A Provenance Model for the Planetary Data System

Provenance is critical to the scientific integrity of archived data. It establishes the authenticity of science data by providing a detailed account of its origin, ownership, processing history, and any transformations that occurred over its lifecycle. In addition to validating authenticity, provenance facilitates the scientific evaluation of data and can be decisive in legal contexts regarding ownership and access.The Planetary Data System Information Model (PDS4 IM) provides some support for provenance such as limited processing history and source product identifiers.Nevertheless, the need for a more comprehensive and formalized approach to provenance tracking has been expressed across the PDS for derived data products, superseded unique identifiers, and the curation of data collections over time.To address these needs the W3C PROV Data Model (PROV-DM), Figure 1, has been adopted as the foundation for a robust, interoperable provenance model in PDS4.The PROV-DM Standard PROV-DM is a W3C Recommendation designed to support the interchange of provenance information on the Web. It introduces a generic yet expressive vocabulary for modeling entities, activities, and agents, as well as their interrelations such as wasDerivedFrom, wasGeneratedBy, wasAssociatedWith, and used. The adoption of PROV-DM in PDS4 provides a well-supported foundation for provenance interoperability. Figure 1 - PROV-DM: The W3C PROV Data ModelUsing GPT_4o, phase one consisted of the development of a general model aligned with PROV-DM and implemented as a PDS4 Local Data Dictionary (LDD), an extension to the PDS4 Information Model. As a general model, this LDD can in turn be specialized to support a diverse set of use cases across the PDS archive.Four use cases are currently under consideration. Each is conceptualized below by defining their PROV-DM entities and relationships.Voyager Corrected Image - This historical use case illustrates derivation of a corrected image from raw data and calibration files.Entities: CorrectedProduct, Raw Product, Calibration File Activities: Radiometric/Geometric Correction and Artifact Removal, Voyager Data Acquisition, Processing pipeline “vlev1” Agents: The software module components of “vlev1”, for example, findrx, remrx, and voycal. Relations: wasDerivedFrom, used, wasGeneratedBy, wasAttributedTo, wasAssociatedWith Superseded Logical Identifier (LID) - This use case tracks the relationship between a superseded identifier and a new identifierEntities: Superseded LID, New LID Activities: Superseding Activity Agents: PDS Discipline Node, data engineer Relations: wasDerivedFrom, wasAssociatedWith PDS Collection Stewardship – This use case describes the lifecycle of a collection across multiple versions and curatorial responsibility transfers.Entities: PDS Collection Version 1, PDS Collection Version 2 Activities: Archive, Management Agents: Discipline Node A, Discipline Node B Relations: wasGeneratedBy, wasAssociatedWith, used Planetary Science Observation – This use case captures the entities and relationships involved in a science observation.Investigation Goal: Volatile Mapping on Ryugu Spacecraft: Hayabusa2 (operated by JAXA) Instruments: Near-Infrared Spectrometer (NIRS3), Thermal Infrared Imager (TIR) Activity: Observation Campaign 1 Entities: Digital objects (e.g., spectra, images, thermographs) Targets: Crater A, Boulder Cluster B, Equatorial Ridge, Polar Region, Landing Site Z Relations: wasDerivedFrom, wasGeneratedBy, used, wasAssociatedWith, wasInformedBy A pseudo-XML representation representing some of the entities, activities, agents, and relationships for the first use case is provided below.                                                                                                                                                                                                   Voyager Corrected Image Derived From EDR Image                                                                                                                                           The VoyagerISSCorrectedImage was derived from the EDRImage.                                                                                                                                                                                        entity_voyager_corrected_image                                              entity_voyager_edr_image                                                          activity_data_correction   Some challenges remain in finalizing the implementation strategy:Identify and define the possible reasons for identifier supersession: Superseded, Replaced, Error, etc. Determine the suitability and granularity of W3C PROV relationships for the PDS. Determine appropriate use of bidirectional vs. unidirectional references between data products. Develop policies and procedures for governance to ensure consistent provenance recording and utilization.  Conclusion The application of the W3C PROV-DM standard to the PDS4 information model represents a significant step toward improving the traceability, interoperability, and scientific trustworthiness of planetary data. The use cases presented demonstrate a broad applicability across contexts, from spacecraft imaging pipelines to multi-node stewardship models. Continued refinement of relationship types and implementation strategies will ensure alignment with both scientific practice and digital preservation principles.References W3C. (2013). PROV-DM: The PROV Data Model. https://www.w3.org/TR/prov-dm/AcknowledgementsThe research was carried out at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under a contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.During the preparation of this work the author(s) used GPT4o in order to transform natural language to First Order Logic (FOL) and then to several Data Definition Languages (DDL). After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication.© 2025 California Institute of Technology. Government sponsorship acknowledged.