, a view of the map on its own, and its legend.
Columns (/columns)
Browse Stratigraphic columns by map or list. Each column page shows the
succession of units against geologic time, with lithologies, environments, ages and
links to the lexicon. Columns are organized by project (/projects).
Lexicon (/lex)
Pages for every term in the Geologic lexicon: stratigraphic names and concepts, lithologies and their attributes, environments, economic resources, minerals, structures, intervals and timescales. Each page gathers what Macrostrat knows about the term: where it occurs, in which columns and maps, and how it relates to other terms. These pages replace the older "Sift" explorer.
Contributor tools
Anyone with an ORCID iD can sign in (see Contributing#Accounts). Signed-in contributors have access to tools for adding and improving data:
- the map ingestion interface (
/maps/ingestion), a spreadsheet-like editor for harmonizing newly ingested maps (see Map ingestion); - a column editor, in development, for creating and revising columns.
See Contributing for how to get involved.
Rockd
Rockd is Macrostrat's mobile app. It shows the geology beneath you anywhere on Earth, and lets you record and share field observations ("checkins") with photos and notes.
