Nova Scotia Data Explorer
Query and explore Nova Scotia open datasets via the Socrata SODA API.
Community: Submitted by a user or imported; check the owner before granting accessDegradedNo sign-inGlobalFreeRead-only
What it can do
What data it sees
Do you need an account
No: the server works without sign-in
Query and explore Nova Scotia open datasets via the Socrata SODA API.
Server tool list (4)
Raw names from tools/list. Only developers need these.
| list_categories | Returns all dataset categories and popular tags available on the Nova Scotia Open Data portal. Use this first to discover valid category names before calling search_datasets with a category filter. |
| search_datasets | Search the Nova Scotia Open Data catalog (data.novascotia.ca) for datasets by keyword, category, or tag. Returns dataset names, IDs, descriptions, column names, and direct portal links. Use list_categories first to see valid category and tag names. Use the returned dataset ID with query_dataset or get_dataset_metadata for further exploration. |
| get_dataset_metadata | Retrieve full schema and metadata for a Nova Scotia Open Data dataset by its 8-character identifier (e.g. '3nka-59nz'). Returns all column field names, data types, and descriptions — essential before calling query_dataset so you know the exact field names to use in $select and $where clauses. |
| query_dataset | Run a SoQL query against a Nova Scotia Open Data dataset. SoQL is SQL-like. Key clauses (combine with &): $select=col1,col2 — choose columns $where=field='value' — filter rows (use single quotes for strings) $where=field like '%val%' — partial match $order=field DESC — sort $limit=50 — row count (default 25, max 50000) $offset=50 — pagination $group=field — group by (use with aggregate functions) $q=search term — full-text search Aggregates: count(*), sum(col), avg(col), min(col), max(col) Examples: $where=year='2024'&$order=total DESC&$limit=10 $select=department,count(*)&$group=department&$order=count(*) DESC $where=area like '%Halifax%'&$limit=5 Always call get_dataset_metadata first to find exact field names. |