Mercury is a Web-based system to search for metadata and retrieve associated data. Mercury incorporates a number of important features. Mercury * Invokes a new paradigm for managing dynamic distributed scientific data and metadata * Provide a single portal to information contained in disparate data management systems * Provide free text, fielded, spatial, and temporal search capabilities * Puts control in the hands of investigators or other data providers * Has a very light touch (i.e., is inexpensive to implement) * Is implemented using Internet standards, including XML * Supports international metadata standards, including FGDC, Dublin-Core, EML, ISO-19115 * Is compatible with Internet search engines * Is based on a combination of open source tools and ORNL-developed software The new Mercury system is based on open source and Service Oriented Architecture and provides multiple search services including: RSS, Geo-RSS, OpenSearch, Web Services and JSR-168 Portlets.