The research and implementation of coalfield spontaneous combustion of carbon emission WebGIS based on Silverlight and ArcGIS server

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Z.; Bi, J.; Wang, X.; Zhu, W.

2014-02-01

As an important sub-topic of the natural process of carbon emission data public information platform construction, coalfield spontaneous combustion of carbon emission WebGIS system has become an important study object. In connection with data features of coalfield spontaneous combustion carbon emissions (i.e. a wide range of data, which is rich and complex) and the geospatial characteristics, data is divided into attribute data and spatial data. Based on full analysis of the data, completed the detailed design of the Oracle database and stored on the Oracle database. Through Silverlight rich client technology and the expansion of WCF services, achieved the attribute data of web dynamic query, retrieval, statistical, analysis and other functions. For spatial data, we take advantage of ArcGIS Server and Silverlight-based API to invoke GIS server background published map services, GP services, Image services and other services, implemented coalfield spontaneous combustion of remote sensing image data and web map data display, data analysis, thematic map production. The study found that the Silverlight technology, based on rich client and object-oriented framework for WCF service, can efficiently constructed a WebGIS system. And then, combined with ArcGIS Silverlight API to achieve interactive query attribute data and spatial data of coalfield spontaneous emmission, can greatly improve the performance of WebGIS system. At the same time, it provided a strong guarantee for the construction of public information on China's carbon emission data.

Design and Development of Countylevel Information Management System for Diseases and Pests of Hebei Province on GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Xiaoyan; Zhang, Xiaoli; Xie, Fangyi

To get a more convenience work in forest application, GIS and information system is used in forestry. GIS technology is used to build an informational management system of forest disease. For the practical requirement, the system is implemented by PDA which works outside to help completing the data collection. The major function of the system is input and output of the forest disease data and processing the report which is based on the criteria report and the assistant function of GIS. This article is aim to discuss about the theory, the process and the critical points of the information system. Besides the general information management system, GIS and PDA is introduced into the diseases system, which could combine the map and the attribute information and realize inventory data reform by PDA. The system is developed with VB and SuperMap Object (SuperMap Company).

Integrating natural language processing and web GIS for interactive knowledge domain visualization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Du, Fangming

Recent years have seen a powerful shift towards data-rich environments throughout society. This has extended to a change in how the artifacts and products of scientific knowledge production can be analyzed and understood. Bottom-up approaches are on the rise that combine access to huge amounts of academic publications with advanced computer graphics and data processing tools, including natural language processing. Knowledge domain visualization is one of those multi-technology approaches, with its aim of turning domain-specific human knowledge into highly visual representations in order to better understand the structure and evolution of domain knowledge. For example, network visualizations built from co-author relations contained in academic publications can provide insight on how scholars collaborate with each other in one or multiple domains, and visualizations built from the text content of articles can help us understand the topical structure of knowledge domains. These knowledge domain visualizations need to support interactive viewing and exploration by users. Such spatialization efforts are increasingly looking to geography and GIS as a source of metaphors and practical technology solutions, even when non-georeferenced information is managed, analyzed, and visualized. When it comes to deploying spatialized representations online, web mapping and web GIS can provide practical technology solutions for interactive viewing of knowledge domain visualizations, from panning and zooming to the overlay of additional information. This thesis presents a novel combination of advanced natural language processing - in the form of topic modeling - with dimensionality reduction through self-organizing maps and the deployment of web mapping/GIS technology towards intuitive, GIS-like, exploration of a knowledge domain visualization. A complete workflow is proposed and implemented that processes any corpus of input text documents into a map form and leverages a web application framework to let users explore knowledge domain maps interactively. This workflow is implemented and demonstrated for a data set of more than 66,000 conference abstracts.

Ecocity mapping using GIS: introducing a planning method for assessing and improving neighborhood vitality.

PubMed

Smith, Richard; Miller, Kirstin

2013-01-01

Assessing neighborhood vitality is important to understanding how to improve quality of life and health outcomes. The ecocity model recognizes that cities are part of natural systems and favors walkable neighborhoods. This article introduces ecocity mapping, an innovative planning method, to the public health literature on community engagement by describing a pilot project with a new affordable housing development in Oakland, California between 2007 and 2009. Although ecocity mapping began as a paper technology, advances in geographic information systems (GIS) moved it forward. This article describes how Ecocity Builders used GIS to conduct ecocity mapping to (1) assess vitality of neighborhoods and urban centers to prioritize community health intervention pilot sites and (2) create scenario maps for use in community health planning. From fall 2007 to summer 2008, Ecocity Builders assessed neighborhood vitality using walking distance from parks, schools, rapid transit stops, grocery stores, and retail outlets. In 2008, ecocity maps were shared with residents to create a neighborhood health and sustainability plan. In 2009, Ecocity Builders developed scenario maps to show how changes to the built environment would improve air quality by reducing greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles, while increasing access to basic services and natural amenities. Community organizing with GIS was more useful than GIS alone for final site selection. GIS was useful in mapping scenarios after residents shared local neighborhood knowledge and ideas for change. Residents were interested in long-term environmental planning, provided they could meet immediate needs.

GIS in Northern Ireland Secondary Schools: Mapping Where We Are Now

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roulston, Stephen

2013-01-01

A number of studies suggest that integrating Geographical Information Systems (GIS) into Geography teaching in schools has been and is challenging, and it seems that much of the early promise for the technology supporting learning in Geography has not been realised. This paper examines the progress made in Northern Ireland in implementing GIS in…

Hadoop-GIS: A High Performance Spatial Data Warehousing System over MapReduce.

PubMed

Aji, Ablimit; Wang, Fusheng; Vo, Hoang; Lee, Rubao; Liu, Qiaoling; Zhang, Xiaodong; Saltz, Joel

2013-08-01

Support of high performance queries on large volumes of spatial data becomes increasingly important in many application domains, including geospatial problems in numerous fields, location based services, and emerging scientific applications that are increasingly data- and compute-intensive. The emergence of massive scale spatial data is due to the proliferation of cost effective and ubiquitous positioning technologies, development of high resolution imaging technologies, and contribution from a large number of community users. There are two major challenges for managing and querying massive spatial data to support spatial queries: the explosion of spatial data, and the high computational complexity of spatial queries. In this paper, we present Hadoop-GIS - a scalable and high performance spatial data warehousing system for running large scale spatial queries on Hadoop. Hadoop-GIS supports multiple types of spatial queries on MapReduce through spatial partitioning, customizable spatial query engine RESQUE, implicit parallel spatial query execution on MapReduce, and effective methods for amending query results through handling boundary objects. Hadoop-GIS utilizes global partition indexing and customizable on demand local spatial indexing to achieve efficient query processing. Hadoop-GIS is integrated into Hive to support declarative spatial queries with an integrated architecture. Our experiments have demonstrated the high efficiency of Hadoop-GIS on query response and high scalability to run on commodity clusters. Our comparative experiments have showed that performance of Hadoop-GIS is on par with parallel SDBMS and outperforms SDBMS for compute-intensive queries. Hadoop-GIS is available as a set of library for processing spatial queries, and as an integrated software package in Hive.

Hadoop-GIS: A High Performance Spatial Data Warehousing System over MapReduce

PubMed Central

Aji, Ablimit; Wang, Fusheng; Vo, Hoang; Lee, Rubao; Liu, Qiaoling; Zhang, Xiaodong; Saltz, Joel

2013-01-01

Support of high performance queries on large volumes of spatial data becomes increasingly important in many application domains, including geospatial problems in numerous fields, location based services, and emerging scientific applications that are increasingly data- and compute-intensive. The emergence of massive scale spatial data is due to the proliferation of cost effective and ubiquitous positioning technologies, development of high resolution imaging technologies, and contribution from a large number of community users. There are two major challenges for managing and querying massive spatial data to support spatial queries: the explosion of spatial data, and the high computational complexity of spatial queries. In this paper, we present Hadoop-GIS – a scalable and high performance spatial data warehousing system for running large scale spatial queries on Hadoop. Hadoop-GIS supports multiple types of spatial queries on MapReduce through spatial partitioning, customizable spatial query engine RESQUE, implicit parallel spatial query execution on MapReduce, and effective methods for amending query results through handling boundary objects. Hadoop-GIS utilizes global partition indexing and customizable on demand local spatial indexing to achieve efficient query processing. Hadoop-GIS is integrated into Hive to support declarative spatial queries with an integrated architecture. Our experiments have demonstrated the high efficiency of Hadoop-GIS on query response and high scalability to run on commodity clusters. Our comparative experiments have showed that performance of Hadoop-GIS is on par with parallel SDBMS and outperforms SDBMS for compute-intensive queries. Hadoop-GIS is available as a set of library for processing spatial queries, and as an integrated software package in Hive. PMID:24187650

Challenges and Opportunities: One Stop Processing of Automatic Large-Scale Base Map Production Using Airborne LIDAR Data Within GIS Environment. Case Study: Makassar City, Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Widyaningrum, E.; Gorte, B. G. H.

2017-05-01

LiDAR data acquisition is recognized as one of the fastest solutions to provide basis data for large-scale topographical base maps worldwide. Automatic LiDAR processing is believed one possible scheme to accelerate the large-scale topographic base map provision by the Geospatial Information Agency in Indonesia. As a progressive advanced technology, Geographic Information System (GIS) open possibilities to deal with geospatial data automatic processing and analyses. Considering further needs of spatial data sharing and integration, the one stop processing of LiDAR data in a GIS environment is considered a powerful and efficient approach for the base map provision. The quality of the automated topographic base map is assessed and analysed based on its completeness, correctness, quality, and the confusion matrix.

Web-Based GIS for Middle School Teachers: Using Online Mapping Applications to Promote Teacher Adoption

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hong, Jung Eun

2012-01-01

One factor underlying the use of information and communications technologies (ICT) in schools is the interest and willingness of teachers to learn and adopt these technologies in their teaching. Previous studies of geographic information systems (GIS), as one type of ICT, indicate that the lack of teacher training is one of the key barriers to…

Monitoring invasive plants using hand-held GIS technology

Treesearch

Theresa M. Mau-Crimmins; Barron J. Orr

2005-01-01

Successful control of invasive species requires a clear picture of the spatial extent of infestations. The latest mapping technology involves coupling global position systems and handheld computers running geographic information systems software in the field. A series of workshops applying this technology to mapping weeds was developed and presented to Weed Management...

Integration of Geographical Information Systems and Geophysical Applications with Distributed Computing Technologies.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pierce, M. E.; Aktas, M. S.; Aydin, G.; Fox, G. C.; Gadgil, H.; Sayar, A.

2005-12-01

We examine the application of Web Service Architectures and Grid-based distributed computing technologies to geophysics and geo-informatics. We are particularly interested in the integration of Geographical Information System (GIS) services with distributed data mining applications. GIS services provide the general purpose framework for building archival data services, real time streaming data services, and map-based visualization services that may be integrated with data mining and other applications through the use of distributed messaging systems and Web Service orchestration tools. Building upon on our previous work in these areas, we present our current research efforts. These include fundamental investigations into increasing XML-based Web service performance, supporting real time data streams, and integrating GIS mapping tools with audio/video collaboration systems for shared display and annotation.

Crisis GIS: Preparing for the Next Volcanic Crisis in the United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramsey, D. W.; Robinson, J. E.; Schilling, S. P.; Schaefer, J. R.; Kimberly, P.; Trusdell, F. A.; Guffanti, M. C.; Mayberry, G. C.; Cameron, C. E.; Smith, J. G.; McIntire, J. A.; Snedigar, S.; Ewert, J. W.

2004-12-01

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) specialists from the Volcano Hazards Program (VHP) of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), including personnel at Menlo Park, California, the Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Washington, the Alaska Volcano Observatory in Anchorage and Fairbanks, Alaska, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory in Hawaii National Park, Hawaii, and the Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program in Washington, DC, are developing a GIS response plan in the event of a volcano crisis. This plan, referred to as "Crisis GIS", outlines how VHP can ensure rapid, reliable delivery of spatial and ancillary information for data analysis and visualization at any required location during a volcanic crisis or event within the United States. An effective Crisis GIS needs the capacity to store multiple, large datasets, including: base layer data, elevation data, geologic maps, hazard assessment maps, satellite data, and aerial photography for volcanoes around the U.S. It must be readily accessible by VHP GIS specialists stationed around the Nation. Such a GIS should also support installations of monitoring instruments and telemetry equipment that relay monitoring signals, and provision of updates to public officials, the media, and the public during a crisis. GIS technology has proven to be an invaluable tool for crisis response. Recently, GIS was applied as part of the response efforts to two large-scale crises: the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the Southern California wildfires of Fall 2003. In each case, GIS was used to organize large quantities of spatial data and to produce electronic and paper maps that illustrated hazards, supported decision making, and communicated developing situations to responsible emergency-management authorities and to the populace affected (Kant, 2002, and Pratt, 2003). VHP GIS specialists are currently testing the software and hardware employed in recent major crisis response efforts and are learning to adapt the technology for volcano crisis response.

Study on application of dynamic monitoring of land use based on mobile GIS technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tian, Jingyi; Chu, Jian; Guo, Jianxing; Wang, Lixin

2006-10-01

The land use dynamic monitoring is an important mean to maintain the real-time update of the land use data. Mobile GIS technology integrates GIS, GPS and Internet. It can update the historic al data in real time with site-collected data and realize the data update in large scale with high precision. The Monitoring methods on the land use change data with the mobile GIS technology were discussed. Mobile terminal of mobile GIS has self-developed for this study with GPS-25 OEM and notebook computer. The RTD (real-time difference) operation mode is selected. Mobile GIS system of dynamic monitoring of land use have developed with Visual C++ as operation platform, MapObjects control as graphic platform and MSCmm control as communication platform, which realizes organic integration of GPS, GPRS and GIS. This system has such following basic functions as data processing, graphic display, graphic editing, attribute query and navigation. Qinhuangdao city was selected as the experiential area. Shown by the study result, the mobile GIS integration system of dynamic monitoring of land use developed by this study has practical application value.

Developing a GIS for CO2 analysis using lightweight, open source components

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verma, R.; Goodale, C. E.; Hart, A. F.; Kulawik, S. S.; Law, E.; Osterman, G. B.; Braverman, A.; Nguyen, H. M.; Mattmann, C. A.; Crichton, D. J.; Eldering, A.; Castano, R.; Gunson, M. R.

2012-12-01

There are advantages to approaching the realm of geographic information systems (GIS) using lightweight, open source components in place of a more traditional web map service (WMS) solution. Rapid prototyping, schema-less data storage, the flexible interchange of components, and open source community support are just some of the benefits. In our effort to develop an application supporting the geospatial and temporal rendering of remote sensing carbon-dioxide (CO2) data for the CO2 Virtual Science Data Environment project, we have connected heterogeneous open source components together to form a GIS. Utilizing widely popular open source components including the schema-less database MongoDB, Leaflet interactive maps, the HighCharts JavaScript graphing library, and Python Bottle web-services, we have constructed a system for rapidly visualizing CO2 data with reduced up-front development costs. These components can be aggregated together, resulting in a configurable stack capable of replicating features provided by more standard GIS technologies. The approach we have taken is not meant to replace the more established GIS solutions, but to instead offer a rapid way to provide GIS features early in the development of an application and to offer a path towards utilizing more capable GIS technology in the future.

Field-based Information Technology in Geology Education: GeoPads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knoop, P. A.; van der Pluijm, B.

2004-12-01

During the past two summers, we have successfully incorporated a field-based information technology component into our senior-level, field geology course (GS-440) at the University of Michigan's Camp Davis Geology Field Station, near Jackson, WY. Using GeoPads -- rugged TabletPCs equipped with electronic notebook software, GIS, GPS, and wireless networking -- we have significantly enhanced our field mapping exercises and field trips. While fully retaining the traditional approaches and advantages of field instruction, GeoPads offer important benefits in the development of students' spatial reasoning skills. GeoPads enable students to record observations and directly create geologic maps in the field, using a combination of an electronic field notebook (Microsoft OneNote) tightly integrated with pen-enabled GIS software (ArcGIS-ArcMap). Specifically, this arrangement permits students to analyze and manipulate their data in multiple contexts and representations -- while still in the field -- using both traditional 2-D map views, as well as richer 3-D contexts. Such enhancements provide students with powerful exploratory tools that aid the development of spatial reasoning skills, allowing more intuitive interactions with 2-D representations of our 3-D world. Additionally, field-based GIS mapping enables better error-detection, through immediate interaction with current observations in the context of both supporting data (e.g., topographic maps, aerial photos, magnetic surveys) and students' ongoing observations. The overall field-based IT approach also provides students with experience using tools that are increasingly relevant to their future academic or professional careers.

Oil Spill Map for Indian Sea Region based on Bhuvan- Geographic Information System using Satellite Images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vijaya kumar, L. J.; Kishore, J. K.; Kesava Rao, P.; Annadurai, M.; Dutt, C. B. S.; Hanumantha Rao, K.; Sasamal, S. K.; Arulraj, M.; Prasad, A. V. V.; Kumari, E. V. S. Sita; Satyanarayana, S. N.; Shenoy, H. P.

2014-11-01

Oil spills in the ocean are a serious marine disaster that needs regular monitoring for environmental risk assessment and mitigation. Recent use of Polarimetric SAR imagery in near real time oil spill detection systems is associated with attempts towards automatic and unambiguous oil spill detection based on decomposition methods. Such systems integrate remote sensing technology, geo information, communication system, hardware and software systems to provide key information for analysis and decision making. Geographic information systems (GIS) like BHUVAN can significantly contribute to oil spill management based on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images. India has long coast line from Gujarat to Bengal and hundreds of ports. The increase in shipping also increases the risk of oil spills in our maritime zone. The availability of RISAT-1 SAR images enhances the scope to monitor oil spills and develop GIS on Bhuvan which can be accessed by all the users, such as ships, coast guard, environmentalists etc., The GIS enables realization of oil spill maps based on integration of the geographical, remote sensing, oil & gas production/infrastructure data and slick signatures detected by SAR. SAR and GIS technologies can significantly improve the realization of oil spill footprint distribution maps. Preliminary assessment shows that the Bhuvan promises to be an ideal solution to understand spatial, temporal occurrence of oil spills in the marine atlas of India. The oil spill maps on Bhuvan based GIS facility will help the ONGC and Coast Guard organization.

A 125 year history of topographic mapping and GIS in the U.S. Geological Survey 1884-2009, part 2: 1980-2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Usery, E. Lynn; Varanka, Dalia; Finn, Michael P.

2009-01-01

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) entered the mainstream of developments in computer-assisted technology for mapping during the 1970s. The introduction by USGS of digital line graphs (DLGs), digital elevation models (DEMs), and land use data analysis (LUDA) nationwide land-cover data provided a base for the rapid expansion of the use of GIS in the 1980s. Whereas USGS had developed the topologically structured DLG data and the Geographic Information Retrieval and Analysis System (GIRAS) for land-cover data, the Map Overlay Statistical System (MOSS), a nontopologically structured GIS software package developed by Autometric, Inc., under contract to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, dominated the use of GIS by federal agencies in the 1970s. Thus, USGS data was used in MOSS, but the topological structure, which later became a requirement for GIS vector datasets, was not used in early GIS applications. The introduction of Esri's ARC/INFO in 1982 changed that, and by the end of the 1980s, topological structure for vector data was essential, and ARC/INFO was the dominant GIS software package used by federal agencies.

Extending GIS Technology to Study Karst Features of Southeastern Minnesota

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, Y.; Tipping, R. G.; Alexander, E. C.; Alexander, S. C.

2001-12-01

This paper summarizes ongoing research on karst feature distribution of southeastern Minnesota. The main goals of this interdisciplinary research are: 1) to look for large-scale patterns in the rate and distribution of sinkhole development; 2) to conduct statistical tests of hypotheses about the formation of sinkholes; 3) to create management tools for land-use managers and planners; and 4) to deliver geomorphic and hydrogeologic criteria for making scientifically valid land-use policies and ethical decisions in karst areas of southeastern Minnesota. Existing county and sub-county karst feature datasets of southeastern Minnesota have been assembled into a large GIS-based database capable of analyzing the entire data set. The central database management system (DBMS) is a relational GIS-based system interacting with three modules: GIS, statistical and hydrogeologic modules. ArcInfo and ArcView were used to generate a series of 2D and 3D maps depicting karst feature distributions in southeastern Minnesota. IRIS ExplorerTM was used to produce satisfying 3D maps and animations using data exported from GIS-based database. Nearest-neighbor analysis has been used to test sinkhole distributions in different topographic and geologic settings. All current nearest-neighbor analyses testify that sinkholes in southeastern Minnesota are not evenly distributed in this area (i.e., they tend to be clustered). More detailed statistical methods such as cluster analysis, histograms, probability estimation, correlation and regression have been used to study the spatial distributions of some mapped karst features of southeastern Minnesota. A sinkhole probability map for Goodhue County has been constructed based on sinkhole distribution, bedrock geology, depth to bedrock, GIS buffer analysis and nearest-neighbor analysis. A series of karst features for Winona County including sinkholes, springs, seeps, stream sinks and outcrop has been mapped and entered into the Karst Feature Database of Southeastern Minnesota. The Karst Feature Database of Winona County is being expanded to include all the mapped karst features of southeastern Minnesota. Air photos from 1930s to 1990s of Spring Valley Cavern Area in Fillmore County were scanned and geo-referenced into our GIS system. This technology has been proved to be very useful to identify sinkholes and study the rate of sinkhole development.

Development of Ground Reference GIS for Assessing Land Cover Maps of Northeast Yellowstone National Park

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spruce, Joe; Warner, Amanda; Terrie, Greg; Davis, Bruce

2001-01-01

GIS technology and ground reference data often play vital roles in assessing land cover maps derived from remotely sensed data. This poster illustrates these roles, using results from a study done in Northeast Yellowstone National Park. This area holds many forest, range, and wetland cover types of interest to park managers. Several recent studies have focused on this locale, including the NASA Earth Observations Commercial Applications Program (EOCAP) hyperspectral project performed by Yellowstone Ecosystems Studies (YES) on riparian and in-stream habitat mapping. This poster regards a spin-off to the EOCAP project in which YES and NASA's Earth Science Applications Directorate explored the potential for synergistic use of hyperspecral, synthetic aperture radar, and multiband thermal imagery in mapping land cover types. The project included development of a ground reference GIS for site-specific data needed to evaluate maps from remotely sensed imagery. Field survey data included reflectance of plant communities, native and exotic plant species, and forest health conditions. Researchers also collected GPS points, annotated aerial photographs, and took hand held photographs of reference sites. The use of ESRI, ERDAS, and ENVI software enabled reference data entry into a GIS for comparision to georeferenced imagery and thematic maps. The GIS-based ground reference data layers supported development and assessment of multiple maps from remotely sensed data sets acquired over the study area.

Utilization of GIS/GPS-Based Information Technology in Commercial Crop Decision Making in California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Arizona

PubMed Central

Thomas, C. S.; Skinner, P. W.; Fox, A. D.; Greer, C. A.; Gubler, W. D.

2002-01-01

Ground-based weather, plant-stage measurements, and remote imagery were geo-referenced in geographic information system (GIS) software using an integrated approach to determine insect and disease risk and crop cultural requirements. Weather forecasts and disease weather forecasts for agricultural areas were constructed with elevation, weather, and satellite data. Models for 6 insect pests and 12 diseases of various crops were calculated and presented daily in georeferenced maps for agricultural areas in northern California and Washington. Grape harvest dates and yields also were predicted with high accuracy. The data generated from the GIS global positioning system (GPS) analyses were used to make management decisions over a large number of acres in California, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Arizona. Information was distributed daily over the Internet as regional weather, insect, and disease risk maps as industry-sponsored or subscription-based products. Use of GIS/GPS technology for semi-automated data analysis is discussed. PMID:19265934

The Functionality of a Geography Information System (GIS) Technology in Geography Teaching: Application of a Sample Lesson

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ozgen, Nurettin

2009-01-01

A Geographic Information System (GIS) is a high performance computer-aided chain of software which enables us to understand, interpret, capture, update, map, and display natural and human-originated events on Earth and allows us to bring out such phenomena in a form of synthesis. Therefore, a GIS is an important information system in which…

Geographic Information Technologies as an outreach activity in geo-scientific education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maman, Shimrit; Isaacson, Sivan; Blumberg, Dan G.

2016-04-01

In recent years, a decline in the rates of examinees in the academic track that were entitled to an enhanced matriculation certificate in scientific-technological education was reported in Israel. To confront this problem the Earth and Planetary Image Facility (EPIF) at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev fosters interdisciplinary exploration through educational programs that make use of the facility and its equipment and enable the empowerment of the community by understanding and appreciating science and technology. This is achieved by using Geographic Information Technologies (GIT) such as remote sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) for geo-physical sciences in activities that combine theoretical background with hands-on activities. Monitoring Earth from space by satellites, digital atlases and virtual-based positioning applications are examples for fusion of spatial information (geographic) and technology that the activity is based on. GIT opens a new chapter and a recent history of Cartography starting from the collection of spatial data to its presentation and analysis. GIS have replaced the use of classical atlas books and offer a variety of Web-based applications that provide maps and display up-to-date imagery. The purpose of this workshop is to expose teachers and students to GITs which are applicable in every classroom. The activity imparts free geographic information systems that exist in cyberspace and accessible to single users as the Israeli national GIS and Google earth, which are based on a spatial data and long term local and global satellite imagery coverage. In this paper, our "Think global-Map Local" activity is presented. The activity uses GIS and change detection technologies as means to encourage students to explore environmental issues both around the globe and close to their surroundings. The students detect changes by comparing multi temporal images of a chosen site and learn how to map the alterations and produce change detection maps with simple and user friendly tools. The activity is offered both for students and supervised projects for teachers and youth.

Application of GIS technology in public health: successes and challenges.

PubMed

Fletcher-Lartey, Stephanie M; Caprarelli, Graziella

2016-04-01

The uptake and acceptance of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology has increased since the early 1990s and public health applications are rapidly expanding. In this paper, we summarize the common uses of GIS technology in the public health sector, emphasizing applications related to mapping and understanding of parasitic diseases. We also present some of the success stories, and discuss the challenges that still prevent a full scope application of GIS technology in the public health context. Geographical analysis has allowed researchers to interlink health, population and environmental data, thus enabling them to evaluate and quantify relationships between health-related variables and environmental risk factors at different geographical scales. The ability to access, share and utilize satellite and remote-sensing data has made possible even wider understanding of disease processes and of their links to the environment, an important consideration in the study of parasitic diseases. For example, disease prevention and control strategies resulting from investigations conducted in a GIS environment have been applied in many areas, particularly in Africa. However, there remain several challenges to a more widespread use of GIS technology, such as: limited access to GIS infrastructure, inadequate technical and analytical skills, and uneven data availability. Opportunities exist for international collaboration to address these limitations through knowledge sharing and governance.

An offline-online Web-GIS Android application for fast data acquisition of landslide hazard and risk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olyazadeh, Roya; Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Derron, Marc-Henri; Devkota, Sanjaya

2017-04-01

Regional landslide assessments and mapping have been effectively pursued by research institutions, national and local governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and different stakeholders for some time, and a wide range of methodologies and technologies have consequently been proposed. Land-use mapping and hazard event inventories are mostly created by remote-sensing data, subject to difficulties, such as accessibility and terrain, which need to be overcome. Likewise, landslide data acquisition for the field navigation can magnify the accuracy of databases and analysis. Open-source Web and mobile GIS tools can be used for improved ground-truthing of critical areas to improve the analysis of hazard patterns and triggering factors. This paper reviews the implementation and selected results of a secure mobile-map application called ROOMA (Rapid Offline-Online Mapping Application) for the rapid data collection of landslide hazard and risk. This prototype assists the quick creation of landslide inventory maps (LIMs) by collecting information on the type, feature, volume, date, and patterns of landslides using open-source Web-GIS technologies such as Leaflet maps, Cordova, GeoServer, PostgreSQL as the real DBMS (database management system), and PostGIS as its plug-in for spatial database management. This application comprises Leaflet maps coupled with satellite images as a base layer, drawing tools, geolocation (using GPS and the Internet), photo mapping, and event clustering. All the features and information are recorded into a GeoJSON text file in an offline version (Android) and subsequently uploaded to the online mode (using all browsers) with the availability of Internet. Finally, the events can be accessed and edited after approval by an administrator and then be visualized by the general public.

Research on ecological function zoning information system based on WebGIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Jianxiong; Zhang, Gang

2007-06-01

With the development of information technology, application of WebGIS will make it possible to realize digitization and intellectualization in issuing and managing information of ecological function zoning. Firstly, this paper introduces the fundamental principles, basic methods and current situation of development and various support techniques about WebGIS. Secondly, the paper not only compares and analyzes the above methods but also discusses their applied prospect and feasibility in Web management. Finally, exemplified by Jiaozuo City, the paper puts forward an idea of design and a project of realization about the information system. In this research, the digital map and establishment of map database have been finished by MapInfo. Combining with some technical data of ecological environment of Jiaozuo City, the information of ecological environment resources is collected, stored, analyzed, calculated and displayed in the form of pictures and graphs on the WebGIS platform, which makes use of secondary development flat-MapXtreme for Java and some tools such as Java, JSP and JavaScript. Serve mode is adopted in the system which has realized the operating, inquiring of basic map and working out thematic map. By the finished system, it brings some references.

GPS and GIS-Based Data Collection and Image Mapping in the Antarctic Peninsula

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sanchez, Richard D.

1999-01-01

High-resolution satellite images combined with the rapidly evolving global positioning system (GPS) and geographic information system (GIS) technology may offer a quick and effective way to gather information in Antarctica. GPS- and GIS-based data collection systems are used in this project to determine their applicability for gathering ground truthing data in the Antarctic Peninsula. These baseline data will be used in a later study to examine changes in penguin habitats resulting in part from regional climate warming. The research application in this study yields important information on the usefulness and limits of data capture and high-resolution images for mapping in the Antarctic Peninsula.

Proceedings of the U.S. Geological Survey Eighth Biennial Geographic Information Science Workshop and first The National Map Users Conference, Denver, Colorado, May 10-13, 2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sieverling, Jennifer B.; Dietterle, Jeffrey

2014-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is sponsoring the first The National Map Users Conference in conjunction with the eighth biennial Geographic Information Science (GIS) Workshop on May 10-13, 2011, in Lakewood, Colorado. The GIS Workshop will be held at the USGS National Training Center, located on the Denver Federal Center, Lakewood, Colorado, May 10-11. The National Map Users Conference will be held directly after the GIS Workshop at the Denver Marriott West, a convention hotel in the Lakewood, Colorado area, May 12-13. The National Map is designed to serve the Nation by providing geographic data and knowledge for government, industry, and public uses. The goal of The National Map Users Conference is to enhance communications and collaboration among the communities of users of and contributors to The National Map, including USGS, Department of the Interior, and other government GIS specialists and scientists, as well as the broader geospatial community. The USGS National Geospatial Program intends the conference to serve as a forum to engage users and more fully discover and meet their needs for the products and services of The National Map. The goal of the GIS Workshop is to promote advancement of GIS and related technologies and concepts as well as the sharing of GIS knowledge within the USGS GIS community. This collaborative opportunity for multi-disciplinary GIS and associated professionals will allow attendees to present and discuss a wide variety of geospatial-related topics. The Users Conference and Workshop collaboration will bring together scientists, managers, and data users who, through presentations, posters, seminars, workshops, and informal gatherings, will share accomplishments and progress on a variety of geospatial topics. During this joint event, attendees will have the opportunity to present or demonstrate their work; to develop their knowledge by attending hands-on workshops, seminars, and presentations given by professionals from USGS and other Federal Agencies, GIS related companies, and academia; and to network with other professionals to develop collaborative opportunities. Specific conference topics include scientific and modeling applications using The National Map, opportunities for partnerships, and advances in geospatial technologies. The first part of the week will be the GIS Workshop, offered as a pre-conference seminar. It will focus on hands-on GIS training and seminars concerning current topics of geospatial interest. The focus of the USGS GIS Workshop is to showcase specific techniques and concepts for using GIS in support of science. The presentations will be educational and not a marketing endeavor. To promote awareness of and interaction with selected USGS corporate and local science center data products, as well as promoting collaboration, a “GIS Olympics” event will be held Tuesday evening during the GIS Workshop. The second part of the week will feature interactive briefings and discussions on issues and opportunities of The National Map. The focus of the Users Conference will be on the role of The National Map in supporting science initiatives, emergency response, land and wildlife management, and other activities. All presentations at the Users Conference include use or innovations related to a The National Map data theme or application. On Wednesday evening, a poster session is being held as a combined event for all attendees and as a juncture between the events. On Thursday evening, the Henry Gannett Award will be presented. Additionally, poster awards will be presented. Several prominent speakers are featured at plenary sessions at The National Map Users Conference, including Deanna A. Archuleta, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, Department of the Interior; Dr. Barbara P. Buttenfield, Professor of Geography at the University of Colorado in Boulder; best-selling author Frederick Reuss; and Dr. Joel Scheraga, Senior Advisor for Climate Adaptation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Additionally, panel discussions have attracted participation from notable experts from government, academia, and the private sector. This Proceedings volume will serve as an activity reference for workshop attendees, as well as an archive of technical abstracts presented at the workshop. Author, co-author, and presenter names, affiliations, and contact information are listed with presentation titles with the abstracts. Some hands-on sessions are offered twice; in these instances, abstracts submitted for publication are presented in the proceedings on both days on which they are offered.

Smart "geomorphological" map browsing - a tale about geomorphological maps and the internet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geilhausen, M.; Otto, J.-C.

2012-04-01

With the digital production of geomorphological maps, the dissemination of research outputs now extends beyond simple paper products. Internet technologies can contribute to both, the dissemination of geomorphological maps and access to geomorphologic data and help to make geomorphological knowledge available to a greater public. Indeed, many national geological surveys employ end-to-end digital workflows from data capture in the field to final map production and dissemination. This paper deals with the potential of web mapping applications and interactive, portable georeferenced PDF maps for the distribution of geomorphological information. Web mapping applications such as Google Maps have become very popular and widespread and increased the interest and access to mapping. They link the Internet with GIS technology and are a common way of presenting dynamic maps online. The GIS processing is performed online and maps are visualised in interactive web viewers characterised by different capabilities such as zooming, panning or adding further thematic layers, with the map refreshed after each task. Depending on the system architecture and the components used, advanced symbology, map overlays from different applications and sources and their integration into a Desktop GIS are possible. This interoperability is achieved through the use of international open standards that include mechanisms for the integration and visualisation of information from multiple sources. The portable document format (PDF) is commonly used for printing and is a standard format that can be processed by many graphic software and printers without loss of information. A GeoPDF enables the sharing of geospatial maps and data in PDF documents. Multiple, independent map frames with individual spatial reference systems are possible within a GeoPDF, for example, for map overlays or insets. Geospatial functionality of a GeoPDF includes scalable map display, layer visibility control, access to attribute data, coordinate queries and spatial measurements. The full functionality of GeoPDFs requires free and user-friendly plug-ins for PDF readers and GIS software. A GeoPDF enables fundamental GIS functionality turning the formerly static PDF map into an interactive, portable georeferenced PDF map. GeoPDFs are easy to create and provide an interesting and valuable way to disseminate geomorphological maps. Our motivation to engage with the online distribution of geomorphological maps originates in the increasing number of web mapping applications available today indicating that the Internet has become a medium for displaying geographical information in rich forms and user-friendly interfaces. So, why not use the Internet to distribute geomorphological maps and enhance their practical application? Web mapping and dynamic PDF maps can play a key role in the movement towards a global dissemination of geomorphological information. This will be exemplified by live demonstrations of i.) existing geomorphological WebGIS applications, ii.) data merging from various sources using web map services, and iii.) free to download GeoPDF maps during the presentations.

GIS Technologies For The New Planetary Science Archive (PSA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Docasal, R.; Barbarisi, I.; Rios, C.; Macfarlane, A. J.; Gonzalez, J.; Arviset, C.; De Marchi, G.; Martinez, S.; Grotheer, E.; Lim, T.; Besse, S.; Heather, D.; Fraga, D.; Barthelemy, M.

2015-12-01

Geographical information system (GIS) is becoming increasingly used for planetary science. GIS are computerised systems for the storage, retrieval, manipulation, analysis, and display of geographically referenced data. Some data stored in the Planetary Science Archive (PSA), for instance, a set of Mars Express/Venus Express data, have spatial metadata associated to them. To facilitate users in handling and visualising spatial data in GIS applications, the new PSA should support interoperability with interfaces implementing the standards approved by the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC). These standards are followed in order to develop open interfaces and encodings that allow data to be exchanged with GIS Client Applications, well-known examples of which are Google Earth and NASA World Wind as well as open source tools such as Openlayers. The technology already exists within PostgreSQL databases to store searchable geometrical data in the form of the PostGIS extension. An existing open source maps server is GeoServer, an instance of which has been deployed for the new PSA, uses the OGC standards to allow, among others, the sharing, processing and editing of data and spatial data through the Web Feature Service (WFS) standard as well as serving georeferenced map images through the Web Map Service (WMS). The final goal of the new PSA, being developed by the European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) Science Data Centre (ESDC), is to create an archive which enables science exploitation of ESA's planetary missions datasets. This can be facilitated through the GIS framework, offering interfaces (both web GUI and scriptable APIs) that can be used more easily and scientifically by the community, and that will also enable the community to build added value services on top of the PSA.

Maps and Map Learning in Social Studies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bednarz, Sarah Witham; Acheson, Gillian; Bednarz, Robert S.

2006-01-01

The importance of maps and other graphic representations has become more important to geography and geographers. This is due to the development and widespread diffusion of geographic (spatial) technologies. As computers and silicon chips have become more capable and less expensive, geographic information systems (GIS), global positioning satellite…

Promoting Inquiry in the Gifted Classroom through GPS and GIS Technologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shaunessy, Elizabeth; Page, Carrie

2006-01-01

Geography is rapidly becoming more interactive, especially with the advent of the Global Positioning System (GPS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and their adoption in the public and private sectors. The days of two-dimensional maps are quickly being replaced by geographic images that are stored electronically in computers and handheld…

GIS Technologies for the Planetary Science Archive (PSA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Docasal, R.

2017-09-01

In my abstract I try to show how a GIS and 3D visual tools architecture could handle the different approaches for visualizing the spatial info, depending on the nature and shape of the object (planet, satellite, comet...etc) to be mapped in a multi-mission website such as the new PSA.

Geospatial Technology Applications and Infrastructure in the Biological Resources Division.

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-09-01

Forestry/forest ecology Geography Geology GIS/mapping technologies GPS technology HTML/World Wide Web Information management/transfer JAVA Land...tech- nologies are being used to understand diet selection, habitat use, hibernation behavior, and social interactions of desert tortoises

Folding Digital Mapping into a Traditional Field Camp Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kelley, D. F.

2011-12-01

Louisiana State University runs a field camp with a permanent fixed-base which has continually operated since 1928 in the Front Range just to the south of Colorado Springs, CO. The field camp program which offers a 6-credit hour course in Field Geology follows a very traditional structure. The first week is spent collecting data for the construction of a detailed stratigraphic column of the local geology. The second week is spent learning the skills of geologic mapping, while the third applies these skills to a more geologically complicated mapping area. The final three weeks of the field camp program are spent studying and mapping igneous and metamorphic rocks as well as conducting a regional stratigraphic correlation exercise. Historically there has been a lack of technology involved in this program. All mapping has been done in the field without the use of any digital equipment and all products have been made in the office without the use of computers. In the summer of 2011 the use of GPS units, and GIS software were introduced to the program. The exercise that was chosen for this incorporation of technology was one in which metamorphic rocks are mapped within Golden Gate Canyon State Park in Colorado. This same mapping exercise was carried out during the 2010 field camp session with no GPS or GIS use. The students in both groups had the similar geologic backgrounds, similar grade point averages, and similar overall performances at field camp. However, the group that used digital mapping techniques mapped the field area more quickly and reportedly with greater ease. Additionally, the students who used GPS and GIS included more detailed rock descriptions with their final maps indicating that they spent less time in the field focusing on mapping contacts between units. The outcome was a better overall product. The use of GPS units also indirectly caused the students to produce better field maps. In addition to greater ease in mapping, the use of GIS software to create maps was rewarding to the students and gave them mapping experience that is in line with industry standards.

Participatory GIS in design of the Wroclaw University of Science and Technology campus web map and spatial analysis of campus area quality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blachowski, Jan; Łuczak, Jakub; Zagrodnik, Paulina

2018-01-01

Public participation geographic information system (GIS) and participatory mapping data collection methods are means that enhance capacity in generating, managing, and communicating spatial information in various fields ranging from local planning to environmental management. In this study these methods have been used in two ways. The first one, to gather information on the additional functionality of campus web map expected by its potential users, i.e. students, staff and visitors, through web based survey. The second, to collect geographically referenced information on campus areas that are liked and disliked in a geo-survey carried out with ArcGIS Online GeoForm Application. The results of the first survey were used to map facilities such as: bicycle infrastructure, building entrances, wheelchair accessible infrastructure and benches. The results of the second one, to analyse the most and the least attractive parts of the campus with heat and hot spot analyses in GIS. In addition, the answers have been studied with regard to the visual and functional aspects of campus area raised in the survey. The thematic layers developed in the results of field mapping and geoprocessing of geosurvey data were included in the campus web map project. The paper describes the applied methodology of data collection, processing, analysis, interpretation and geovisualisation.

Mapping invasive weeds and their control with spatial information technologies

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

We discuss applications of airborne multispectral digital imaging systems, imaging processing techniques, global positioning systems (GPS), and geographic information systems (GIS) for mapping the invasive weeds giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta) and Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) and fo...

The Topography of Names and Places.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morehead, Joe

1999-01-01

Discusses geographic naming with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology. Highlights include the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) online database; United States Geological Survey (USGS) national mapping information; the USGS-Microsoft connection; and panoramic maps and the small LizardTech company. (AEF)

GIS Methodic and New Database for Magmatic Rocks. Application for Atlantic Oceanic Magmatism.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asavin, A. M.

2001-12-01

There are several geochemical Databases in INTERNET available now. There one of the main peculiarities of stored geochemical information is geographical coordinates of each samples in those Databases. As rule the software of this Database use spatial information only for users interface search procedures. In the other side, GIS-software (Geographical Information System software),for example ARC/INFO software which using for creation and analyzing special geological, geochemical and geophysical e-map, have been deeply involved with geographical coordinates for of samples. We join peculiarities GIS systems and relational geochemical Database from special software. Our geochemical information system created in Vernadsky Geological State Museum and institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry from Moscow. Now we tested system with data of geochemistry oceanic rock from Atlantic and Pacific oceans, about 10000 chemical analysis. GIS information content consist from e-map covers Wold Globes. Parts of these maps are Atlantic ocean covers gravica map (with grid 2''), oceanic bottom hot stream, altimeteric maps, seismic activity, tectonic map and geological map. Combination of this information content makes possible created new geochemical maps and combination of spatial analysis and numerical geochemical modeling of volcanic process in ocean segment. Now we tested information system on thick client technology. Interface between GIS system Arc/View and Database resides in special multiply SQL-queries sequence. The result of the above gueries were simple DBF-file with geographical coordinates. This file act at the instant of creation geochemical and other special e-map from oceanic region. We used more complex method for geophysical data. From ARC\\View we created grid cover for polygon spatial geophysical information.

Design and implementation of information visualization system on science and technology industry based on GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Xiaofang; Jiang, Liushi

2011-02-01

Usually in the traditional science and technology information system, the only text and table form are used to manage the data, and the mathematic statistics method is applied to analyze the data. It lacks for the spatial analysis and management of data. Therefore, GIS technology is introduced to visualize and analyze the information data on science and technology industry. Firstly, by using the developed platform-microsoft visual studio 2005 and ArcGIS Engine, the information visualization system on science and technology industry based on GIS is built up, which implements various functions, such as data storage and management, inquiry, statistics, chart analysis, thematic map representation. It can show the change of science and technology information from the space and time axis intuitively. Then, the data of science and technology in Guangdong province are taken as experimental data and are applied to the system. And by considering the factors of humanities, geography and economics so on, the situation and change tendency of science and technology information of different regions are analyzed and researched, and the corresponding suggestion and method are brought forward in order to provide the auxiliary support for development of science and technology industry in Guangdong province.

Smartphones Based Mobile Mapping Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Hamad, A.; El-Sheimy, N.

2014-06-01

The past 20 years have witnessed an explosive growth in the demand for geo-spatial data. This demand has numerous sources and takes many forms; however, the net effect is an ever-increasing thirst for data that is more accurate, has higher density, is produced more rapidly, and is acquired less expensively. For mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) projects, this has been achieved through the major development of Mobile Mapping Systems (MMS). MMS integrate various navigation and remote sensing technologies which allow mapping from moving platforms (e.g. cars, airplanes, boats, etc.) to obtain the 3D coordinates of the points of interest. Such systems obtain accuracies that are suitable for all but the most demanding mapping and engineering applications. However, this accuracy doesn't come cheaply. As a consequence of the platform and navigation and mapping technologies used, even an "inexpensive" system costs well over 200 000 USD. Today's mobile phones are getting ever more sophisticated. Phone makers are determined to reduce the gap between computers and mobile phones. Smartphones, in addition to becoming status symbols, are increasingly being equipped with extended Global Positioning System (GPS) capabilities, Micro Electro Mechanical System (MEMS) inertial sensors, extremely powerful computing power and very high resolution cameras. Using all of these components, smartphones have the potential to replace the traditional land MMS and portable GPS/GIS equipment. This paper introduces an innovative application of smartphones as a very low cost portable MMS for mapping and GIS applications.

Mapping Indigenous Depth of Place

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pearce, Margaret Wickens; Louis, Renee Pualani

2008-01-01

Indigenous communities have successfully used Western geospatial technologies (GT) (for example, digital maps, satellite images, geographic information systems (GIS), and global positioning systems (GPS)) since the 1970s to protect tribal resources, document territorial sovereignty, create tribal utility databases, and manage watersheds. The use…

Globes from global data: Charting international research networks with the GRASS GIS r.out.polycones add-on module.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Löwe, Peter

2015-04-01

Many Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) tools have been created for the various application fields within geoscience. While FOSS allows re-implementation of functionalities in new environments by access to the original codebase, the easiest approach to build new software solutions for new problems is the combination or merging of existing software tools. Such mash-ups are implemented by embedding and encapsulating FOSS tools within each another, effectively focusing the use of the embedded software to the specific role it needs to perform in the given scenario, while ignoring all its other capabilities. GRASS GIS is a powerful and established FOSS GIS for raster, vector and volume data processing while the Generic Mapping Tools (GMT) are a suite of powerful Open Source mapping tools, which exceed the mapping capabilities of GRASS GIS. This poster reports on the new GRASS GIS add-on module r.out.polycones. It enables users to utilize non-continuous projections for map production within the GRASS production environment. This is implemented on the software level by encapsulating a subset of GMT mapping capabilities into a GRASS GIS (Version 6.x) add-on module. The module was developed at the German National Library of Science and Technology (TIB) to provide custom global maps of scientific collaboration networks, such as the DataCite consortium, the registration agency for Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) for research data. The GRASS GIS add-on module can be used for global mapping of raster data into a variety of non continuous sinosoidal projections, allowing the creation of printable biangles (gores) to be used for globe making. Due to the well structured modular nature of GRASS modules, technical follow-up work will focus on API-level Python-based integration in GRASS 7 [1]. Based on this, GMT based mapping capabilities in GRASS will be extended beyond non-continuous sinosoidal maps and advanced from raster-layers to content GRASS display monitors. References: [1] Petras, V., Petrasova, A., Chemin, Y., Zambelli, P., Landa, M., Gebbert, S., Neteler, N., Löwe, P.: Analyzing rasters, vectors and time series using new Python interfaces in GRASS GIS 7, Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 17, EGU2015-8142, 2015 (in preparation)

Delivering integrated HAZUS-MH flood loss analyses and flood inundation maps over the Web.

PubMed

Hearn, Paul P; Longenecker, Herbert E; Aguinaldo, John J; Rahav, Ami N

2013-01-01

Catastrophic flooding is responsible for more loss of life and damages to property than any other natural hazard. Recently developed flood inundation mapping technologies make it possible to view the extent and depth of flooding on the land surface over the Internet; however, by themselves these technologies are unable to provide estimates of losses to property and infrastructure. The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's) HAZUS-MH software is extensively used to conduct flood loss analyses in the United States, providing a nationwide database of population and infrastructure at risk. Unfortunately, HAZUS-MH requires a dedicated Geographic Information System (GIS) workstation and a trained operator, and analyses are not adapted for convenient delivery over the Web. This article describes a cooperative effort by the US Geological Survey (USGS) and FEMA to make HAZUS-MH output GIS and Web compatible and to integrate these data with digital flood inundation maps in USGS's newly developed Inundation Mapping Web Portal. By running the computationally intensive HAZUS-MH flood analyses offline and converting the output to a Web-GIS compatible format, detailed estimates of flood losses can now be delivered to anyone with Internet access, thus dramatically increasing the availability of these forecasts to local emergency planners and first responders.

Delivering integrated HAZUS-MH flood loss analyses and flood inundation maps over the Web

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hearn,, Paul P.; Longenecker, Herbert E.; Aguinaldo, John J.; Rahav, Ami N.

2013-01-01

Catastrophic flooding is responsible for more loss of life and damages to property than any other natural hazard. Recently developed flood inundation mapping technologies make it possible to view the extent and depth of flooding on the land surface over the Internet; however, by themselves these technologies are unable to provide estimates of losses to property and infrastructure. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA's) HAZUS-MH software is extensively used to conduct flood loss analyses in the United States, providing a nationwide database of population and infrastructure at risk. Unfortunately, HAZUS-MH requires a dedicated Geographic Information System (GIS) workstation and a trained operator, and analyses are not adapted for convenient delivery over the Web. This article describes a cooperative effort by the US Geological Survey (USGS) and FEMA to make HAZUS-MH output GIS and Web compatible and to integrate these data with digital flood inundation maps in USGS’s newly developed Inundation Mapping Web Portal. By running the computationally intensive HAZUS-MH flood analyses offline and converting the output to a Web-GIS compatible format, detailed estimates of flood losses can now be delivered to anyone with Internet access, thus dramatically increasing the availability of these forecasts to local emergency planners and first responders.

Mapping a Better Vintage

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2003-01-01

Vineyards such as those located in California's Napa Valley tend to be subdivided into relatively large fields or blocks that often encompass heterogeneous physical conditions. Since growers typically treat the entire block as a single minimum management unit for cultivation and harvest, mapping and monitoring the variability within a block is a concern. Over the last decade, an increasing number of vineyard managers have utilized digital remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) to visualize the variability within their blocks. With computer software designed to overlay remotely sensed imagery with environmental and agronomic geographic data on a map, GIS helps growers recognize and explain patterns that might not have been obvious otherwise. GIS can also serve as a valuable archiving mechanism for future reference. To further develop the use of image technology and GIS for vineyard management support, NASA's Earth Science Enterprise partnered with the U.S. wine and commercial remote sensing industries for a project known as the Viticultural Integration of NASA Technologies for Assessment of the Grapevine Environment (VINTAGE). With project investigators from NASA's Ames Research Center, the California State University at Monterey Bay, and the University of Montana, several prototype products have been developed to support agricultural decisions concerning canopy management and irrigation practice. One key VINTAGE aspect involved the evaluation of satellite and airborne multispectral imagery for delineation of sub-block management zones within a vineyard.

GIS and local knowledge in disaster management: a case study of flood risk mapping in Viet Nam.

PubMed

Tran, Phong; Shaw, Rajib; Chantry, Guillaume; Norton, John

2009-03-01

Linking community knowledge with modern techniques to record and analyse risk related data is one way of engaging and mobilising community capacity. This paper discusses the use of the Geographic Information System (GIS) at the local level and the need for integrating modern technology and indigenous knowledge into disaster management. It suggests a way to mobilise available human and technical resources in order to strengthen a good partnership between local communities and local and national institutions. The paper also analyses the current vulnerability of two communes by correlating hazard risk and loss/damage caused by disasters and the contribution that domestic risk maps in the community can make to reduce this risk. The disadvantages, advantages and lessons learned from the GIS flood risk mapping project are presented through the case study of the Quang Tho Commune in Thua Thien Hue province, central Viet Nam.

GIS Data Downloads | USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

Science.gov Websites

Acknowledgments & Citation Copyright Map & Data Downloads Map Downloads Geography (GIS) Downloads Multi & Data Downloads / GIS Data Downloads Topics Map Downloads Geography (GIS) Downloads Multi-Zip Code

Identifying Populace Susceptible to Flooding Using ArcGIS and Remote Sensing Datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fernandez, Sim Joseph; Milano, Alan

2016-07-01

Remote sensing technologies are growing vastly as with its various applications. The Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Republic of the Philippines, has made projects exploiting LiDAR datasets from remote sensing technologies. The Phil-LiDAR 1 project of DOST is a flood hazard mapping project. Among the project's objectives is the identification of building features which can be associated to the flood-exposed population. The extraction of building features from the LiDAR dataset is arduous as it requires manual identification of building features on an elevation map. The mapping of building footprints is made meticulous in order to compensate the accuracy between building floor area and building height both of which are crucial in flood decision making. A building identification method was developed to generate a LiDAR derivative which will serve as a guide in mapping building footprints. The method utilizes several tools of a Geographic Information System (GIS) software called ArcGIS which can operate on physical attributes of buildings such as roofing curvature, slope and blueprint area in order to obtain the LiDAR derivative from LiDAR dataset. The method also uses an intermediary process called building removal process wherein buildings and other features lying below the defined minimum building height - 2 meters in the case of Phil-LiDAR 1 project - are removed. The building identification method was developed in the hope to hasten the identification of building features especially when orthophotographs and/or satellite imageries are not made available.

Application of spatial technology in malaria research & control: some new insights.

PubMed

Saxena, Rekha; Nagpal, B N; Srivastava, Aruna; Gupta, S K; Dash, A P

2009-08-01

Geographical information System (GIS) has emerged as the core of the spatial technology which integrates wide range of dataset available from different sources including Remote Sensing (RS) and Global Positioning System (GPS). Literature published during the decade (1998-2007) has been compiled and grouped into six categories according to the usage of the technology in malaria epidemiology. Different GIS modules like spatial data sources, mapping and geo-processing tools, distance calculation, digital elevation model (DEM), buffer zone and geo-statistical analysis have been investigated in detail, illustrated with examples as per the derived results. These GIS tools have contributed immensely in understanding the epidemiological processes of malaria and examples drawn have shown that GIS is now widely used for research and decision making in malaria control. Statistical data analysis currently is the most consistent and established set of tools to analyze spatial datasets. The desired future development of GIS is in line with the utilization of geo-statistical tools which combined with high quality data has capability to provide new insight into malaria epidemiology and the complexity of its transmission potential in endemic areas.

An Offline-Online Android Application for Hazard Event Mapping Using WebGIS Open Source Technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olyazadeh, Roya; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen; Derron, Marc-Henri; Devkota, Sanjaya

2016-04-01

Nowadays, Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) plays an important role in better understanding and managing disaster risk reduction around the world. National and local government, NGOs and other stakeholders are increasingly seeking and producing data on hazards. Most of the hazard event inventories and land use mapping are based on remote sensing data, with little ground truthing, creating difficulties depending on the terrain and accessibility. Open Source WebGIS tools offer an opportunity for quicker and easier ground truthing of critical areas in order to analyse hazard patterns and triggering factors. This study presents a secure mobile-map application for hazard event mapping using Open Source WebGIS technologies such as Postgres database, Postgis, Leaflet, Cordova and Phonegap. The objectives of this prototype are: 1. An Offline-Online android mobile application with advanced Geospatial visualisation; 2. Easy Collection and storage of events information applied services; 3. Centralized data storage with accessibility by all the service (smartphone, standard web browser); 4. Improving data management by using active participation in hazard event mapping and storage. This application has been implemented as a low-cost, rapid and participatory method for recording impacts from hazard events and includes geolocation (GPS data and Internet), visualizing maps with overlay of satellite images, viewing uploaded images and events as cluster points, drawing and adding event information. The data can be recorded in offline (Android device) or online version (all browsers) and consequently uploaded through the server whenever internet is available. All the events and records can be visualized by an administrator and made public after approval. Different user levels can be defined to access the data for communicating the information. This application was tested for landslides in post-earthquake Nepal but can be used for any other type of hazards such as flood, avalanche, etc. Keywords: Offline, Online, WebGIS Open source, Android, Hazard Event Mapping

Nebhydro: Sharing Geospatial Data to Supportwater Management in Nebraska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamble, B.; Irmak, A.; Hubbard, K.; Deogun, J.; Dvorak, B.

2012-12-01

Recent advances in web-enabled geographical technologies have the potential to make a dramatic impact on development of highly interactive spatial applications on the web for visualization of large-scale geospatial data by water resources and irrigation scientists. Spatial and point scale water resources data visualization are an emerging and challenging application domain. Query based visual explorations of geospatial hydrological data can play an important role in stimulating scientific hypotheses and seeking causal relationships among hydro variables. The Nebraska Hydrological Information System (NebHydro) utilizes ESRI's ArcGIS server technology to increase technological awareness among farmers, irrigation managers and policy makers. Web-based geospatial applications are an effective way to expose scientific hydrological datasets to the research community and the public. NebHydro uses Adobe Flex technology to offer an online visualization and data analysis system for presentation of social and economic data. Internet mapping services is an integrated product of GIS and Internet technologies; it is a favored solution to achieve the interoperability of GIS. The development of Internet based GIS services in the state of Nebraska showcases the benefits of sharing geospatial hydrological data among agencies, resource managers and policy makers. Geospatial hydrological Information (Evapotranspiration from Remote Sensing, vegetation indices (NDVI), USGS Stream gauge data, Climatic data etc.) is generally generated through model simulation (METRIC, SWAP, Linux, Python based scripting etc). Information is compiled into and stored within object oriented relational spatial databases using a geodatabase information model that supports the key data types needed by applications including features, relationships, networks, imagery, terrains, maps and layers. The system provides online access, querying, visualization, and analysis of the hydrological data from several sources at one place. The study indicates that internet GIS, developed using advanced technologies, provides valuable education potential to users in hydrology and irrigation engineering and suggests that such a system can support advanced hydrological data access and analysis tools to improve utility of data in operations. Keywords: Hydrological Information System, NebHydro, Water Management, data sharing, data visualization, ArcGIS server.

Genomes as geography: using GIS technology to build interactive genome feature maps

PubMed Central

Dolan, Mary E; Holden, Constance C; Beard, M Kate; Bult, Carol J

2006-01-01

Background Many commonly used genome browsers display sequence annotations and related attributes as horizontal data tracks that can be toggled on and off according to user preferences. Most genome browsers use only simple keyword searches and limit the display of detailed annotations to one chromosomal region of the genome at a time. We have employed concepts, methodologies, and tools that were developed for the display of geographic data to develop a Genome Spatial Information System (GenoSIS) for displaying genomes spatially, and interacting with genome annotations and related attribute data. In contrast to the paradigm of horizontally stacked data tracks used by most genome browsers, GenoSIS uses the concept of registered spatial layers composed of spatial objects for integrated display of diverse data. In addition to basic keyword searches, GenoSIS supports complex queries, including spatial queries, and dynamically generates genome maps. Our adaptation of the geographic information system (GIS) model in a genome context supports spatial representation of genome features at multiple scales with a versatile and expressive query capability beyond that supported by existing genome browsers. Results We implemented an interactive genome sequence feature map for the mouse genome in GenoSIS, an application that uses ArcGIS, a commercially available GIS software system. The genome features and their attributes are represented as spatial objects and data layers that can be toggled on and off according to user preferences or displayed selectively in response to user queries. GenoSIS supports the generation of custom genome maps in response to complex queries about genome features based on both their attributes and locations. Our example application of GenoSIS to the mouse genome demonstrates the powerful visualization and query capability of mature GIS technology applied in a novel domain. Conclusion Mapping tools developed specifically for geographic data can be exploited to display, explore and interact with genome data. The approach we describe here is organism independent and is equally useful for linear and circular chromosomes. One of the unique capabilities of GenoSIS compared to existing genome browsers is the capacity to generate genome feature maps dynamically in response to complex attribute and spatial queries. PMID:16984652

The use of information systems to transform utilities and regulatory commissions: The application of geographic information systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wirick, D.W.; Montgomery, G.E.; Wagman, D.C.

1995-09-01

One technology that can assist utilities remain financially viable in competitive markets and help utilities and regulators to better serve the public is information technology. Because geography is an important part of an electric, natural gas, telecommunications, or water utility, computer-based Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and related Automated Mapping/Facilities Management systems are emerging as core technologies for managing an ever-expanding variety of formerly manual or paper-based tasks. This report focuses on GIS as an example of the types of information systems that can be used by utilities and regulatory commissions. Chapter 2 provides general information about information systems and effectsmore » of information on organizations; Chapter 3 explores the conversion of an organization to an information-based one; Chapters 4 and 5 set out GIS as an example of the use of information technologies to transform the operations of utilities and commissions; Chapter 6 describes the use of GIS and other information systems for organizational reengineering efforts; and Chapter 7 examines the regulatory treatment of information systems.« less

GIS Story Maps : A Tool to Empower and Engage Stakeholders in Planning Sustainable Places

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-10-01

Public engagement continues to be transformed by the explosion of new digital technologies/tools, software platforms, social media networks, mobile devices, and mobile apps. Recent changes in geospatial technology offer new opportunities for use in p...

Natural resources evaluation by the use of remote sensing and GIS technology for agricultural development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pham Viet, C.; Nguyen Phuong, M.

1993-11-01

A multilevel Geographic Information System based on Remote Sensing and GIS-Technology is established to assess erosion susceptibility and select suitable land for soil conservation and regional planning, management. A cross analysis between the thematic maps and field data is done to examine the relationship between natural condition and land suitability for agriculture. The Land resources evaluation models are affective for understanding the cultivation possibility and can be used as a regional project to be applied in various Vietnam regions for agricultural development.

Earth Observation Services (Oil Spill Mapping)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

An EOCAP project led Research Planning, Inc. to the development of advanced techniques for "environmental sensitivity" oil spill mapping. The new method incorporates satellite remote sensing and GIS technologies and was utilized to assess the damage potential of the Gulf war oil spill. EOCAP provides government co-funding to encourage private investment in, and to broaden the, use of, NASA-developed technology for analyzing information about Earth and ocean resources.

Remote sensing for detecting and mapping whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) infestations

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Remote sensing technology has long been used for detecting insect infestations on agricultural crops. With recent advances in remote sensing sensors and other spatial information technologies such as Global Position Systems (GPS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing is finding mo...

Combining Google Earth and GIS mapping technologies in a dengue surveillance system for developing countries

PubMed Central

Chang, Aileen Y; Parrales, Maria E; Jimenez, Javier; Sobieszczyk, Magdalena E; Hammer, Scott M; Copenhaver, David J; Kulkarni, Rajan P

2009-01-01

Background Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne illness that places significant burden on tropical developing countries with unplanned urbanization. A surveillance system using Google Earth and GIS mapping technologies was developed in Nicaragua as a management tool. Methods and Results Satellite imagery of the town of Bluefields, Nicaragua captured from Google Earth was used to create a base-map in ArcGIS 9. Indices of larval infestation, locations of tire dumps, cemeteries, large areas of standing water, etc. that may act as larval development sites, and locations of the homes of dengue cases collected during routine epidemiologic surveying were overlaid onto this map. Visual imagery of the location of dengue cases, larval infestation, and locations of potential larval development sites were used by dengue control specialists to prioritize specific neighborhoods for targeted control interventions. Conclusion This dengue surveillance program allows public health workers in resource-limited settings to accurately identify areas with high indices of mosquito infestation and interpret the spatial relationship of these areas with potential larval development sites such as garbage piles and large pools of standing water. As a result, it is possible to prioritize control strategies and to target interventions to highest risk areas in order to eliminate the likely origin of the mosquito vector. This program is well-suited for resource-limited settings since it utilizes readily available technologies that do not rely on Internet access for daily use and can easily be implemented in many developing countries for very little cost. PMID:19627614

Geographic information systems in public health and medicine.

PubMed

Mullner, Ross M; Chung, Kyusuk; Croke, Kevin G; Mensah, Edward K

2004-06-01

Geographic information systems (GIS) are increasingly being used in public health and medicine. Advances in computer technology, the encouragement of its use by the federal government, and the wide availability of academic and commercial courses on GIS are responsible for its growth. Some view GIS as only a tool for spatial research and policy analysis, while others believe it is part of a larger emerging new science including geography, cartography, geodesy, and remote sensing. The specific advantages and problems of GIS are discussed. The greatest potential of GIS is its ability to clearly show the results of complex analyses through maps. Problems in using GIS include its costs, the need to adequately train staff, the use of appropriate spatial units, and the risk it poses to violating patient confidentiality. Lastly, the fourteen articles in this special issue devoted to GIS are introduced and briefly discussed.

Web GIS in practice IV: publishing your health maps and connecting to remote WMS sources using the Open Source UMN MapServer and DM Solutions MapLab

PubMed Central

Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Honda, Kiyoshi

2006-01-01

Open Source Web GIS software systems have reached a stage of maturity, sophistication, robustness and stability, and usability and user friendliness rivalling that of commercial, proprietary GIS and Web GIS server products. The Open Source Web GIS community is also actively embracing OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) standards, including WMS (Web Map Service). WMS enables the creation of Web maps that have layers coming from multiple different remote servers/sources. In this article we present one easy to implement Web GIS server solution that is based on the Open Source University of Minnesota (UMN) MapServer. By following the accompanying step-by-step tutorial instructions, interested readers running mainstream Microsoft® Windows machines and with no prior technical experience in Web GIS or Internet map servers will be able to publish their own health maps on the Web and add to those maps additional layers retrieved from remote WMS servers. The 'digital Asia' and 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami experiences in using free Open Source Web GIS software are also briefly described. PMID:16420699

GIS Services, Visualization Products, and Interoperability at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldwin, R.; Ansari, S.; Reid, G.; Lott, N.; Del Greco, S.

2007-12-01

The main goal in developing and deploying Geographic Information System (GIS) services at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) is to provide users with simple access to data archives while integrating new and informative climate products. Several systems at NCDC provide a variety of climatic data in GIS formats and/or map viewers. The Online GIS Map Services provide users with data discovery options which flow into detailed product selection maps, which may be queried using standard "region finder" tools or gazetteer (geographical dictionary search) functions. Each tabbed selection offers steps to help users progress through the systems. A series of additional base map layers or data types have been added to provide companion information. New map services include: Severe Weather Data Inventory, Local Climatological Data, Divisional Data, Global Summary of the Day, and Normals/Extremes products. THREDDS Data Server technology is utilized to provide access to gridded multidimensional datasets such as Model, Satellite and Radar. This access allows users to download data as a gridded NetCDF file, which is readable by ArcGIS. In addition, users may subset the data for a specific geographic region, time period, height range or variable prior to download. The NCDC Weather Radar Toolkit (WRT) is a client tool which accesses Weather Surveillance Radar 1988 Doppler (WSR-88D) data locally or remotely from the NCDC archive, NOAA FTP server or any URL or THREDDS Data Server. The WRT Viewer provides tools for custom data overlays, Web Map Service backgrounds, animations and basic filtering. The export of images and movies is provided in multiple formats. The WRT Data Exporter allows for data export in both vector polygon (Shapefile, Well-Known Text) and raster (GeoTIFF, ESRI Grid, VTK, NetCDF, GrADS) formats. As more users become accustom to GIS, questions of better, cheaper, faster access soon follow. Expanding use and availability can best be accomplished through standards which promote interoperability. Our GIS related products provide Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) compliant Web Map Services (WMS), Web Feature Services (WFS), Web Coverage Services (WCS) and Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata as a complement to the map viewers. KML/KMZ data files (soon to be compliant OGC specifications) also provide access.

Enhancement of a Virtual Geology Field Guide of Georgia Initiative Using Gigapan© and ArcGIS Online's Story Map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mobasher, K.; Turk, H. J.; Witherspoon, W.; Tate, L.; Hoynes, J.

2015-12-01

A GIS geology geodatabase of Georgia was developed using ArcGIS 10.2. The geodatabase for each physiographic provinces of Georgia contains fields designed to store information regarding geologic features. Using ArcGIS online, the virtual field guide is created which provides an interactive learning experience for students to allow in real time photography, description, mapping and sharing their observations with the instructor and peers. Gigapan© facilitates visualizing geologic features at different scales with high resolutions and in their larger surrounding context. The classroom applications of the Gigapan© are limitless when teaching students the entire range of geologic structures from showcasing crystalline structures of minerals to understanding the geological processes responsible for formation of an entire mountain range. The addition of the Story Map enhances the virtual experience when you want to present a geo-located story point narrative featuring images or videos. The virtual field component and supplementary Gigapan© imagery coupled with Story Map added significantly to the detailed realism of virtual field guide further allowing students to more fully understand geological concepts at various scales. These technologies peaked students interest and facilitated their learning and preparation to function more effectively in the geosciences by developing better observations and new skills. These technologies facilitated increased student engagement in the geosciences by sharing, enhancing and transferring lecture information to actual field knowledge and experiences. This enhanced interactive learning experience not only begins to allow students to understand and recognize geologic features in the field but also increased their collaboration, enthusiasm and interest in the discipline. The increased interest and collaboration occurred as students assisted in populating a geologic geodatabase of Georgia.

An integrated WebGIS framework for volunteered geographic information and social media in soil and water conservation.

PubMed

Werts, Joshua D; Mikhailova, Elena A; Post, Christopher J; Sharp, Julia L

2012-04-01

Volunteered geographic information and social networking in a WebGIS has the potential to increase public participation in soil and water conservation, promote environmental awareness and change, and provide timely data that may be otherwise unavailable to policymakers in soil and water conservation management. The objectives of this study were: (1) to develop a framework for combining current technologies, computing advances, data sources, and social media; and (2) develop and test an online web mapping interface. The mapping interface integrates Microsoft Silverlight, Bing Maps, ArcGIS Server, Google Picasa Web Albums Data API, RSS, Google Analytics, and Facebook to create a rich user experience. The website allows the public to upload photos and attributes of their own subdivisions or sites they have identified and explore other submissions. The website was made available to the public in early February 2011 at http://www.AbandonedDevelopments.com and evaluated for its potential long-term success in a pilot study.

An Integrated WebGIS Framework for Volunteered Geographic Information and Social Media in Soil and Water Conservation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werts, Joshua D.; Mikhailova, Elena A.; Post, Christopher J.; Sharp, Julia L.

2012-04-01

Volunteered geographic information and social networking in a WebGIS has the potential to increase public participation in soil and water conservation, promote environmental awareness and change, and provide timely data that may be otherwise unavailable to policymakers in soil and water conservation management. The objectives of this study were: (1) to develop a framework for combining current technologies, computing advances, data sources, and social media; and (2) develop and test an online web mapping interface. The mapping interface integrates Microsoft Silverlight, Bing Maps, ArcGIS Server, Google Picasa Web Albums Data API, RSS, Google Analytics, and Facebook to create a rich user experience. The website allows the public to upload photos and attributes of their own subdivisions or sites they have identified and explore other submissions. The website was made available to the public in early February 2011 at http://www.AbandonedDevelopments.com and evaluated for its potential long-term success in a pilot study.

Modelling of light pollution in suburban areas using remotely sensed imagery and GIS.

PubMed

Chalkias, C; Petrakis, M; Psiloglou, B; Lianou, M

2006-04-01

This paper describes a methodology for modelling light pollution using geographical information systems (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) technology. The proposed approach attempts to address the issue of environmental assessment in sensitive suburban areas. The modern way of life in developing countries is conductive to environmental degradation in urban and suburban areas. One specific parameter for this degradation is light pollution due to intense artificial night lighting. This paper aims to assess this parameter for the Athens metropolitan area, using modern analytical and data capturing technologies. For this purpose, night-time satellite images and analogue maps have been used in order to create the spatial database of the GIS for the study area. Using GIS advanced analytical functionality, visibility analysis was implemented. The outputs for this analysis are a series of maps reflecting direct and indirect light pollution around the city of Athens. Direct light pollution corresponds to optical contact with artificial night light sources, while indirect light pollution corresponds to optical contact with the sky glow above the city. Additionally, the assessment of light pollution in different periods allows for dynamic evaluation of the phenomenon. The case study demonstrates high levels of light pollution in Athens suburban areas and its increase over the last decade.

Graduate Ethics Curricula for Future Geospatial Technology Professionals (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wright, D. J.; Dibiase, D.; Harvey, F.; Solem, M.

2009-12-01

Professionalism in today's rapidly-growing, multidisciplinary geographic information science field (e.g., geographic information systems or GIS, remote sensing, cartography, quantitative spatial analysis), now involves a commitment to ethical practice as informed by a more sophisticated understanding of the ethical implications of geographic technologies. The lack of privacy introduced by mobile mapping devices, the use of GIS for military and surveillance purposes, the appropriate use of data collected using these technologies for policy decisions (especially for conservation and sustainability) and general consequences of inequities that arise through biased access to geospatial tools and derived data all continue to be challenging issues and topics of deep concern for many. Students and professionals working with GIS and related technologies should develop a sound grasp of these issues and a thorough comprehension of the concerns impacting their use and development in today's world. However, while most people agree that ethics matters for GIS, we often have difficulty putting ethical issues into practice. An ongoing project supported by NSF seeks to bridge this gap by providing a sound basis for future ethical consideration of a variety of issues. A model seminar curriculum is under development by a team of geographic information science and technology (GIS&T) researchers and professional ethicists, along with protocols for course evaluations. In the curricula students first investigate the nature of professions in general and the characteristics of a GIS&T profession in particular. They hone moral reasoning skills through methodical analyses of case studies in relation to various GIS Code of Ethics and Rules of Conduct. They learn to unveil the "moral ecologies" of a profession through actual interviews with real practitioners in the field. Assignments thus far include readings, class discussions, practitioner interviews, and preparations of original case studies. Curricula thus far are freely available via gisprofessionalethics.org.

Teaching Thousands with Cloud-based GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gould, Michael; DiBiase, David; Beale, Linda

2016-04-01

Teaching Thousands with Cloud-based GIS Educators often draw a distinction between "teaching about GIS" and "teaching with GIS." Teaching about GIS involves helping students learn what GIS is, what it does, and how it works. On the other hand, teaching with GIS involves using the technology as a means to achieve education objectives in the sciences, social sciences, professional disciplines like engineering and planning, and even the humanities. The same distinction applies to CyberGIS. Understandably, early efforts to develop CyberGIS curricula and educational resources tend to be concerned primarily with CyberGIS itself. However, if CyberGIS becomes as functional, usable and scalable as it aspires to be, teaching with CyberGIS has the potential to enable large and diverse global audiences to perform spatial analysis using hosted data, mapping and analysis services all running in the cloud. Early examples of teaching tens of thousands of students across the globe with cloud-based GIS include the massive open online courses (MOOCs) offered by Penn State University and others, as well as the series of MOOCs more recently developed and offered by Esri. In each case, ArcGIS Online was used to help students achieve educational objectives in subjects like business, geodesign, geospatial intelligence, and spatial analysis, as well as mapping. Feedback from the more than 100,000 total student participants to date, as well as from the educators and staff who supported these offerings, suggest that online education with cloud-based GIS is scalable to very large audiences. Lessons learned from the course design, development, and delivery of these early examples may be useful in informing the continuing development of CyberGIS education. While MOOCs may have passed the peak of their "hype cycle" in higher education, the phenomenon they revealed persists: namely, a global mass market of educated young adults who turn to free online education to expand their horizons. The ability of CyberGIS to attract and effectively serve this market may be one measure of its success.

Story Maps as an Effective Social Medium for Data Synthesis, Communication, and Dissemination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wright, D. J.; Verrill, A.; Artz, M.; Deming, R.

2014-12-01

The story map is a new medium for sharing not only data, but also photos, videos, sounds, and maps, as a way to tell a specific and compelling story by way of that content. It is emerging as a popular and effective social media too. The user may employ some fairly sophisticated cartographic functionality without advanced training in cartography or GIS. Story maps are essentially web map applications built from web maps, which in turn are built from web-accessible data (including OGC WMS, WFS). This paper will emphasize the approaches and technologies of web-based GIS to tell "stories" about important connections among scientists, resource managers, and policy makers focused on oceans and coasts within the US; and how combining the new medium of "intelligent Web maps" with text, multimedia content, and intuitive user experiences has a great potential to synthesize the data, and it primary interpretative message in order to inform, educate, and inspire about a wide variety of ocean science and policy issues.

Participatory GIS for Soil Conservation in Phewa Watershed of Nepal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bhandari, K. P.

2012-07-01

Participatory Geographic Information Systems (PGIS) can integrate participatory methodologies with geo-spatial technologies for the representation of characteristic of particular place. Over the last decade, researchers use this method to integrate the local knowledge of community within a GIS and Society conceptual framework. Participatory GIS are tailored to answer specific geographic questions at the local level and their modes of implementation vary considerably across space, ranging from field-based, qualitative approaches to more complex web-based applications. These broad ranges of techniques, PGIS are becoming an effective methodology for incorporating community local knowledge into complex spatial decision-making processes. The objective of this study is to reduce the soil erosion by formulating the general rule for the soil conservation by participation of the stakeholders. The poster was prepared by satellite image, topographic map and Arc GIS software including the local knowledge. The data were collected from the focus group discussion and the individual questionnaire for incorporate the local knowledge and use it to find the risk map on the basis of economic, social and manageable physical factors for the sensitivity analysis. The soil erosion risk map is prepared by the physical factors Rainfall-runoff erosivity, Soil erodibility, Slope length, Slope steepness, Cover-management, Conservation practice using RUSLE model. After the comparison and discussion among stakeholders, researcher and export group, and the soil erosion risk map showed that socioeconomic, social and manageable physical factors management can reduce the soil erosion. The study showed that the preparation of the poster GIS map and implement this in the watershed area could reduce the soil erosion in the study area compared to the existing national policy.

Utilizing mobile technology in GIS education: A case study of using iPad and iBooks in fieldwork and location based exercises

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chuang, Yi-Ting

The advancement of mobile computing technology has provided diverse way for education. Combination of mobile devices and GIS tools has become a trend in many geospatial technology applications (i.e., Google Maps application on smartphones). This research aims to develop an iBook prototype (a GIS textbook) for GIS education on Apple iPads and to evaluate the effectiveness of adopting the GIS iBook in classes and fieldwork exercises. We conducted the evaluation tests in two GIS courses (GEOG104 and GEOG381) in Fall 2014 at San Diego State University. There are two main research questions in this study: (1) How to assess and evaluate the effectiveness of location-based learning exercises (from iBook) and fieldwork exercises for first-time GIS students? (2) What were major technical challenges and opportunities to utilize mobile device and mobile technology in GIS education? The procedures of developing and evaluating the prototype of the GIS iBook include creating two new chapters (chapter three: Wander the World through Remote Sensing Data and chapter four: Internet and Mobile GIS), interviewing five educators from high schools and community colleges, and improving the contents of the GIS iBook after the interview. There were 31 students who tested the GIS iBook and did a fieldwork exercise with iPads. The 31 students were required to finish five questionnaires after the exercise to express their user experiences and thoughts about the GIS iBook. Based on the result of questionnaires, most students preferred to take GIS classes with the free GIS iBook and thought fieldwork exercise can help their learning. The students also performed better in knowledge oriented survey after reading the GIS iBook. This research also adopts the SWOT analysis method to evaluate the prototype of the GIS iBook. The result of the SWOT analysis indicates that utilizing mobile device in GIS education does have a great potential value in enhancing student's understanding. The strengths of utilizing mobile device in GIS education include portability, easy update contents and abundant free development resources, while the weaknesses include distracting multimedia widgets, lack of Internet access, and security issues. The opportunities of SWOT analysis include financial plan for iPads and lack of competitors, while the threats include higher price and incompatibility of iBooks on other tablet computers. The major limitations and key challenges are limited survey time, small sample size, and technical difficulties of developing the GIS iBook.

GIS as a vital tool for Environmental Impact Assessment and Mitigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gharehbaghi, Koorosh; Scott-Young, Christina

2018-03-01

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a course of action which provides information to various stakeholders such as planners and relevant authorities about the planned development and its subsequent effects of the environment and the immediate ambiances. Furthermore, the EIA and mitigation are the inclusive process of collecting, analyzing information and the determination of the application for development or construction approval, which could be accessible by the concerned communities and organizations. Although the set regulations of EIA and mitigation vary from jurisdictions, they are, however, very precise and need to be integrated with the specific geographical data. In addition, the Geographical Information System (GIS) is a software intended to encapsulate and present all types of physical, biological, environmental, ecological and geological information. Conversely, GIS is the integration of statistical analysis and information technology, and can also be further broken down into two different categories of; Topological Modelling and Map overlay. To ensure that the EIA and mitigation are receptive the GIS will provide the decisive apparatus. Using GIS not only improves the overall EIA and mitigation process, but also provides valuable mapping strategies, including holistic environmental system approach. Accordingly, the main objective of this paper is to discuss the importance of the GIS and Environmental Data integration progression, to further enhance the overall EIA and Mitigation processes.

Tank Information System (tis): a Case Study in Migrating Web Mapping Application from Flex to Dojo for Arcgis Server and then to Open Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pulsani, B. R.

2017-11-01

Tank Information System is a web application which provides comprehensive information about minor irrigation tanks of Telangana State. As part of the program, a web mapping application using Flex and ArcGIS server was developed to make the data available to the public. In course of time as Flex be-came outdated, a migration of the client interface to the latest JavaScript based technologies was carried out. Initially, the Flex based application was migrated to ArcGIS JavaScript API using Dojo Toolkit. Both the client applications used published services from ArcGIS server. To check the migration pattern from proprietary to open source, the JavaScript based ArcGIS application was later migrated to OpenLayers and Dojo Toolkit which used published service from GeoServer. The migration pattern noticed in the study especially emphasizes upon the use of Dojo Toolkit and PostgreSQL database for ArcGIS server so that migration to open source could be performed effortlessly. The current ap-plication provides a case in study which could assist organizations in migrating their proprietary based ArcGIS web applications to open source. Furthermore, the study reveals cost benefits of adopting open source against commercial software's.

SSE-GIS v1.03 Web Mapping Application Now Available

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2018-03-16

SSE-GIS v1.03 Web Mapping Application Now Available Wednesday, July 6, 2016 ... you haven’t already noticed the link to the new SSE-GIS web application on the SSE homepage entitled “GIS Web Mapping Applications and Services”, we invite you to visit the site. ...

Web Mapping for Promoting Interaction and Collaboration in Community Land Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Veenendaal, B.; Dhliwayo, M.

2013-10-01

There is an inherent advantage of geographic information Systems (GIS) and mapping in facilitating dialogue between experts and non-experts during land use plan development. Combining visual mapping information and effective user interaction can result in considerable benefits for developing countries like Botswana. Although the adoption of information and communication technologies has lagged behind that for developed countries, initiatives by the Botswana government in providing suitable information infrastructures, including internet and web based communications, are enabling multiple users to interact and collaborate in community land planning. A web mapping application was developed for the Maun Development Plan (MDP) in the Okavango Delta region in Botswana. It was designed according to requirements of land planners and managers and implemented using ArcGIS Viewer for Flex. Land planners and managers from two organisations in Maun involved in the development of the MDP were asked to evaluate the web mapping tools. This paper describes the results of implementation and some preliminary results of the web mapping evaluation.

Understanding the use of geographical information systems (GIS) in health informatics research: A review.

PubMed

Shaw, Nicola; McGuire, Suzanne

2017-06-23

The purpose of this literature review is to understand geographical information systems (GIS) and how they can be applied to public health informatics, medical informatics, and epidemiology. Relevant papers that reflected the use of geographical information systems (GIS) in health research were identified from four academic databases: Academic Search Complete, BioMed Central, PubMed Central, and Scholars Portal, as well as Google Scholar. The search strategy used was to identify articles with "geographic information systems", "GIS", "public health", "medical informatics", "epidemiology", and "health geography" as main subject headings or text words in titles and abstracts. Papers published between 1997 and 2014 were considered and a total of 39 articles were included to inform the authors on the use of GIS technologies in health informatics research. The main applications of GIS in health informatics and epidemiology include disease surveillance, health risk analysis, health access and planning, and community health profiling. GIS technologies can significantly improve quality and efficiency in health research as substantial connections can be made between a population's health and their geographical location. Gains in health informatics can be made when GIS are applied through research, however, improvements need to occur in the quantity and quality of data input for these systems to ensure better geographical health maps are used so that proper conclusions between public health and environmental factors may be made.

Design and Implementation of High-Performance GIS Dynamic Objects Rendering Engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhong, Y.; Wang, S.; Li, R.; Yun, W.; Song, G.

2017-12-01

Spatio-temporal dynamic visualization is more vivid than static visualization. It important to use dynamic visualization techniques to reveal the variation process and trend vividly and comprehensively for the geographical phenomenon. To deal with challenges caused by dynamic visualization of both 2D and 3D spatial dynamic targets, especially for different spatial data types require high-performance GIS dynamic objects rendering engine. The main approach for improving the rendering engine with vast dynamic targets relies on key technologies of high-performance GIS, including memory computing, parallel computing, GPU computing and high-performance algorisms. In this study, high-performance GIS dynamic objects rendering engine is designed and implemented for solving the problem based on hybrid accelerative techniques. The high-performance GIS rendering engine contains GPU computing, OpenGL technology, and high-performance algorism with the advantage of 64-bit memory computing. It processes 2D, 3D dynamic target data efficiently and runs smoothly with vast dynamic target data. The prototype system of high-performance GIS dynamic objects rendering engine is developed based SuperMap GIS iObjects. The experiments are designed for large-scale spatial data visualization, the results showed that the high-performance GIS dynamic objects rendering engine have the advantage of high performance. Rendering two-dimensional and three-dimensional dynamic objects achieve 20 times faster on GPU than on CPU.

Assessment of sand encroachment in Kuwait using GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-Helal, Anwar B.; Al-Awadhi, Jasem M.

2006-04-01

Assessment of sand encroachment in Kuwait using Geographical Information System (GIS) technology has been formulated as a Multi-Criteria Decision Making problem. The Delphi method and Analytical Hierarchy Process were adopted as evaluating techniques, in which experts’ judgments were analyzed for objectively estimating and weighting control factors. Seven triggering factors, depicted in the form of maps, were identified and ordered according to their priority. These factors are (1) wind energy; (2) surface sediment; (3) vegetation density; (4) land use; (5) drainage density; (6) topographic change and (7) vegetation type. The factor maps were digitized, converted to raster data and overlaid to determine their possible spatial relationships. Applying a susceptibility model, a map of sand encroachment susceptibility in Kuwait was developed. The map showed that the areas of very high and high sand encroachment susceptibility are located within the main corridor of sand pathway that coincides with the northwesterly dominant wind direction.

First Prototype of a Web Map Interface for ESA's Planetary Science Archive (PSA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manaud, N.; Gonzalez, J.

2014-04-01

We present a first prototype of a Web Map Interface that will serve as a proof of concept and design for ESA's future fully web-based Planetary Science Archive (PSA) User Interface. The PSA is ESA's planetary science archiving authority and central repository for all scientific and engineering data returned by ESA's Solar System missions [1]. All data are compliant with NASA's Planetary Data System (PDS) Standards and are accessible through several interfaces [2]: in addition to serving all public data via FTP and the Planetary Data Access Protocol (PDAP), a Java-based User Interface provides advanced search, preview, download, notification and delivery-basket functionality. It allows the user to query and visualise instrument observations footprints using a map-based interface (currently only available for Mars Express HRSC and OMEGA instruments). During the last decade, the planetary mapping science community has increasingly been adopting Geographic Information System (GIS) tools and standards, originally developed for and used in Earth science. There is an ongoing effort to produce and share cartographic products through Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Services, or as standalone data sets, so that they can be readily used in existing GIS applications [3,4,5]. Previous studies conducted at ESAC [6,7] have helped identify the needs of Planetary GIS users, and define key areas of improvement for the future Web PSA User Interface. Its web map interface shall will provide access to the full geospatial content of the PSA, including (1) observation geometry footprints of all remote sensing instruments, and (2) all georeferenced cartographic products, such as HRSC map-projected data or OMEGA global maps from Mars Express. It shall aim to provide a rich user experience for search and visualisation of this content using modern and interactive web mapping technology. A comprehensive set of built-in context maps from external sources, such as MOLA topography, TES infrared maps or planetary surface nomenclature, provided in both simple cylindrical and polar stereographic projections, shall enhance this user experience. In addition, users should be able to import and export data in commonly used open- GIS formats. It is also intended to serve all PSA geospatial data through OGC-compliant Web Services so that they can be captured, visualised and analysed directly from GIS software, along with data from other sources. The following figure illustrates how the PSA web map interface and services shall fit in a typical Planetary GIS user working environment.

Use of GIS Mapping as a Public Health Tool—From Cholera to Cancer

PubMed Central

Musa, George J.; Chiang, Po-Huang; Sylk, Tyler; Bavley, Rachel; Keating, William; Lakew, Bereketab; Tsou, Hui-Chen; Hoven, Christina W.

2013-01-01

The field of medical geographic information systems (Medical GIS) has become extremely useful in understanding the bigger picture of public health. The discipline holds a substantial capacity to understand not only differences, but also similarities in population health all over the world. The main goal of marrying the disciplines of medical geography, public health and informatics is to understand how countless health issues impact populations, and the trends by which these populations are affected. From the 1990s to today, this practical approach has become a valued and progressive system in analyzing medical and epidemiological phenomena ranging from cholera to cancer. The instruments supporting this field include geographic information systems (GIS), disease surveillance, big data, and analytical approaches like the Geographical Analysis Machine (GAM), Dynamic Continuous Area Space Time Analysis (DYCAST), cellular automata, agent-based modeling, spatial statistics and self-organizing maps. The positive effects on disease mapping have proven to be tremendous as these instruments continue to have a great impact on the mission to improve worldwide health care. While traditional uses of GIS in public health are static and lacking real-time components, implementing a space-time animation in these instruments will be monumental as technology and data continue to grow. PMID:25114567

Use of GIS Mapping as a Public Health Tool-From Cholera to Cancer.

PubMed

Musa, George J; Chiang, Po-Huang; Sylk, Tyler; Bavley, Rachel; Keating, William; Lakew, Bereketab; Tsou, Hui-Chen; Hoven, Christina W

2013-01-01

The field of medical geographic information systems (Medical GIS) has become extremely useful in understanding the bigger picture of public health. The discipline holds a substantial capacity to understand not only differences, but also similarities in population health all over the world. The main goal of marrying the disciplines of medical geography, public health and informatics is to understand how countless health issues impact populations, and the trends by which these populations are affected. From the 1990s to today, this practical approach has become a valued and progressive system in analyzing medical and epidemiological phenomena ranging from cholera to cancer. The instruments supporting this field include geographic information systems (GIS), disease surveillance, big data, and analytical approaches like the Geographical Analysis Machine (GAM), Dynamic Continuous Area Space Time Analysis (DYCAST), cellular automata, agent-based modeling, spatial statistics and self-organizing maps. The positive effects on disease mapping have proven to be tremendous as these instruments continue to have a great impact on the mission to improve worldwide health care. While traditional uses of GIS in public health are static and lacking real-time components, implementing a space-time animation in these instruments will be monumental as technology and data continue to grow.

DIY-style GIS service in mobile navigation system integrated with web and wireless GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Yongbin; Wu, Jianping; Fan, Caiyou; Wang, Minqi; Dai, Sheng

2007-06-01

Mobile navigation system based on handheld device can not only provide basic GIS services, but also enable these GIS services to be provided without location limit, to be more instantly interacted between users and devices. However, we still see that most navigation systems have common defects on user experience like limited map format, few map resources, and unable location share. To overcome the above defects, we propose DIY-style GIS service which provide users a more free software environment and allow uses to customize their GIS services. These services include defining geographical coordinate system of maps which helps to hugely enlarge the map source, editing vector feature, related property information and hotlink images, customizing covered area of download map via General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), and sharing users' location information via SMS (Short Message Service) which establishes the communication between users who needs GIS services. The paper introduces the integration of web and wireless GIS service in a mobile navigation system and presents an implementation sample of a DIY-Style GIS service in a mobile navigation system.

Mapping and Analysis of Forest and Land Fire Potential Using Geospatial Technology and Mathematical Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suliman, M. D. H.; Mahmud, M.; Reba, M. N. M.; S, L. W.

2014-02-01

Forest and land fire can cause negative implications for forest ecosystems, biodiversity, air quality and soil structure. However, the implications involved can be minimized through effective disaster management system. Effective disaster management mechanisms can be developed through appropriate early warning system as well as an efficient delivery system. This study tried to focus on two aspects, namely by mapping the potential of forest fire and land as well as the delivery of information to users through WebGIS application. Geospatial technology and mathematical modeling used in this study for identifying, classifying and mapping the potential area for burning. Mathematical models used is the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), while Geospatial technologies involved include remote sensing, Geographic Information System (GIS) and digital field data collection. The entire Selangor state was chosen as our study area based on a number of cases have been reported over the last two decades. AHP modeling to assess the comparison between the three main criteria of fuel, topography and human factors design. Contributions of experts directly involved in forest fire fighting operations and land comprising officials from the Fire and Rescue Department Malaysia also evaluated in this model. The study found that about 32.83 square kilometers of the total area of Selangor state are the extreme potential for fire. Extreme potential areas identified are in Bestari Jaya and Kuala Langat High Ulu. Continuity of information and terrestrial forest fire potential was displayed in WebGIS applications on the internet. Display information through WebGIS applications is a better approach to help the decision-making process at a high level of confidence and approximate real conditions. Agencies involved in disaster management such as Jawatankuasa Pengurusan Dan Bantuan Bencana (JPBB) of District, State and the National under the National Security Division and the Fire and Rescue Department Malaysia can use the end result of this study in preparation for the land and forest fires in the future.

Learning Benefits of Using 2D versus 3D Maps: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Experiment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niedomysl, Thomas; Ellder, Erik; Larsson, Anders; Thelin, Mikael; Jansund, Bodil

2013-01-01

The traditional important role of maps used for educational purposes has gained further potential with recent advances in GIS technology. But beyond specific courses in cartography this potential seems little realized in geography teaching. This article investigates the extent to which any learning benefits may be derived from the use of such…

Digital Humanities: Envisioning a Collaborative Tool for Mapping, Evaluating, and Sharing Reconstructed Colonial American Parcel Maps

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruvane, Mary Brent

2012-01-01

The use of GIS technology for the humanities has opened up new avenues for visually exploring and asking questions of our nation's historical record. The potential to harness new knowledge with tools designed to capture and preserve geographic links to the artifacts of our past is within our grasp. This research explores the common information…

Spatial problem-solving strategies of middle school students: Wayfinding with geographic information systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wigglesworth, John C.

2000-06-01

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a powerful computer software package that emphasizes the use of maps and the management of spatially referenced environmental data archived in a systems data base. Professional applications of GIS have been in place since the 1980's, but only recently has GIS gained significant attention in the K--12 classroom. Students using GIS are able to manipulate and query data in order to solve all manners of spatial problems. Very few studies have examined how this technological innovation can support classroom learning. In particular, there has been little research on how experience in using the software correlates with a child's spatial cognition and his/her ability to understand spatial relationships. This study investigates the strategies used by middle school students to solve a wayfinding (route-finding) problem using the ArcView GIS software. The research design combined an individual background questionnaire, results from the Group Assessment of Logical Thinking (GALT) test, and analysis of reflective think-aloud sessions to define the characteristics of the strategies students' used to solve this particular class of spatial problem. Three uniquely different spatial problem solving strategies were identified. Visual/Concrete Wayfinders used a highly visual strategy; Logical/Abstract Wayfinders used GIS software tools to apply a more analytical and systematic approach; Transitional Wayfinders used an approach that showed evidence of one that was shifting from a visual strategy to one that was more analytical. The triangulation of data sources indicates that this progression of wayfinding strategy can be correlated both to Piagetian stages of logical thought and to experience with the use of maps. These findings suggest that GIS teachers must be aware that their students' performance will lie on a continuum that is based on cognitive development, spatial ability, and prior experience with maps. To be most effective, GIS teaching strategies and curriculum development should also represent a progression that correlates to the learners' current skills and experience.

Guidelines for the creation and management of geographic data bases within a GIS environment, version 1.0

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Durfee, R.C.; Land, M.L.; McCord, R.A.

1994-07-01

A Geographic Information System (GIS) provides the ability to manage and analyze all types of geographic and environmental information. It performs these functions by providing the tools necessary to capture, access, analyze, and display spatially referenced information in graphic and tabular form. Typical data elements that can be visualized in a map might include roads, buildings, topography, streams, waste areas, monitoring wells, groundwater measurements, soil sample results, landcover, and demography. The intent of this document is to provide data management and quality assurance (QA) guidelines that will aid implementors and users of GIS technology and data bases. These guidelines shouldmore » be useful in all, phases of GIS activities, including the following: (1) project planning, (2) data collection and generation, (3) data maintenance and management, (4) QA and standards, (5) project implementation, (6) spatial analysis and data interpretation, (7) data transformation and exchange, and (8) output and reporting. The daily use of desktop GIS technologies within Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc. (Energy Systems), is a relatively new phenomenon, but usage is increasing rapidly. Large volumes of GIS-related data are now being collected and analyzed for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR) and its facilities. It is very important to establish and follow good data management practices for GIS. In the absence of such practices, data-related problems will overwhelm users for many years. In comparison with traditional data processing and software life-cycle management, there is limited information on GIS QA techniques, data standards and structures, configuration control, and documentation practices. This lack of information partially results from the newness of the technology and the complexity of spatial information and geographic analysis techniques as compared to typical tabular data management.« less

Design and Implementation WebGIS for Improving the Quality of Exploration Decisions at Sin-Quyen Copper Mine, Northern Vietnam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Quang Truong, Xuan; Luan Truong, Xuan; Nguyen, Tuan Anh; Nguyen, Dinh Tuan; Cong Nguyen, Chi

2017-12-01

The objective of this study is to design and implement a WebGIS Decision Support System (WDSS) for reducing uncertainty and supporting to improve the quality of exploration decisions in the Sin-Quyen copper mine, northern Vietnam. The main distinctive feature of the Sin-Quyen deposit is an unusual composition of ores. Computer and software applied to the exploration problem have had a significant impact on the exploration process over the past 25 years, but up until now, no online system has been undertaken. The system was completely built on open source technology and the Open Geospatial Consortium Web Services (OWS). The input data includes remote sensing (RS), Geographical Information System (GIS) and data from drillhole explorations, the drillhole exploration data sets were designed as a geodatabase and stored in PostgreSQL. The WDSS must be able to processed exploration data and support users to access 2-dimensional (2D) or 3-dimensional (3D) cross-sections and map of boreholles exploration data and drill holes. The interface was designed in order to interact with based maps (e.g., Digital Elevation Model, Google Map, OpenStreetMap) and thematic maps (e.g., land use and land cover, administrative map, drillholes exploration map), and to provide GIS functions (such as creating a new map, updating an existing map, querying and statistical charts). In addition, the system provides geological cross-sections of ore bodies based on Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW), nearest neighbour interpolation and Kriging methods (e.g., Simple Kriging, Ordinary Kriging, Indicator Kriging and CoKriging). The results based on data available indicate that the best estimation method (of 23 borehole exploration data sets) for estimating geological cross-sections of ore bodies in Sin-Quyen copper mine is Ordinary Kriging. The WDSS could provide useful information to improve drilling efficiency in mineral exploration and for management decision making.

Site Map | USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

Science.gov Websites

Acknowledgments & Citation Copyright Map & Data Downloads Map Downloads Geography (GIS) Downloads Multi ; Citation Copyright Map & Data Downloads Map Downloads Geography (GIS) Downloads Multi-ZIP Code Finder

Use of Mapping and Spatial and Space-Time Modeling Approaches in Operational Control of Aedes aegypti and Dengue

PubMed Central

Eisen, Lars; Lozano-Fuentes, Saul

2009-01-01

The aims of this review paper are to 1) provide an overview of how mapping and spatial and space-time modeling approaches have been used to date to visualize and analyze mosquito vector and epidemiologic data for dengue; and 2) discuss the potential for these approaches to be included as routine activities in operational vector and dengue control programs. Geographical information system (GIS) software are becoming more user-friendly and now are complemented by free mapping software that provide access to satellite imagery and basic feature-making tools and have the capacity to generate static maps as well as dynamic time-series maps. Our challenge is now to move beyond the research arena by transferring mapping and GIS technologies and spatial statistical analysis techniques in user-friendly packages to operational vector and dengue control programs. This will enable control programs to, for example, generate risk maps for exposure to dengue virus, develop Priority Area Classifications for vector control, and explore socioeconomic associations with dengue risk. PMID:19399163

A review of geographic information system and remote sensing with applications to the epidemiology and control of schistosomiasis in China.

PubMed

Yang, Guo-Jing; Vounatsou, Penelope; Zhou, Xiao-Nong; Utzinger, Jürg; Tanner, Marcel

2005-01-01

Geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) technologies offer new opportunities for rapid assessment of endemic areas, provision of reliable estimates of populations at risk, prediction of disease distributions in areas that lack baseline data and are difficult to access, and guidance of intervention strategies, so that scarce resources can be allocated in a cost-effective manner. Here, we focus on the epidemiology and control of schistosomiasis in China and review GIS and RS applications to date. These include mapping prevalence and intensity data of Schistosoma japonicum at a large scale, and identifying and predicting suitable habitats for Oncomelania hupensis, the intermediate host snail of S. japonicum, at a small scale. Other prominent applications have been the prediction of infection risk due to ecological transformations, particularly those induced by floods and water resource developments, and the potential impact of climate change. We also discuss the limitations of the previous work, and outline potential new applications of GIS and RS techniques, namely quantitative GIS, WebGIS, and utilization of emerging satellite information, as they hold promise to further enhance infection risk mapping and disease prediction. Finally, we stress current research needs to overcome some of the remaining challenges of GIS and RS applications for schistosomiasis, so that further and sustained progress can be made to control this disease in China and elsewhere.

Integrated technologies for solid waste bin monitoring system.

PubMed

Arebey, Maher; Hannan, M A; Basri, Hassan; Begum, R A; Abdullah, Huda

2011-06-01

The integration of communication technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID), global positioning system (GPS), general packet radio system (GPRS), and geographic information system (GIS) with a camera are constructed for solid waste monitoring system. The aim is to improve the way of responding to customer's inquiry and emergency cases and estimate the solid waste amount without any involvement of the truck driver. The proposed system consists of RFID tag mounted on the bin, RFID reader as in truck, GPRS/GSM as web server, and GIS as map server, database server, and control server. The tracking devices mounted in the trucks collect location information in real time via the GPS. This information is transferred continuously through GPRS to a central database. The users are able to view the current location of each truck in the collection stage via a web-based application and thereby manage the fleet. The trucks positions and trash bin information are displayed on a digital map, which is made available by a map server. Thus, the solid waste of the bin and the truck are being monitored using the developed system.

The Application of Remote Sensing Data to GIS Studies of Land Use, Land Cover, and Vegetation Mapping in the State of Hawaii

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hogan, Christine A.

1996-01-01

A land cover-vegetation map with a base classification system for remote sensing use in a tropical island environment was produced of the island of Hawaii for the State of Hawaii to evaluate whether or not useful land cover information can be derived from Landsat TM data. In addition, an island-wide change detection mosaic combining a previously created 1977 MSS land classification with the TM-based classification was produced. In order to reach the goal of transferring remote sensing technology to State of Hawaii personnel, a pilot project was conducted while training State of Hawaii personnel in remote sensing technology and classification systems. Spectral characteristics of young island land cover types were compared to determine if there are differences in vegetation types on lava, vegetation types on soils, and barren lava from soils, and if they can be detected remotely, based on differences in pigments detecting plant physiognomic type, health, stress at senescence, heat, moisture level, and biomass. Geographic information systems (GIS) and global positioning systems (GPS) were used to assist in image rectification and classification. GIS was also used to produce large-format color output maps. An interactive GIS program was written to provide on-line access to scanned photos taken at field sites. The pilot project found Landsat TM to be a credible source of land cover information for geologically young islands, and TM data bands are effective in detecting spectral characteristics of different land cover types through remote sensing. Large agriculture field patterns were resolved and mapped successfully from wildland vegetation, but small agriculture field patterns were not. Additional processing was required to work with the four TM scenes from two separate orbits which span three years, including El Nino and drought dates. Results of the project emphasized the need for further land cover and land use processing and research. Change in vegetation composition was noted in the change detection image.

Using Web-Based GIS in Introductory Human Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Songer, Lynn C.

2010-01-01

Advocates for using a geographic information system (GIS) in education assert that GIS improves student learning. However, studies to clarify the relationship between learning and using GIS are still needed. This study examines the effects of using Web-based GIS maps in place of paper maps on students' geography content knowledge and motivation…

Teaching with a GIS using existing grade 7--12 curricula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Stephen Castlebury

As Geographic Information Systems (GIS) become less expensive and easier to use, the demand for individuals knowledgeable of this technology increases. Associated with this is the current and future necessity of a public who understands the wide range of technical proficiencies needed for accurate GIS mapping. On a nationwide basis, GIS education in K--12 schools is rare. In the few instances where a school teaches students about these technologies, it is usually led by a single teacher and is not taught on a school-wide basis. This situation exists despite some research indicating that a classroom GIS might enhance the learning of students. Two primary barriers to teacher use and acceptance of a classroom GIS have been identified. First, most teachers lack any training in the use of a GIS. Secondly, there is conflict over focusing upon teaching about the use of a GIS or teaching with a GIS. Beginning in August of 1996 and concluding in August of 1998, nine separate GIS education programs were conducted for a variety of youths and adult educator audiences. Observations of participant's interactions with the GIS program ArcView would lead to the development of a demonstration curriculum and GIS application. To overcome institutional and educational barriers to youth GIS education, a curriculum partly adapted from existing materials and partly created from original materials was developed in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). A corresponding GIS application was developed to teach about a GIS while instructing with a GIS. The curriculum was distributed for use on CD-ROM and called Georom. The hypertext curriculum provided lessons and exercises that addressed National Science Education Standards and was accessed using an Internet web browser. The curriculum included World Wide Web links to Internet sites with more information about specific topics. Modifications were made to ArcView's Graphical User Interface (GUI) that maintained the general appearance of its standard GUI, but increased its functionality for classroom use. It was observed that the availability and premise of the hypertext curriculum and GIS application increased school administrator acceptance of classroom GIS education. However, the curriculum and GIS application is still not a completely acceptable alternative to quality inservice education on GIS for many teachers.

Automatic recognition of seismic intensity based on RS and GIS: a case study in Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake of China.

PubMed

Zhang, Qiuwen; Zhang, Yan; Yang, Xiaohong; Su, Bin

2014-01-01

In recent years, earthquakes have frequently occurred all over the world, which caused huge casualties and economic losses. It is very necessary and urgent to obtain the seismic intensity map timely so as to master the distribution of the disaster and provide supports for quick earthquake relief. Compared with traditional methods of drawing seismic intensity map, which require many investigations in the field of earthquake area or are too dependent on the empirical formulas, spatial information technologies such as Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) can provide fast and economical way to automatically recognize the seismic intensity. With the integrated application of RS and GIS, this paper proposes a RS/GIS-based approach for automatic recognition of seismic intensity, in which RS is used to retrieve and extract the information on damages caused by earthquake, and GIS is applied to manage and display the data of seismic intensity. The case study in Wenchuan Ms8.0 earthquake in China shows that the information on seismic intensity can be automatically extracted from remotely sensed images as quickly as possible after earthquake occurrence, and the Digital Intensity Model (DIM) can be used to visually query and display the distribution of seismic intensity.

SSE Announcement - New GIS Web Mapping Applications and Services

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2016-06-30

Dear SSE Users, We are excited to announce SSE-GIS v1.0.3 is now available! If you haven’t already noticed the link to the new SSE-GIS web application on the SSE homepage entitled “GIS Web Mapping ...

Agroforestry: mapping the way with GIS

Treesearch

Gary Bentrup; Tim Leininger

2002-01-01

Agroforestry combines agriculture and forestry technologies to create diverse, profitable, and sustainable land-use systems (Rietveld, 1995). Agroforestry practices include alley cropping, forest farming, riparian forest buffers, silvopasture, and windbreaks-each of which meets environmental, social, and economic needs (Gold et al., 2000). Environmentally, agroforestry...

An Overview of the GIS Weasel

USGS Publications Warehouse

Viger, Roland J.

2008-01-01

This fact sheet provides a high-level description of the GIS Weasel, a software system designed to aid users in preparing spatial information as input to lumped and distributed parameter environmental simulation models (ESMs). The GIS Weasel provides geographic information system (GIS) tools to help create maps of geographic features relevant to the application of a user?s ESM and to generate parameters from those maps. The operation of the GIS Weasel does not require a user to be a GIS expert, only that a user has an understanding of the spatial information requirements of the model. The GIS Weasel software system provides a GIS-based graphical user interface (GUI), C programming language executables, and general utility scripts. The software will run on any computing platform where ArcInfo Workstation (version 8.1 or later) and the GRID extension are accessible. The user controls the GIS Weasel by interacting with menus, maps, and tables.

Geoscience information integration and visualization research of Shandong Province, China based on ArcGIS engine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Mingzhu; Gao, Zhiqiang; Ning, Jicai

2014-10-01

To improve the access efficiency of geoscience data, efficient data model and storage solutions should be used. Geoscience data is usually classified by format or coordinate system in existing storage solutions. When data is large, it is not conducive to search the geographic features. In this study, a geographical information integration system of Shandong province, China was developed based on the technology of ArcGIS Engine, .NET, and SQL Server. It uses Geodatabase spatial data model and ArcSDE to organize and store spatial and attribute data and establishes geoscience database of Shangdong. Seven function modules were designed: map browse, database and subject management, layer control, map query, spatial analysis and map symbolization. The system's characteristics of can be browsed and managed by geoscience subjects make the system convenient for geographic researchers and decision-making departments to use the data.

Creating affordable Internet map server applications for regional scale applications.

PubMed

Lembo, Arthur J; Wagenet, Linda P; Schusler, Tania; DeGloria, Stephen D

2007-12-01

This paper presents an overview and process for developing an Internet Map Server (IMS) application for a local volunteer watershed group using an Internal Internet Map Server (IIMS) strategy. The paper illustrates that modern GIS architectures utilizing an internal Internet map server coupled with a spatial SQL command language allow for rapid development of IMS applications. The implication of this approach means that powerful IMS applications can be rapidly and affordably developed for volunteer organizations that lack significant funds or a full time information technology staff.

On-line applications of numerical models in the Black Sea GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhuk, E.; Khaliulin, A.; Zodiatis, G.; Nikolaidis, A.; Nikolaidis, M.; Stylianou, Stavros

2017-09-01

The Black Sea Geographical Information System (GIS) is developed based on cutting edge information technologies, and provides automated data processing and visualization on-line. Mapserver is used as a mapping service; the data are stored in MySQL DBMS; PHP and Python modules are utilized for data access, processing, and exchange. New numerical models can be incorporated in the GIS environment as individual software modules, compiled for a server-based operational system, providing interaction with the GIS. A common interface allows setting the input parameters; then the model performs the calculation of the output data in specifically predefined files and format. The calculation results are then passed to the GIS for visualization. Initially, a test scenario of integration of a numerical model into the GIS was performed, using software, developed to describe a two-dimensional tsunami propagation in variable basin depth, based on a linear long surface wave model which is legitimate for more than 5 m depth. Furthermore, the well established oil spill and trajectory 3-D model MEDSLIK (http://www.oceanography.ucy.ac.cy/medslik/) was integrated into the GIS with more advanced GIS functionality and capabilities. MEDSLIK is able to forecast and hind cast the trajectories of oil pollution and floating objects, by using meteo-ocean data and the state of oil spill. The MEDSLIK module interface allows a user to enter all the necessary oil spill parameters, i.e. date and time, rate of spill or spill volume, forecasting time, coordinates, oil spill type, currents, wind, and waves, as well as the specification of the output parameters. The entered data are passed on to MEDSLIK; then the oil pollution characteristics are calculated for pre-defined time steps. The results of the forecast or hind cast are then visualized upon a map.

Deciphering groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrain using geospatial technology.

PubMed

Dar, Imran A; Sankar, K; Dar, Mithas A

2011-02-01

Remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) has become one of the leading tools in the field of groundwater research, which helps in assessing, monitoring, and conserving groundwater resources. This paper mainly deals with the integrated approach of remote sensing and GIS to delineate groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrain. Digitized vector maps pertaining to chosen parameters, viz. geomorphology, geology, land use/land cover, lineament, relief, and drainage, were converted to raster data using 23 m×23 m grid cell size. Moreover, curvature of the study area was also considered while manipulating the spatial data. The raster maps of these parameters were assigned to their respective theme weight and class weights. The individual theme weight was multiplied by its respective class weight and then all the raster thematic layers were aggregated in a linear combination equation in Arc Map GIS Raster Calculator module. Moreover, the weighted layers were statistically modeled to get the areal extent of groundwater prospects with respect to each thematic layer. The final result depicts the favorable prospective zones in the study area and can be helpful in better planning and management of groundwater resources especially in hard rock terrains.

An Open Source Software and Web-GIS Based Platform for Airborne SAR Remote Sensing Data Management, Distribution and Sharing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Changyong, Dou; Huadong, Guo; Chunming, Han; Ming, Liu

2014-03-01

With more and more Earth observation data available to the community, how to manage and sharing these valuable remote sensing datasets is becoming an urgent issue to be solved. The web based Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology provides a convenient way for the users in different locations to share and make use of the same dataset. In order to efficiently use the airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) remote sensing data acquired in the Airborne Remote Sensing Center of the Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth (RADI), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), a Web-GIS based platform for airborne SAR data management, distribution and sharing was designed and developed. The major features of the system include map based navigation search interface, full resolution imagery shown overlaid the map, and all the software adopted in the platform are Open Source Software (OSS). The functions of the platform include browsing the imagery on the map navigation based interface, ordering and downloading data online, image dataset and user management, etc. At present, the system is under testing in RADI and will come to regular operation soon.

Visualizing petroleum systems with a combination of GIS and multimedia technologies: An example from the West Siberia Basin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walsh, D.B.; Grace, J.D.

1996-12-31

Petroleum system studies provide an ideal application for the combination of Geographic Information System (GIS) and multimedia technologies. GIS technology is used to build and maintain the spatial and tabular data within the study region. Spatial data may comprise the zones of active source rocks and potential reservoir facies. Similarly, tabular data include the attendant source rock parameters (e.g. pyroloysis results, organic carbon content) and field-level exploration and production histories for the basin. Once the spatial and tabular data base has been constructed, GIS technology is useful in finding favorable exploration trends, such as zones of high organic content, maturemore » source rocks in positions adjacent to sealed, high porosity reservoir facies. Multimedia technology provides powerful visualization tools for petroleum system studies. The components of petroleum system development, most importantly generation, migration and trap development typically span periods of tens to hundreds of millions of years. The ability to animate spatial data over time provides an insightful alternative for studying the development of processes which are only captured in {open_quotes}snapshots{close_quotes} by static maps. New multimedia-authoring software provides this temporal dimension. The ability to record this data on CD-ROMs and allow user- interactivity further leverages the combination of spatial data bases, tabular data bases and time-based animations. The example used for this study was the Bazhenov-Neocomian petroleum system of West Siberia.« less

Visualizing petroleum systems with a combination of GIS and multimedia technologies: An example from the West Siberia Basin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Walsh, D.B.; Grace, J.D.

1996-01-01

Petroleum system studies provide an ideal application for the combination of Geographic Information System (GIS) and multimedia technologies. GIS technology is used to build and maintain the spatial and tabular data within the study region. Spatial data may comprise the zones of active source rocks and potential reservoir facies. Similarly, tabular data include the attendant source rock parameters (e.g. pyroloysis results, organic carbon content) and field-level exploration and production histories for the basin. Once the spatial and tabular data base has been constructed, GIS technology is useful in finding favorable exploration trends, such as zones of high organic content, maturemore » source rocks in positions adjacent to sealed, high porosity reservoir facies. Multimedia technology provides powerful visualization tools for petroleum system studies. The components of petroleum system development, most importantly generation, migration and trap development typically span periods of tens to hundreds of millions of years. The ability to animate spatial data over time provides an insightful alternative for studying the development of processes which are only captured in [open quotes]snapshots[close quotes] by static maps. New multimedia-authoring software provides this temporal dimension. The ability to record this data on CD-ROMs and allow user- interactivity further leverages the combination of spatial data bases, tabular data bases and time-based animations. The example used for this study was the Bazhenov-Neocomian petroleum system of West Siberia.« less

Assessment of underground water potential zones using modern geomatics technologies in Jhansi district, Uttar Pradesh, India.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandey, N. K.; Shukla, A. K.; Shukla, S.; Pandey, M.

2014-11-01

Ground water is a distinguished component of the hydrologic cycle. Surface water storage and ground water withdrawal are traditional engineering approaches which will continue to be followed in the future. The uncertainty about the occurrence, distribution and quality aspect of the ground water and the energy requirement for its withdrawal impose restriction on exploitation of ground water. The main objective of the study is assessment of underground water potential zones of Jhansi city and surrounding area, by preparing underground water potential zone map using Geographical Information System (GIS), remote sensing, and validation by underground water inventory mapping using GPS field survey done along the parts of National Highway 25 and 26 and some state highway passing through the study area. Study area covers an area of 1401 km2 and its perimeter is approximate 425 km. For this study Landsat TM (0.76-0.90 um) band data were acquired from GLCF website. Sensor spatial resolution is 30 m. Satellite image has become a standard tool aiding in the study of underground water. Extraction of different thematic layers like Land Use Land Cover (LULC), settlement, etc. can be done through unsupervised classification. The modern geometics technologies viz. remote sensing and GIS are used to produce the map that classifies the groundwater potential zone to a number of qualitative zone such as very high, high, moderate, low or very low. Thematic maps are prepared by visual interpretation of Survey of India topo-sheets and linearly enhanced Landsat TM satellite image on 1 : 50,000 scale using AutoCAD, ArcGIS 10.1 and ERDAS 11 software packages.

Geological mapping goes 3-D in response to societal needs

USGS Publications Warehouse

Thorleifson, H.; Berg, R.C.; Russell, H.A.J.

2010-01-01

The transition to 3-D mapping has been made possible by technological advances in digital cartography, GIS, data storage, analysis, and visualization. Despite various challenges, technological advancements facilitated a gradual transition from 2-D maps to 2.5-D draped maps to 3-D geological mapping, supported by digital spatial and relational databases that can be interrogated horizontally or vertically and viewed interactively. Challenges associated with data collection, human resources, and information management are daunting due to their resource and training requirements. The exchange of strategies at the workshops has highlighted the use of basin analysis to develop a process-based predictive knowledge framework that facilitates data integration. Three-dimensional geological information meets a public demand that fills in the blanks left by conventional 2-D mapping. Two-dimensional mapping will, however, remain the standard method for extensive areas of complex geology, particularly where deformed igneous and metamorphic rocks defy attempts at 3-D depiction.

Using GIS Mapping to Assess Foster Care: A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rine, Christine M.; Morales, Jocelyn; Vanyukevych, Anastasiya B.; Durand, Emily G.; Schroeder, Kurt A.

2012-01-01

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become widely used outside of traditional mapping applications, expanding their reach to social service organizations. The purpose of this article is to describe and explore the benefits of GIS mapping in identifying strengths and needs of foster care systems in rural settings through graphically assessing…

Geospatial Data Science Research | Geospatial Data Science | NREL

Science.gov Websites

, maps, and tools that determine which energy technologies are viable solutions across the globe ) to manipulate, manage, and analyze multidisciplinary geographic and energy data. The GIS includes of applications and visualizations. Analysis Renewable Energy Technical Potential Renewable Energy

Municipal GIS incorporates database from pipe lines

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1994-05-01

League City, a coastal area community of about 35,000 population in Galveston County, Texas, has developed an impressive municipal GIS program. The system represents a textbook example of what a municipal GIS can represent and produce. In 1987, the city engineer was authorized to begin developing the area information system. City survey personnel used state-of-the-art Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to establish a first order monumentation program with a grid of 78 monuments set over 54 sq mi. Street, subdivision, survey, utilities, taxing criteria, hydrology, topography, environmental and other concerns were layered into the municipal GIS database program. Today, areamore » developers submit all layout, design, and land use plan data to the city in digital format without hard copy. Multi-color maps with high resolution graphics can be quickly generate for cross-referenced queries sensitive to political, environmental, engineering, taxing, and/or utility capacity jurisdictions. The design of both the GIS and data base system are described.« less

Sea-Floor Images and Data from Multibeam Surveys in San Francisco Bay, Southern California, Hawaii, the Gulf of Mexico, and Lake Tahoe, California-Nevada

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dartnell, Peter; Gardiner, James V.

1999-01-01

Accurate base maps are a prerequisite for any geologic study, regardless of the objectives. Land-based studies commonly utilize aerial photographs, USGS 7.5-minute quadrangle maps, and satellite images as base maps. Until now, studies that involve the ocean floor have been at a disadvantage due to an almost complete lack of accurate marine base maps. Many base maps of the sea floor have been constructed over the past century but with a wide range in navigational and depth accuracies. Only in the past few years has marine surveying technology advanced far enough to produce navigational accuracy of 1 meter and depth resolutions of 50 centimeters. The Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project of the U.S. Geological Survey's, Western Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Menlo Park, California, U.S.A., in cooperation with the Ocean Mapping Group, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, Canada, is using this new technology to systematically map the ocean floor and lakes. This type of marine surveying, called multibeam surveying, collects high-resolution bathymetric and backscatter data that can be used for various base maps, GIS coverages, and scientific visualization methods. This is an interactive CD-ROM that contains images, movies, and data of all the surveys the Pacific Seafloor Mapping Project has completed up to January 1999. The images and movies on this CD-ROM, such as shaded relief of the bathymetry, backscatter, oblique views, 3-D views, and QuickTime movies help the viewer to visualize the multibeam data. This CD-ROM also contains ARC/INFO export (.e00) files and full-resolution TIFF images of all the survey sites that can be downloaded and used in many GIS packages.

Spatial Information in local society's cultural conservation and research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, J.-J.; Liao, H.-M.; Fan, I.-C.

2015-09-01

Center for Geographic Information Science, Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences,Academia Sinica (GIS center), Coordinate short-, medium-, and long-term operations of multidisciplinary researches focusing on related topics in the sciences and humanities. Based on the requirements of multi-disciplinary research applications, sustain collection and construction of sustaining and unifying spatial base data and knowledge and building of spatial data infrastructure. Since the 1990s, GIS center build geographic information platform: "Time and space infrastructure of Chinese civilization" (Chinese Civilizationin Time and Space, CCTS) and "Taiwan History and Culture Map" (Taiwan History and Culture in Time and Space, THCTS) . the goal of both system is constructing an integrated GIS-based application infrastructure on the spatial extent of China and Taiwan, in the timeframe of Chinese and Taiwanese history, and with the contents of Chinese and Taiwanese civilization. Base on THCTS, we began to build Cultural Resources GIS(CRGIS, http://crgis.rchss.sinica.edu.tw) in 2006, to collect temples, historic Monuments, historic buildings, old trees, wind lions god and other cultural resource in Taiwan, and provide a platform for the volunteers to make for all types of tangible, intangible cultural resources, add, edit, organize and query data via Content Management System(CMS) . CRGIS collected aggregated 13,000 temples, 4,900 churches. On this basis, draw a variety of religious beliefs map-multiple times Temple distributions, different main god distributions, church distribution. Such as Mazu maps, Multiple times temple distributions map (before 1823, 1823-1895,1895-1949,1949-2015 years) at Taijiang inner sea areas in Tainan. In Taiwan, there is a religious ritual through folk activities for a period ranging from one day to several days, passing specific geospatial range and passes through some temples or houses. Such an important folk activity somewhat similar to Western parade, called " raojing " , the main spirit is passing through of these ranges in the process, to reach the people within bless range, many scholars and academic experts's folk research are dependent on such spatial information. 2012, GIS center applied WebGIS and GPS to gather raojing activities spatial information in cooperation with multi-units, aggregated seven sessions, 22 days, 442 temples had pass through . The atlas also published named "Atlas of the 2012 Religious Processions in the Tainan Region" in 2014. we also applied national cultural resources data form relevant government authorities, through the metadata design and data processing(geocoding), established cultural geospatial and thematic information ,such as 800 monuments, 1,100 historic buildings and 4,300 old trees data. In recent years, based on CRGIS technology and operational concepts, different domain experts or local culture-ahistory research worker/team had to cooperate with us to establish local or thematic material and cultural resources. As in collaboration with local culture-history research worker in Kinmen County in 2012, build Kinmen intangible cultural assets - Wind Lion God ,set metadata and build 122 wind lion god `s attribute data and maps through field survey, it is worth mention such fieldwork data integrity is more than the official registration data form Kinmen National Park, the number of is wind lion god more than 40; in 2013,we were in cooperation with academic experts to establish property data and map of the theatre during the Japanese colonial era in Taiwan, a total of 170 theatres ; we were in cooperation with Japanese scholars, used his 44 detaile field survey data of sugar refineries during the Japanese colonial era in Taiwan ,to produce a sugar refineries distribution map and extend to a thematic web(http://map.net.tw/) [The Cultural Heritage Maps of Taiwan Suger Factories in a Century]site according to CRGIS independent cultural concept. Deployment and operation of the CRGIS, the meaning is not only build the thematic GIS system ,but also contain these concepts: Open Data, Wikipedia ,Public Participation, and we provide an interactive platform with culture resource data and geospatial technology. In addition to providing these reference material for local culture education, local cultural recognition, but to further cooperate with scholars, academic experts , local culture-history research worker / team, accumulated rich record of the past, research results, through the spatial database planning, data processing(ex. geocoding), field survey, geospatial materials overlapping, such as nesting geospatial technology to compile the cultural information and value-added applications.

Development and management of a geographic information system for health research in a developing-country setting: a case study from Bangladesh.

PubMed

Sugimoto, Jonathan D; Labrique, Alain B; Ahmad, Salahuddin; Rashid, Mahbubur; Klemm, Rolf D W; Christian, Parul; West, Keith P

2007-12-01

In the last decade, geographic information systems (GIS) have become accessible to researchers in developing countries, yet guidance remains sparse for developing a GIS. Drawing on experience in developing a GIS for a large community trial in rural Bangladesh, six stages for constructing, maintaining, and using a GIS for health research purposes were outlined. The system contains 0.25 million landmarks, including 150,000 houses, in an area of 435 sq km with over 650,000 people. Assuming access to reasonably accurate paper boundary maps of the intended working area and the absence of pre-existing digital local-area maps, the six stages are: to (a) digitize and update existing paper maps, (b) join the digitized maps into a large-area map, (c) reference this large-area map to a geographic coordinate system, (d) insert location landmarks of interest, (e) maintain the GIS, and (f) link it to other research databases. These basic steps can produce a household-level, updated, scaleable GIS that can both enhance field efficiency and support epidemiologic analyses of demographic patterns, diseases, and health outcomes.

Development and Management of a Geographic Information System for Health Research in a Developing-country Setting: A Case Study from Bangladesh

PubMed Central

Sugimoto, Jonathan D.; Labrique, Alain B.; Salahuddin, Ahmad; Rashid, Mahbubur; Klemm, Rolf D.W.; Christian, Parul; West, Keith P.

2007-01-01

In the last decade, geographic information systems (GIS) have become accessible to researchers in developing countries, yet guidance remains sparse for developing a GIS. Drawing on experience in developing a GIS for a large community trial in rural Bangladesh, six stages for constructing, maintaining, and using a GIS for health research purposes were outlined. The system contains 0.25 million landmarks, including 150,000 houses, in an area of 435 sq km with over 650,000 people. Assuming access to reasonably accurate paper boundary maps of the intended working area and the absence of pre-existing digital local-area maps, the six stages are: to (a) digitize and update existing paper maps, (b) join the digitized maps into a large-area map, (c) reference this large-area map to a geographic coordinate system, (d) insert location landmarks of interest, (e) maintain the GIS, and (f) link it to other research databases. These basic steps can produce a household-level, updated, scaleable GIS that can both enhance field efficiency and support epidemiologic analyses of demographic patterns, diseases, and health outcomes. PMID:18402187

Martian Lobate Debris Aprons: Compilation of a New GIS-Based Global Map

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chuang, F. C.; Crown, D. A.; Berman, D. C.; Skinner, J. A.; Tanaka, K. L.

2011-03-01

Compilation of a new GIS-based global map of lobate debris aprons is underway to better understand the global inventory of these relict ice-rich features. We welcome contributions of GIS-based data from other investigators.

Digital geomorphological landslide hazard mapping of the Alpago area, Italy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Westen, Cees J.; Soeters, Rob; Sijmons, Koert

Large-scale geomorphological maps of mountainous areas are traditionally made using complex symbol-based legends. They can serve as excellent "geomorphological databases", from which an experienced geomorphologist can extract a large amount of information for hazard mapping. However, these maps are not designed to be used in combination with a GIS, due to their complex cartographic structure. In this paper, two methods are presented for digital geomorphological mapping at large scales using GIS and digital cartographic software. The methods are applied to an area with a complex geomorphological setting on the Borsoia catchment, located in the Alpago region, near Belluno in the Italian Alps. The GIS database set-up is presented with an overview of the data layers that have been generated and how they are interrelated. The GIS database was also converted into a paper map, using a digital cartographic package. The resulting largescale geomorphological hazard map is attached. The resulting GIS database and cartographic product can be used to analyse the hazard type and hazard degree for each polygon, and to find the reasons for the hazard classification.

Route Advising in a Dynamic Environment - A High-Tech Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Firdhous, M. F. M.; Basnayake, D. L.; Kodithuwakku, K. H. L.; Hatthalla, N. K.; Charlin, N. W.; Bandara, P. M. R. I. K.

Finding the optimal path between two locations in the Colombo city is not a straight forward task, because of the complex road system and the huge traffic jams etc. This paper presents a system to find the optimal driving direction between two locations within the Colombo city, considering road rules (one way, two ways or fully closed in both directions). The system contains three main modules - core module, web module and mobile module, additionally there are two user interfaces one for normal users and the other for administrative users. Both these interfaces can be accessed using a web browser or a GPRS enabled mobile phone. The system is developed based on the Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. GIS is considered as the best option to integrate hardware, software, and data for capturing, managing, analyzing, and displaying all forms of geographically referenced information. The core of the system is MapServer (MS4W) used along with the other supporting technologies such as PostGIS, PostgreSQL, pgRouting, ASP.NET and C#.

a Map Mash-Up Application: Investigation the Temporal Effects of Climate Change on Salt Lake Basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kirtiloglu, O. S.; Orhan, O.; Ekercin, S.

2016-06-01

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate climate change effects that have been occurred at the beginning of the twenty-first century at the Konya Closed Basin (KCB) located in the semi-arid central Anatolian region of Turkey and particularly in Salt Lake region where many major wetlands located in and situated in KCB and to share the analysis results online in a Web Geographical Information System (GIS) environment. 71 Landsat 5-TM, 7-ETM+ and 8-OLI images and meteorological data obtained from 10 meteorological stations have been used at the scope of this work. 56 of Landsat images have been used for extraction of Salt Lake surface area through multi-temporal Landsat imagery collected from 2000 to 2014 in Salt lake basin. 15 of Landsat images have been used to make thematic maps of Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in KCB, and 10 meteorological stations data has been used to generate the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI), which was used in drought studies. For the purpose of visualizing and sharing the results, a Web GIS-like environment has been established by using Google Maps and its useful data storage and manipulating product Fusion Tables which are all Google's free of charge Web service elements. The infrastructure of web application includes HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, Google Maps API V3 and Google Fusion Tables API technologies. These technologies make it possible to make effective "Map Mash-Ups" involving an embedded Google Map in a Web page, storing the spatial or tabular data in Fusion Tables and add this data as a map layer on embedded map. The analysing process and map mash-up application have been discussed in detail as the main sections of this paper.

The GIS weasel - An interface for the development of spatial information in modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Viger, R.J.; Markstrom, S.M.; Leavesley, G.H.; ,

2005-01-01

The GIS Weasel is a map and Graphical User Interface (GUI) driven tool that has been developed as an aid to modelers in the delineation, characterization of geographic features, and their parameterization for use in distributed or lumped parameter physical process models. The interface does not require user expertise in geographic information systems (GIS). The user does need knowledge of how the model will use the output from the GIS Weasel. The GIS Weasel uses Workstation ArcInfo and its the Grid extension. The GIS Weasel will run on all platforms that Workstation ArcInfo runs (i.e. numerous flavors of Unix and Microsoft Windows).The GIS Weasel requires an input ArcInfo grid of some topographical description of the Area of Interest (AOI). This is normally a digital elevation model, but can be the surface of a ground water table or any other data that flow direction can be resolved from. The user may define the AOI as a custom drainage area based on an interactively specified watershed outlet point, or use a previously created map. The user is then able to use any combination of the GIS Weasel's tool set to create one or more maps for depicting different kinds of geographic features. Once the spatial feature maps have been prepared, then the GIS Weasel s many parameterization routines can be used to create descriptions of each element in each of the user s created maps. Over 200 parameterization routines currently exist, generating information about shape, area, and topological association with other features of the same or different maps, as well many types of information based on ancillary data layers such as soil and vegetation properties. These tools easily integrate other similarly formatted data sets.

Section 4. The GIS Weasel User's Manual

USGS Publications Warehouse

Viger, Roland J.; Leavesley, George H.

2007-01-01

INTRODUCTION The GIS Weasel was designed to aid in the preparation of spatial information for input to lumped and distributed parameter hydrologic or other environmental models. The GIS Weasel provides geographic information system (GIS) tools to help create maps of geographic features relevant to a user's model and to generate parameters from those maps. The operation of the GIS Weasel does not require the user to be a GIS expert, only that the user have an understanding of the spatial information requirements of the environmental simulation model being used. The GIS Weasel software system uses a GIS-based graphical user interface (GUI), the C programming language, and external scripting languages. The software will run on any computing platform where ArcInfo Workstation (version 8.0.2 or later) and the GRID extension are accessible. The user controls the processing of the GIS Weasel by interacting with menus, maps, and tables. The purpose of this document is to describe the operation of the software. This document is not intended to describe the usage of this software in support of any particular environmental simulation model. Such guides are published separately.

How Conoco uses GIS technology to map geology, geography through time

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Foley, D.C.; Ghazi, T.Y.

1995-05-08

Conoco Inc.`s Advanced Exploration Organization (AEO) is in the business of studying foreign sedimentary basins from a regional perspective to evaluate their potential for petroleum exploration. Recently the company decided to focus some of the AEO`s resources on developing a global ranking system for those areas of the world where hydrocarbons might occur. AEO obtained software from the University of Texas, Arlington that rotates continents or portions of continents through time. Using the software, company geoscientists have created a series of maps, known as a PaleoAtlas, that depicts the geography and selected geological features for different periods in Phanerozoic time.more » In addition, the AEO has developed a software package based on ARC/INFO (ESRI Inc., Redlands, Calif.), a commercial GIS platform, to manage, integrate, and analyze those time-slice maps. Entitled PaleoAtlas Geographic Evaluation system (Pages), this software also sequences portions of the maps in a montage effect that geoscientists can use to study the geological evolution of petroleum source rocks. The paper describes the AEO project and its software.« less

Potential Natural Vegetation of the Mississippi Alluvial Valley: Boeuf-Tensas Basin, Arkansas, Field Atlas

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-09-01

under the auspices of federal and state research programs or in conjunction with Corps of Engineers project planning efforts. In the process , a...in the field effort and assembled and processed the original project GIS data. Malcolm Williamson (Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies...further improve drainage. ERDC/EL TR-12-28 5 3 Using the PNV map as a model for restoration The PNV mapping process was conceived as a way to

Application of Geographic Information System (GIS) in Drug Logistics Management Information System (LMIS) at District Level in Malawi: Opportunities and Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chikumba, Patrick Albert

District pharmacies in Malawi use a computerised IS to monitor the flow of products from a warehouse to health service delivery points and determine understocked or overstocked products at each health facility. Currently, all drug LMIS reports are in tabular forms. The GIS can help health and drug logistics officers to get additional spatial information, such as locations of health facilities and environmental factors, to the existing reports in the form of maps. This paper highlights some opportunities and challenges of applying the GIS in the drug LMIS, which basically involve technologies, organisation, and standards and data integration. It has been found that this idea is very good but it requires much effort, commitment and resources for successful implementation.

Assessment of Geographic Information Systems and Data Confidentiality Guidelines in STD Programs.

PubMed

Bissette, Jennifer M; Stover, Jeffrey A; Newman, Lori M; Delcher, Philip Christopher; Bernstein, Kyle T; Matthews, Lindsey

2009-01-01

Advancements in technology, such as geographic information systems (GIS), expand sexually transmitted disease (STD) program capacity for data analysis and visualization, and introduce additional confidentiality considerations. We developed a survey to examine GIS use among STD programs and to better understand existing data confidentiality practices. A Web-based survey of eight to 22 questions, depending on program-specific GIS capacity, was e-mailed to all STD program directors through the National Coalition of STD Directors in November 2004. Survey responses were accepted until April 15, 2005. Eighty-five percent of the 65 currently funded STD programs responded to the survey. Of those, 58% used GIS and 54% used geocoding. STD programs that did not use GIS (42%) identified lack of training and insufficient staff as primary barriers. Mapping, spatial analyses, and targeting program interventions were the main reasons for geocoding data. Nineteen of the 25 programs that responded to questions related to statistical disclosure rules employed a numerator rule, and 56% of those used a variation of the "Rule of 5." Of the 28 programs that responded to questions pertaining to confidentiality guidelines, 82% addressed confidentiality of GIS data informally. Survey findings showed the increasing use of GIS and highlighted the struggles STD programs face in employing GIS and protecting confidentiality. Guidance related to data confidentiality and additional access to GIS software and training could assist programs in optimizing use of spatial data.

Focused sunlight factor of forest fire danger assessment using Web-GIS and RS technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baranovskiy, Nikolay V.; Sherstnyov, Vladislav S.; Yankovich, Elena P.; Engel, Marina V.; Belov, Vladimir V.

2016-08-01

Timiryazevskiy forestry of Tomsk region (Siberia, Russia) is a study area elaborated in current research. Forest fire danger assessment is based on unique technology using probabilistic criterion, statistical data on forest fires, meteorological conditions, forest sites classification and remote sensing data. MODIS products are used for estimating some meteorological conditions and current forest fire situation. Geonformation technologies are used for geospatial analysis of forest fire danger situation on controlled forested territories. GIS-engine provides opportunities to construct electronic maps with different levels of forest fire probability and support raster layer for satellite remote sensing data on current forest fires. Web-interface is used for data loading on specific web-site and for forest fire danger data representation via World Wide Web. Special web-forms provide interface for choosing of relevant input data in order to process the forest fire danger data and assess the forest fire probability.

Challenges and complications in neighborhood mapping: from neighborhood concept to operationalization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Yongxin

2016-07-01

This paper examines complications in neighborhood mapping and corresponding challenges for the GIS community, taking both a conceptual and a methodological perspective. It focuses on the social and spatial dimensions of the neighborhood concept and highlights their relationship in neighborhood mapping. Following a brief summary of neighborhood definitions, five interwoven factors are identified to be origins of neighborhood mapping difficulties: conceptual vagueness, uncertainty of various sources, GIS representation, scale, and neighborhood homogeneity or continuity. Existing neighborhood mapping methods are grouped into six categories to be assessed: perception based, physically based, inference based, preexisting, aggregated, and automated. Mapping practices in various neighborhood-related disciplines and applications are cited as examples to demonstrate how the methods work, as well as how they should be evaluated. A few mapping strategies for the improvement of neighborhood mapping are prescribed from a GIS perspective: documenting simplifications employed in the mapping procedure, addressing uncertainty sources, developing new data solutions, and integrating complementary mapping methods. Incorporation of high-resolution data and introduction of more GIS ideas and methods (such as fuzzy logic) are identified to be future opportunities.

The approach for shortest paths in fire succor based on component GIS technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Jie; Zhao, Yong; Dai, K. W.

2007-06-01

Fire safety is an important issue for the national economy and people's living. Efficiency and exactness of fire department succor directly relate to safety of peoples' lives and property. Many disadvantages of the traditional fire system have been emerged in practical applications. The preparation of pumpers is guided by wireless communication or wire communication, so its real-time and accurate performances are much poorer. The information about the reported fire, such as the position, disaster and map, et al., for alarm and command was processed by persons, which slows the reaction speed and delays the combat opportunity. In order to solve these disadvantages, it has an important role to construct a modern fire command center based on high technology. The construction of modern fire command center can realize the modernization and automation of fire command and management. It will play a great role in protecting safety of peoples' lives and property. The center can enhance battle ability and can reduce the direct and indirect loss of fire damage at most. With the development of science technology, Geographic Information System (GIS) has becoming a new information industry for hardware production, software development, data collection, space analysis and counseling. With the popularization of computers and the development of GIS, GIS has gained increasing broad applications for its strong functionality. Network analysis is one of the most important functions of GIS, and the most elementary and pivotal issue of network analysis is the calculation of shortest paths. The shortest paths are mostly applied to some emergent systems such as 119 fire alarms. These systems mainly require that the computation time of the optimal path should be 1-3 seconds. And during traveling, the next running path of the vehicles should be calculated in time. So the implement of the shortest paths must have a high efficiency. In this paper, the component GIS technology was applied to collect and record the data information (such as, the situation of this disaster, map and road status et al) of the reported fire firstly. The ant colony optimization was used to calculate the shortest path of fire succor secondly. The optimization results were sent to the pumpers, which can let pumpers choose the shortest paths intelligently and come to fire position with least time. The programming method for shortest paths is proposed in section 3. There are three parts in this section. The elementary framework of the proposed programming method is presented in part one. The systematic framework of GIS component is described in part two. The ant colony optimization employed is presented in part three. In section 4, a simple application instance was presented to demonstrate the proposed programming method. There are three parts in this section. The distributed Web application based on component GIS was described in part one. The optimization results without traffic constraint were presented in part two. The optimization results with traffic constraint were presented in part three. The contributions of this paper can be summarized as follows. (1) It proposed an effective approach for shortest paths in fire succor based on component GIS technology. This proposed approach can achieve the real-time decisions of shortest paths for fire succor. (2) It applied the ant colony optimization to implement the shortest path decision. The traffic information was considered in the shortest path decision using ant colony optimization. The final application instance suggests that the proposed approach is feasible, correct and valid.

Geodatabase model for global geologic mapping: concept and implementation in planetary sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nass, Andrea

2017-04-01

One aim of the NASA Dawn mission is to generate global geologic maps of the asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres. To accomplish this, the Dawn Science Team followed the technical recommendations for cartographic basemap production. The geological mapping campaign of Vesta was completed and published, but mapping of the dwarf planet Ceres is still ongoing. The tiling schema for the geological mapping is the same for both planetary bodies and for Ceres it is divided into two parts: four overview quadrangles (Survey Orbit, 415 m/pixel) and 15 more detailed quadrangles (High Altitude Mapping HAMO, 140 m/pixel). The first global geologic map was based on survey images (415 m/pixel). The combine 4 Survey quadrangles completed by HAMO data served as basis for generating a more detailed view of the geologic history and also for defining the chronostratigraphy and time scale of the dwarf planet. The most detailed view can be expected within the 15 mapping quadrangles based on HAMO resolution and completed by the Low Altitude Mapping (LAMO) data with 35 m/pixel. For the interpretative mapping process of each quadrangle one responsible mapper was assigned. Unifying the geological mapping of each quadrangle and bringing this together to regional and global valid statements is already a very time intensive task. However, another challenge that has to be accomplished is to consider how the 15 individual mappers can generate one homogenous GIS-based project (w.r.t. geometrical and visual character) thus produce a geologically-consistent final map. Our approach this challenge was already discussed for mapping of Vesta. To accommodate the map requirements regarding rules for data storage and database management, the computer-based GIS environment used for the interpretative mapping process must be designed in a way that it can be adjusted to the unique features of the individual investigation areas. Within this contribution the template will be presented that uses standards for digitizing, visualization, data merging and synchronization in the processes of interpretative mapping project. Following the new technological innovations within GIS software and the individual requirements for mapping Ceres, a template was developed based on the symbology and framework. The template for (GIS-base) mapping presented here directly links the generically descriptive attributes of planetary objects to the predefined and standardized symbology in one data structure. Using this template the map results are more comparable and better controllable. Furthermore, merging and synchronization of the individual maps, map projects and sheets will be far more efficient. The template can be adapted to any other planetary body and or within future discovery missions (e.g., Lucy and Psyche which was selected to explore the early solar system by NASA) for generating reusable map results.

A trial map and GIS class on junior high school with university collaboration in Yokohama, Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabe, Toshimitsu; Ohnishi, Koji

2018-05-01

On the new curriculum of high school in Japan, geography will be compulsory subject in Japan from 2022. The indexes of new high school geography as compulsory subject will be 1. Using of maps and GIS, 2. Understanding of the world and International collaboration: Life and culture, issues of world, 3. Disaster prevention and ESD: natural environment and disaster, and construction of ideal society. The instruction of the GIS will be one of the issues for social studies teachers in the new curriculum. The aim of this study is to make the utilize map and GIS education content through trial class in junior high school. Trial class was done on Tsurugamine junior high school in Yokohama city with university and Yokohama city school board collaboration. In the trial class, the teacher indicated the old and new topographical maps to students and asked them to consider the characteristics of the area and the land use change. Transparent sheets overlaying is useful this activity. Transparent usage indicated the GIS function of overlay. It is good activity for students to understand the function of GIS. After the considering land use changes, they considered the future of their town. The several unused lands are spread in this area. Students present their opinions how to develop them. The important thing to carry out map and GIS class through neighborhood area is preparation of adequate maps. For this preparation, collaboration with university geography stuffs or undergraduate students are effective.

77 FR 15369 - Mobility Fund Phase I Auction GIS Data of Potentially Eligible Census Blocks

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-03-15

....fcc.gov/auctions/901/ , are the following: Downloadable shapefile Web mapping service MapBox map tiles... GIS software allows you to add this service as a layer to your session or project. 6. MapBox map tiles are cached map tiles of the data. With this open source software approach, these image tiles can be...

National Assessment of Oil and Gas Project: Areas of Historical Oil and Gas Exploration and Production in the United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Biewick, Laura

2008-01-01

This report contains maps and associated spatial data showing historical oil and gas exploration and production in the United States. Because of the proprietary nature of many oil and gas well databases, the United States was divided into cells one-quarter square mile and the production status of all wells in a given cell was aggregated. Base-map reference data are included, using the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Map, the USGS and American Geological Institute (AGI) Global GIS, and a World Shaded Relief map service from the ESRI Geography Network. A hardcopy map was created to synthesize recorded exploration data from 1859, when the first oil well was drilled in the U.S., to 2005. In addition to the hardcopy map product, the data have been refined and made more accessible through the use of Geographic Information System (GIS) tools. The cell data are included in a GIS database constructed for spatial analysis via the USGS Internet Map Service or by importing the data into GIS software such as ArcGIS. The USGS internet map service provides a number of useful and sophisticated geoprocessing and cartographic functions via an internet browser. Also included is a video clip of U.S. oil and gas exploration and production through time.

Combining GPS, GIS, and accelerometry: methodological issues in the assessment of location and intensity of travel behaviors.

PubMed

Oliver, Melody; Badland, Hannah; Mavoa, Suzanne; Duncan, Mitch J; Duncan, Scott

2010-01-01

Global positioning systems (GPS), geographic information systems (GIS), and accelerometers are powerful tools to explain activity within a built environment, yet little integration of these tools has taken place. This study aimed to assess the feasibility of combining GPS, GIS, and accelerometry to understand transport-related physical activity (TPA) in adults. Forty adults wore an accelerometer and portable GPS unit over 7 consecutive days and completed a demographics questionnaire and 7-day travel log. Accelerometer and GPS data were extracted for commutes to/from workplace and integrated into a GIS database. GIS maps were generated to visually explore physical activity intensity, GPS speeds and routes traveled. GPS, accelerometer, and survey data were collected for 37 participants. Loss of GPS data was substantial due to a range of methodological issues, such as low battery life, signal drop out, and participant noncompliance. Nonetheless, greater travel distances and significantly higher speeds were observed for motorized trips when compared with TPA. Pragmatic issues of using GPS monitoring to understand TPA behaviors and methodological recommendations for future research were identified. Although methodologically challenging, the combination of GPS monitoring, accelerometry and GIS technologies holds promise for understanding TPA within the built environment.

ESA web mapping activities applied to Earth observation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caspar, C.; Petiteville, I.; Kohlhammer, G.; Tandurella, G.

2002-05-01

Thousands of Earth Observation satellite instrument products are generated daily, in a multitude of formats, using a variety of projection coordinate sytems. This diversity is a barrier to the development of EO multi-mission-based applications and prevents the merging of EO data with GIS data, which is requested by the user community (value-added companies, serivce providers, scientists, institutions, commercial users, and academic users). The web mapping technologies introduced in this article represent an elegant and low-technologies introduced in this article represent an elegant and low-cost solution. The extraordinary added value that is achieved may be considered a revolution in the use of EO data products.

Web GIS in practice VIII: HTML5 and the canvas element for interactive online mapping.

PubMed

Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Warren, Jeffrey; Gong, Jianya; Yue, Peng

2010-03-03

HTML5 is being developed as the next major revision of HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), the core markup language of the World Wide Web. It aims at reducing the need for proprietary, plug-in-based rich Internet application (RIA) technologies such as Adobe Flash. The canvas element is part of HTML5 and is used to draw graphics using scripting (e.g., JavaScript). This paper introduces Cartagen, an open-source, vector-based, client-side framework for rendering plug-in-free, offline-capable, interactive maps in native HTML5 on a wide range of Web browsers and mobile phones. Cartagen was developed at MIT Media Lab's Design Ecology group. Potential applications of the technology as an enabler for participatory online mapping include mapping real-time air pollution, citizen reporting, and disaster response, among many other possibilities.

Methodological aspects of a GIS-based environmental health inspection program used in the Athens 2004 Olympic and Para Olympic Games.

PubMed

Hadjichristodoulou, Christos; Soteriades, Elpidoforos S; Kolonia, Virginia; Falagas, Matthew E; Pantelopoulos, Efstathios; Panagakos, Georgios; Mouchtouri, Varvara; Kremastinou, Jeni

2005-09-02

The use of geographical information system (GIS) technologies in public health surveillance is gradually gaining momentum around the world and many applications have already been reported in the literature. In this study, GIS technology was used to help county departments of Public Health to implement environmental health surveillance for the Athens 2004 Olympic and Para Olympic Games. In order to assess the workload in each Olympic county, 19 registry forms and 17 standardized inspection forms were developed to register and inspect environmental health items requiring inspection (Hotels, restaurants, swimming pools, water supply system etc), respectively. Furthermore, related databases were created using Epi Info 2002 and a geographical information system (GIS) were used to implement an integrated Environmental Health inspection program. The project was conducted in Athens by the Olympic Planning Unit (OPU) of the National School of Public Health, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Health and Social Solidarity and the corresponding departments of Public Health in all municipalities that were scheduled to host events during the Athens 2004 Olympic and Para Olympic games. A total of 44,741 premises of environmental health interest were geocoded into GIS databases and several electronic maps were developed. Using such maps in association with specific criteria, we first identified the maximum workload required to execute environmental health inspections in all premises within the eleven Olympic County Departments of Public Health. Six different scenarios were created for each county, based on devised algorithms in order to design the most effective and realistic inspection program using the available inspectors from each municipality. Furthermore, GIS applications were used to organize the daily inspection program for the Olympic games, provide coloured displays of the inspection results and link those results with the public health surveillance of specific cases or outbreak investigation. Our computerised program exhibited significant efficiency in facilitating the prudent use of public health resources in implementing environmental health inspections in densely populated urban areas as well as in rural counties. Furthermore, the application of simple algorithms in integrating human and other resources provided tailored and cost-effective applications to different public health agencies.

The Definition of Groundwater Recharge Area Using GIS Approach -A Case Study of Choshuihsi Alluvial Fan, Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsai, JuiPin; Chen, Yu Wen; Chang, Liang Cheng; Chiang, Chun Jung; Chen, Jui Er; Chen, You Cheng

2013-04-01

Groundwater recharge areas are regions with high permeability that accept surface water more readily than other regions. If the land use/cover were changed, it would affect the groundwater recharge. Also, if this area were polluted, the contamination easily infiltrates into the groundwater system. Therefore, the goal of this study is to delineate the recharge area of Choshuihsi Alluvial Fan. This study applies 6 recharge potential scale factors, including land use/land cover, soil, drainage density, annual average rainfall, hydraulic conductivity and aquifer thickness to estimate the infiltration ability and storage capacity of study area. The fundamental data of these factors were digitized using GIS (Geographic Information System) technology and their GIS maps were created. Then each of these maps was translated to a score map ranged from 1 to 100. Moreover, these score maps are integrated as a recharge potential map using arithmetic average, and this map shows recharge potential in 5 levels, such as very poor, poor, moderate, good and excellent. The result shows that majority of "good" and "excellent" areas is located at the top of the fan. This is because the land use of top-fan is agricultural and its surface soil type is gravel and coarse. The top-fan, which is close to mountain areas, has a higher average annual rainfall than other areas. Also, the aquifer thickness of top-fan is much thicker than other areas. The percentage of the areas ranged as "good" and above is 9.63% of total area, and most areas located at top-fan. As a result, we suggest that the top-fan of study area should be protected and more field surveys are required to accurately delineate the recharge area boundary.

New Mexico Play Fairway Analysis: Particle Tracking ArcGIS Map Packages

DOE Data Explorer

Jeff Pepin

2015-11-15

These are map packages used to visualize geochemical particle-tracking analysis results in ArcGIS. It includes individual map packages for several regions of New Mexico including: Acoma, Rincon, Gila, Las Cruces, Socorro and Truth or Consequences.

Integrated use of SRS Data &GIS Technique for Monitoring Changes in Riverine Forest of Sindh, Pakistan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siddiqui, M.; Ali, Z.

Deforestation / depletion in forest area threaten the sustainability of agricultural production systems and en-danger the economy of the country. Every year extensive areas of arable agricultural and forestlands are degraded and turned into wastelands, due to natural causes or human interventions. There are several causes of deforestation, such as expansion in agricultural area, urban development, forest fires, commercial logging, illicit cutting, grazing, constructions of dams / reservoirs and barrages, com munication links, etc. Depletion in forest cover, therefore, has an important impact on socio - economic development and ecological balance. High population growth rate in Pakistan is one of the main causes for the rapid deterioration of physical environment and natural resource base. In view of this, it is felt necessary to carryout land -u s e studies focusing on strategies for mapping the past and present conditions and extent of forests and rangelands using Satellite Remote Sensing (SRS) data and GIS t echnology. The SRS and GIS technology provides a possible means of monitoring and mapping changes occurring in natural resources and the environment on a continuing basis. The riverine forests of Sindh mostly grow along the River Indus in the flood plains, spread over an area of 241,000 ha are disappearing very rapidly. Construction of dams / barrages on the upper reaches of the River Indus for hydroelectric power and irrigation works have significantly reduced the discharge of fresh water into the lower Indus basin and as a result, 100,000 acres of forests have disappeared. Furthermore, the heavy floods that occurred in 1978, 1988, 1992 and 1997, altered the course of the River Indus in many places, especially in the lower reaches, this has also damaged the riverine forests of Sindh. An integrated approach involving analysis of SRS data from 1977 to 1998 and GIS technique have been used to evaluate the geographic ex-tent and distribution of the riverine forests of Sindh and to monitor temporal changes in the forest cover between 1977 &1990 and 1990 &1998. The integrated landuse forest cover maps of riverine forest, shows temporal changes in the forest cover between 1977 &1990 and 1990 &1998, as well as in the River Indus course. The digital thematic maps based on SRS data and GIS technology can supplement existing conventional ground based sources of information for monitoring changes in forest cover on a regular basis, which can be helpful for forest resource management and planning and monitoring environmental changes.

Geographic Information System (GIS) | Virginia Department of Forestry

Science.gov Websites

relationships, making GIS a valuable tool to explore management and policy alternatives. GIS at the Virginia in combination in various VDOF applications. InFOREST can be used to map your property. Foresters can Property Inventory and Stand Mapping Riparian Buffer Tax Credit Program Management Forest Sustainability

Automation technology using Geographic Information System (GIS)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Brooks, Cynthia L.

1994-01-01

Airport Surface Movement Area is but one of the actions taken to increase the capacity and safety of existing airport facilities. The System Integration Branch (SIB) has designed an integrated system consisting of an electronic moving display in the cockpit, and includes display of taxi routes which will warn controllers and pilots of the position of other traffic and warning information automatically. Although, this system has in test simulation proven to be accurate and helpful; the initial process of obtaining an airport layout of the taxi-routes and designing each of them is a very tedious and time-consuming process. Other methods of preparing the display maps are being researched. One such method is the use of the Geographical Information System (GIS). GIS is an integrated system of computer hardware and software linking topographical, demographic and other resource data that is being referenced. The software can support many areas of work with virtually unlimited information compatibility due to the system's open architecture. GIS will allow us to work faster with increased efficiency and accuracy while providing decision making capabilities. GIS is currently being used at the Langley Research Center with other applications and has been validated as an accurate system for that task. GIS usage for our task will involve digitizing aerial photographs of the topology for each taxi-runway and identifying each position according to its specific spatial coordinates. The information currently being used can be integrated with the GIS system, due to its ability to provide a wide variety of user interfaces. Much more research and data analysis will be needed before this technique will be used, however we are hopeful this will lead to better usage of man-power and technological capabilities for the future.

Tracking the polio virus down the Congo River: a case study on the use of Google Earth™ in public health planning and mapping

PubMed Central

Kamadjeu, Raoul

2009-01-01

Background The use of GIS in public health is growing, a consequence of a rapidly evolving technology and increasing accessibility to a wider audience. Google Earth™ (GE) is becoming an important mapping infrastructure for public health. However, generating traditional public health maps for GE is still beyond the reach of most public health professionals. In this paper, we explain, through the example of polio eradication activities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, how we used GE Earth as a planning tool and we share the methods used to generate public health maps. Results The use of GE improved field operations and resulted in better dispatch of vaccination teams and allocation of resources. It also allowed the creation of maps of high quality for advocacy, training and to help understand the spatiotemporal relationship between all the entities involved in the polio outbreak and response. Conclusion GE has the potential of making mapping available to a new set of public health users in developing countries. High quality and free satellite imagery, rich features including Keyhole Markup Language or image overlay provide a flexible but yet powerful platform that set it apart from traditional GIS tools and this power is still to be fully harnessed by public health professionals. PMID:19161606

Digital Mapping Techniques '09-Workshop Proceedings, Morgantown, West Virginia, May 10-13, 2009

USGS Publications Warehouse

Soller, David R.

2011-01-01

As in the previous years' meetings, the objective was to foster informal discussion and exchange of technical information, principally in order to develop more efficient methods for digital mapping, cartography, GIS analysis, and information management. At this meeting, oral and poster presentations and special discussion sessions emphasized (1) methods for creating and publishing map products (here, "publishing" includes Web-based release); (2) field data capture software and techniques, including the use of LiDAR; (3) digital cartographic techniques; (4) migration of digital maps into ArcGIS Geodatabase format; (5) analytical GIS techniques; and (6) continued development of the National Geologic Map Database.

Participating in the Geospatial Web: Collaborative Mapping, Social Networks and Participatory GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rouse, L. Jesse; Bergeron, Susan J.; Harris, Trevor M.

In 2005, Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! released free Web mapping applications that opened up digital mapping to mainstream Internet users. Importantly, these companies also released free APIs for their platforms, allowing users to geo-locate and map their own data. These initiatives have spurred the growth of the Geospatial Web and represent spatially aware online communities and new ways of enabling communities to share information from the bottom up. This chapter explores how the emerging Geospatial Web can meet some of the fundamental needs of Participatory GIS projects to incorporate local knowledge into GIS, as well as promote public access and collaborative mapping.

Tsunami vulnerability assessment mapping for the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia using a geographical information system (GIS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Najihah, R.; Effendi, D. M.; Hairunnisa, M. A.; Masiri, K.

2014-02-01

The catastrophic Indian Ocean tsunami of 26 December 2004 raised a number of questions for scientist and politicians on how to deal with the tsunami risk and assessment in coastal regions. This paper discusses the challenges in tsunami vulnerability assessment and presents the result of tsunami disaster mapping and vulnerability assessment study for West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The spatial analysis was carried out using Geographical Information System (GIS) technology to demarcate spatially the tsunami affected village's boundary and suitable disaster management program can be quickly and easily developed. In combination with other thematic maps such as road maps, rail maps, school maps, and topographic map sheets it was possible to plan the accessibility and shelter to the affected people. The tsunami vulnerability map was used to identify the vulnerability of villages/village population to tsunami. In the tsunami vulnerability map, the intensity of the tsunami was classified as hazard zones based on the inundation level in meter (contour). The approach produced a tsunami vulnerability assessment map consists of considering scenarios of plausible extreme, tsunami-generating events, computing the tsunami inundation levels caused by different events and scenarios and estimating the possible range of casualties for computing inundation levels. The study provides an interactive means to identify the tsunami affected areas after the disaster and mapping the tsunami vulnerable village before for planning purpose were the essential exercises for managing future disasters.

Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the Dominican Republic

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Elliott, D.; Schwartz, M.; George, R.

2001-10-01

The Wind Energy Resource Atlas of the Dominican Republic identifies the wind characteristics and the distribution of the wind resource in this country. This major project is the first of its kind undertaken for the Dominican Republic. The information contained in the atlas is necessary to facilitate the use of wind energy technologies, both for utility-scale power generation and off-grid wind energy applications. A computerized wind mapping system developed by NREL generated detailed wind resource maps for the entire country. This technique uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to produce high-resolution (1-square kilometer) annual average wind resource maps.

Integration of geospatial multi-mode transportation Systems in Kuala Lumpur

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ismail, M. A.; Said, M. N.

2014-06-01

Public transportation serves people with mobility and accessibility to workplaces, health facilities, community resources, and recreational areas across the country. Development in the application of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) to transportation problems represents one of the most important areas of GIS-technology today. To show the importance of GIS network analysis, this paper highlights the determination of the optimal path between two or more destinations based on multi-mode concepts. The abstract connector is introduced in this research as an approach to integrate urban public transportation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia including facilities such as Light Rapid Transit (LRT), Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) Komuter, Express Rail Link (ERL), KL Monorail, road driving as well as pedestrian modes into a single intelligent data model. To assist such analysis, ArcGIS's Network Analyst functions are used whereby the final output includes the total distance, total travelled time, directional maps produced to find the quickest, shortest paths, and closest facilities based on either time or distance impedance for multi-mode route analysis.

Application of OpenStreetMap (OSM) to Support the Mapping Village in Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swasti Kanthi, Nurin; Hery Purwanto, Taufik

2016-11-01

Geospatial Information is a important thing in this era, because the need for location information is needed to know the condition of a region. In 2015 the Indonesian government release detailed mapping in village level and their Parent maps Indonesian state regulatory standards set forth in Rule form Norm Standards, Procedures and Criteria for Mapping Village (NSPK). Over time Web and Mobile GIS was developed with a wide range of applications. The merger between detailed mapping and Web GIS is still rarely performed and not used optimally. OpenStreetMap (OSM) is a WebGIS which can be utilized as Mobile GIS providing sufficient information to the representative levels of the building and can be used for mapping the village.Mapping Village using OSM was conducted using remote sensing approach and Geographical Information Systems (GIS), which's to interpret remote sensing imagery from OSM. The study was conducted to analyzed how far the role of OSM to support the mapping of the village, it's done by entering the house number data, administrative boundaries, public facilities and land use into OSM with reference data and data image Village Plan. The results of the mapping portion villages in OSM as a reference map-making village and analyzed in accordance with NSPK for detailed mapping Rukun Warga (RW) is part of the village mapping. The use of OSM greatly assists the process of mapping the details of the region with data sources in the form of images and can be accessed for Open Source. But still need their care and updating the data source to maintain the validity of the data.

Comparison results of forest cover mapping of Peninsular Malaysia using geospatial technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamid, Wan Abdul; Abd Rahman, Shukri B. Wan

2016-06-01

Climate change and global warming transpire due to several factors. Among them is deforestation which occur mostly in developing countries including Malaysia where forested areas are converted to other land use for tangible economic returns and to a smaller extent, as subsistence for local communities. As a cause for concern, efforts have been taken by the World Resource Institute (WRI) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to monitor forest loss using geospatial technology - interpreting time-based remote sensing imageries and producing statistics of forested areas lost since 2001. In Peninsular Malaysia, the Forestry Department of Peninsular Malaysia(FDPM) has conducted forest cover mapping for the region using the same technology since 2011, producing GIS maps for 2009-2010,2011-2012,2013-2014 and 2015. This paper focuses on the comparative study of the results generated from WRI,WWF and FDPM interpretations between 2010 and 2015, the methodologies used, the similarities and differences, challenges and recommendations for future enhancement of forest cover mapping technique.

Planetary Geologic Mapping Handbook - 2010. Appendix

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tanaka, K. L.; Skinner, J. A., Jr.; Hare, T. M.

2010-01-01

Geologic maps present, in an historical context, fundamental syntheses of interpretations of the materials, landforms, structures, and processes that characterize planetary surfaces and shallow subsurfaces. Such maps also provide a contextual framework for summarizing and evaluating thematic research for a given region or body. In planetary exploration, for example, geologic maps are used for specialized investigations such as targeting regions of interest for data collection and for characterizing sites for landed missions. Whereas most modern terrestrial geologic maps are constructed from regional views provided by remote sensing data and supplemented in detail by field-based observations and measurements, planetary maps have been largely based on analyses of orbital photography. For planetary bodies in particular, geologic maps commonly represent a snapshot of a surface, because they are based on available information at a time when new data are still being acquired. Thus the field of planetary geologic mapping has been evolving rapidly to embrace the use of new data and modern technology and to accommodate the growing needs of planetary exploration. Planetary geologic maps have been published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) since 1962. Over this time, numerous maps of several planetary bodies have been prepared at a variety of scales and projections using the best available image and topographic bases. Early geologic map bases commonly consisted of hand-mosaicked photographs or airbrushed shaded-relief views and geologic linework was manually drafted using mylar bases and ink drafting pens. Map publishing required a tedious process of scribing, color peel-coat preparation, typesetting, and photo-laboratory work. Beginning in the 1990s, inexpensive computing, display capability and user-friendly illustration software allowed maps to be drawn using digital tools rather than pen and ink, and mylar bases became obsolete. Terrestrial geologic maps published by the USGS now are primarily digital products using geographic information system (GIS) software and file formats. GIS mapping tools permit easy spatial comparison, generation, importation, manipulation, and analysis of multiple raster image, gridded, and vector data sets. GIS software has also permitted the development of projectspecific tools and the sharing of geospatial products among researchers. GIS approaches are now being used in planetary geologic mapping as well. Guidelines or handbooks on techniques in planetary geologic mapping have been developed periodically. As records of the heritage of mapping methods and data, these remain extremely useful guides. However, many of the fundamental aspects of earlier mapping handbooks have evolved significantly, and a comprehensive review of currently accepted mapping methodologies is now warranted. As documented in this handbook, such a review incorporates additional guidelines developed in recent years for planetary geologic mapping by the NASA Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PGG) Program's Planetary Cartography and Geologic Mapping Working Group's (PCGMWG) Geologic Mapping Subcommittee (GEMS) on the selection and use of map bases as well as map preparation, review, publication, and distribution. In light of the current boom in planetary exploration and the ongoing rapid evolution of available data for planetary mapping, this handbook is especially timely.

Web-GIS-based SARS epidemic situation visualization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lu, Xiaolin

2004-03-01

In order to research, perform statistical analysis and broadcast the information of SARS epidemic situation according to the relevant spatial position, this paper proposed a unified global visualization information platform for SARS epidemic situation based on Web-GIS and scientific virtualization technology. To setup the unified global visual information platform, the architecture of Web-GIS based interoperable information system is adopted to enable public report SARS virus information to health cure center visually by using the web visualization technology. A GIS java applet is used to visualize the relationship between spatial graphical data and virus distribution, and other web based graphics figures such as curves, bars, maps and multi-dimensional figures are used to visualize the relationship between SARS virus tendency with time, patient number or locations. The platform is designed to display the SARS information in real time, simulate visually for real epidemic situation and offer an analyzing tools for health department and the policy-making government department to support the decision-making for preventing against the SARS epidemic virus. It could be used to analyze the virus condition through visualized graphics interface, isolate the areas of virus source, and control the virus condition within shortest time. It could be applied to the visualization field of SARS preventing systems for SARS information broadcasting, data management, statistical analysis, and decision supporting.

New dimensions from statistical graphics for GIS (geographic information system) analysis and interpretation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McCord, R.A.; Olson, R.J.

1988-01-01

Environmental research and assessment activities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) include the analysis of spatial and temporal patterns of ecosystem response at a landscape scale. Analysis through use of geographic information system (GIS) involves an interaction between the user and thematic data sets frequently expressed as maps. A portion of GIS analysis has a mathematical or statistical aspect, especially for the analysis of temporal patterns. ARC/INFO is an excellent tool for manipulating GIS data and producing the appropriate map graphics. INFO also has some limited ability to produce statistical tabulation. At ORNL we have extended our capabilities by graphicallymore » interfacing ARC/INFO and SAS/GRAPH to provide a combined mapping and statistical graphics environment. With the data management, statistical, and graphics capabilities of SAS added to ARC/INFO, we have expanded the analytical and graphical dimensions of the GIS environment. Pie or bar charts, frequency curves, hydrographs, or scatter plots as produced by SAS can be added to maps from attribute data associated with ARC/INFO coverages. Numerous, small, simplified graphs can also become a source of complex map ''symbols.'' These additions extend the dimensions of GIS graphics to include time, details of the thematic composition, distribution, and interrelationships. 7 refs., 3 figs.« less

Ontology patterns for complex topographic feature yypes

USGS Publications Warehouse

Varanka, Dalia E.

2011-01-01

Complex feature types are defined as integrated relations between basic features for a shared meaning or concept. The shared semantic concept is difficult to define in commonly used geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing technologies. The role of spatial relations between complex feature parts was recognized in early GIS literature, but had limited representation in the feature or coverage data models of GIS. Spatial relations are more explicitly specified in semantic technology. In this paper, semantics for topographic feature ontology design patterns (ODP) are developed as data models for the representation of complex features. In the context of topographic processes, component assemblages are supported by resource systems and are found on local landscapes. The topographic ontology is organized across six thematic modules that can account for basic feature types, resource systems, and landscape types. Types of complex feature attributes include location, generative processes and physical description. Node/edge networks model standard spatial relations and relations specific to topographic science to represent complex features. To demonstrate these concepts, data from The National Map of the U. S. Geological Survey was converted and assembled into ODP.

Interactive Maps on War and Peace: A WebGIS Application for Civic Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wirkus, Lars; Strunck, Alexander

2013-04-01

War and violent conflict are omnipresent-be it war in the Middle East, violent conflicts in failed states or increasing military expenditures and exports/ imports of military goods. To understand certain conflicts or peace processes and their possible interrelation, to conduct a well-founded political discussion and to support or influence decision-making, one matter is of special importance: easily accessible and, in particular, reliable data and information. Against this background, the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) in close cooperation with the German Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb) has been developing a map-based information portal on war and peace with various thematic modules for the latter's online service (http://sicherheitspolitik.bpb.de). The portal will eventually offer nine of such modules that are intended to give various target groups, such as interested members of the public, teachers and learners, policymakers and representatives of the media access to the required information in form of an interactive and country-based global overview or a comparison of different issues. Five thematic modules have been completed so far: War and conflict, peace and demobilization, military capacities, resources and conflict, conventional weapons. The portal offers a broad spectrum of different data processing and visualization tools. Its central feature is an interactive mapping component based on WebGIS and a relational database. Content and data provided through thematic maps in the form of WebGIS layers are generally supplemented by info graphics, data tables and short articles providing deeper knowledge on the respective issue. All modules and their sub-chapters are introduced by background texts. They put all interactive maps of a module into an appropriate context and help the users to also understand the interrelation between various layers. If a layer is selected, all corresponding texts and graphics are shown automatically below the map. Data tables are offered if the copyright of datasets allows such use. All data of all thematic modules is presented in country profiles in a consolidated manner. The portal has been created with Open Source Software. PostgreSQL and PostGIS, MapServer, OpenLayers, MapProxy and cmsmadesimple are combined to manipulate and transform global data sets into interactive thematic maps. A purpose-programmed layer selection menu enables users to select single layers or to combine up to three matching layers from all possible pre-set layer combinations. This applies both to fields of topics within a module and across various modules. Due to the complexity of the structure and visualization constraints, no more than three layers can be combined. The WebGIS-based information portal on war and peace is an excellent example of how GIS technologies can be used for education and outreach. Not only can they play a crucial role in supporting the educational mandate and mission of certain institutions. They can also directly support various target groups in obtaining the knowledge needed by providing a collection of straight forward designed, ready-to-use data, info graphics and maps.

Design and Evaluation of an Open Web Platform Cartography Lab Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sack, Carl M.; Roth, Robert E.

2017-01-01

Recent shifts in web map technology away from proprietary software and toward development on the Open Web Platform have increased the number and complexity of technical skills needed to do cartography on the Web. Web-based cartography curricula likewise must be adapted to prepare geography, cartography, and GIS students with the skills needed to…

A successful experiment: The boundary spanner on the Bitterroot National Forest

Treesearch

Sharon Ritter

2006-01-01

The Bitterroot Ecosystem Management Research Project and the Bitterroot National Forest funded a boundary spanner to coordinate research activities taking place on the Forest, increase technology transfer and outreach, and foster increased dialogue among and between researchers and managers. Coordination involved use of a research special use permit and a GIS map to...

Susceptibility mapping in the Río El Estado watershed, Pico de Orizaba volcano, Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Legorreta Paulin, G.; Bursik, M. I.; Lugo Hubp, J.; Paredes Mejía, L.; Aceves Quesada, F.

2013-12-01

In volcanic terrains, dormant stratovolcanoes are very common and can trigger landslides and debris flows continually along stream systems, thereby affecting human settlements and economic activities. It is important to assess their potential impact and damage through the use of landslide inventory maps and landslide models. This poster provides an overview of the on-going research project (Grant SEP-CONACYT no 167495) from the Institute of Geography at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) that seeks to conduct a multi-temporal landslide inventory and produce a landslide susceptibility map by using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The Río El Estado watershed on the southwestern flank of Pico de Orizaba volcano, the highest mountain in Mexico, is selected as a study area. The catchment covers 5.2 km2 with elevations ranging from 2676.79 to 4248.2 m a.s.l. and hillslopes between 5° and 56°. The stream system of Río El Estado catchment erodes Tertiary and Quaternary lavas, pyroclastic flows, and fall deposits. The geologic and geomorphologic factors in combination with high seasonal precipitation, high degree of weathering, and steep slopes predispose the study area to landslides. The method encompasses two main levels of analysis to assess landslide susceptibility. The first level builds a historic landslide inventory. In the study area, an inventory of more than 100 landslides was mapped from interpretation of multi-temporal aerial orthophotographs and local field surveys to assess and describe landslide distribution. All landslides were digitized into a GIS, and the spatial geo-database of landslides was constructed from standardized GIS datasets. The second level calculates the susceptibility for the watershed. Multiple Logistic Regression (MLR) was used to examine the relationship between landsliding and several independent variables (elevation, slope, terrain curvature, flow direction, saturation, contributing area, land use, and geology) to create the susceptibility map. Finally, the model was compared with the reality expressed by the inventory map. The technique and its implementation of each level in a GIS-based technology is presented and discussed.

Operational shoreline mapping with high spatial resolution radar and geographic processing

USGS Publications Warehouse

Rangoonwala, Amina; Jones, Cathleen E; Chi, Zhaohui; Ramsey, Elijah W.

2017-01-01

A comprehensive mapping technology was developed utilizing standard image processing and available GIS procedures to automate shoreline identification and mapping from 2 m synthetic aperture radar (SAR) HH amplitude data. The development used four NASA Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle SAR (UAVSAR) data collections between summer 2009 and 2012 and a fall 2012 collection of wetlands dominantly fronted by vegetated shorelines along the Mississippi River Delta that are beset by severe storms, toxic releases, and relative sea-level rise. In comparison to shorelines interpreted from 0.3 m and 1 m orthophotography, the automated GIS 10 m alongshore sampling found SAR shoreline mapping accuracy to be ±2 m, well within the lower range of reported shoreline mapping accuracies. The high comparability was obtained even though water levels differed between the SAR and photography image pairs and included all shorelines regardless of complexity. The SAR mapping technology is highly repeatable and extendable to other SAR instruments with similar operational functionality.

Detailed geomorphological mapping from high resolution DEM data (LiDAR, TanDEM-X): two case studies from Germany and SE Tibet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loibl, D.

2012-04-01

Two major obstacles are hampering the production of high resolution geomorphological maps: the complexity of the subject that should be depicted and the enormous efforts necessary to obtain data by field work. The first factor prevented the establishment of a generally accepted map legend; the second hampered efforts to collect comprehensive sets of geomorphological data. This left geomorphologists to produce applied maps, focusing on very few layers of information and often not sticking to any of the numerous standards proposed in the second half of the 20th century. Technological progress of the recent years, especially in the fields of digital elevation models, GIS environments, and computational hardware, today offers promising opportunities to overcome the obstacles and to produce detailed geomorphological maps even for remote or inhospitable regions. The feasibility of detailed geomorphological mapping from two new sets of digital elevation data, the 1 m LiDAR DTM provided by Germany's State Surveying Authority and the upcoming TanDEM-X DEM, has been evaluated in two case studies from a low mountain range in Germany and a high mountain range in SE Tibet. The results indicate that most layers of information of classical geomorphological maps (e.g. the German GMK) can be extracted from this data at appropriate scales but that significant differences occur concerning the quality and the grades of certainty of key contents. Generally, an enhancement of the geomorphographical, especially the geomorphometrical, and a weakening of geomorphogenetical contents was observed. From these findings, theoretical, methodological, and cartographical remarks on detailed geomorphological mapping from DEM data in GIS environments were educed. As GIS environments decouple data and design and enable the geomorphologist to choose information layer combinations freely to fit research topics, a general purpose legend becomes obsolete. Yet, a unified data structure is demanded to ensure that data collected by different scientists or in different studies can be exchanged and reused.

Teachers' Perceptions of Esri Story Maps as Effective Teaching Tools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strachan, Caitlin; Mitchell, Jerry

2014-01-01

The current study explores teachers' perceptions of Esri Story Maps as effective teaching tools. Story Maps are a relatively new web application created using Esri's cloud-based GIS platform, ArcGIS Online. They combine digitized, dynamic web maps with other story elements to help the creator effectively convey a message. The relative ease…

Application of LOD technology to the economic residence GIS for industry and commerce administration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Yongjun; Feng, Xuezhi; Zhao, Shuhe; Yin, Haiwei; Li, Yulin; Cui, Hongxia; Zhang, Hui; Zhong, Quanbao

2007-06-01

The LOD technology has an impact upon the multi-scale representation of spatial database. This paper takes advantage of LOD technology to express the multi-scale geographical data, and establish the exchange of multi-scale electronic map, further attain the goal that the details of geographic features such as point, line and polygon can be displayed more and more clearly with the display scale being enlarged to be convenient for the personnel of all offices of industry and commerce administration to label the locations of the corporations or enterprises.

Black Sea GIS developed in MHI

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhuk, E.; Khaliulin, A.; Zodiatis, G.; Nikolaidis, A.; Isaeva, E.

2016-08-01

The work aims at creating the Black Sea geoinformation system (GIS) and complementing it with a model bank. The software for data access and visualization was developed using client server architecture. A map service based on MapServer and MySQL data management system were chosen for the Black Sea GIS. Php-modules and python-scripts are used to provide data access, processing, and exchange between the client application and the server. According to the basic data types, the module structure of GIS was developed. Each type of data is matched to a module which allows selection and visualization of the data. At present, a GIS complement with a model bank (the models build in to the GIS) and users' models (programs launched on users' PCs but receiving and displaying data via GIS) is developed.

Web GIS in practice VIII: HTML5 and the canvas element for interactive online mapping

PubMed Central

2010-01-01

HTML5 is being developed as the next major revision of HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), the core markup language of the World Wide Web. It aims at reducing the need for proprietary, plug-in-based rich Internet application (RIA) technologies such as Adobe Flash. The canvas element is part of HTML5 and is used to draw graphics using scripting (e.g., JavaScript). This paper introduces Cartagen, an open-source, vector-based, client-side framework for rendering plug-in-free, offline-capable, interactive maps in native HTML5 on a wide range of Web browsers and mobile phones. Cartagen was developed at MIT Media Lab's Design Ecology group. Potential applications of the technology as an enabler for participatory online mapping include mapping real-time air pollution, citizen reporting, and disaster response, among many other possibilities. PMID:20199681

Southern Salish Sea Habitat Map Series: Admiralty Inlet

USGS Publications Warehouse

Cochrane, Guy R.; Dethier, Megan N.; Hodson, Timothy O.; Kull, Kristine K.; Golden, Nadine E.; Ritchie, Andrew C.; Moegling, Crescent; Pacunski, Robert E.; Cochrane, Guy R.

2015-01-01

This publication includes four map sheets, explanatory text, and a descriptive pamphlet. Each map sheet is published as a portable document format (PDF) file. ESRI ArcGIS compatible geotiffs (for example, bathymetry) and shapefiles (for example video observation points) will be available for download in the data catalog associated with this publication (Cochrane, 2015). An ArcGIS Project File with the symbology used to generate the map sheets is also provided. For those who do not own the full suite of ESRI GIS and mapping software, the data can be read using ESRI ArcReader, a free viewer that is available at http://www.esri.com/software/arcgis/arcreader/index.html.

USGS compilation of geographic information system (GIS) data representing coal mines and coal-bearing areas in China

USGS Publications Warehouse

Trippi, Michael H.; Belkin, Harvey E.; Dai, Shifeng; Tewalt, Susan J.; Chou, Chiu-Jung; Trippi, Michael H.; Belkin, Harvey E.; Dai, Shifeng; Tewalt, Susan J.; Chou, Chiu-Jung

2015-01-01

Geographic information system (GIS) information may facilitate energy studies, which in turn provide input for energy policy decisions. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has compiled geographic information system (GIS) data representing the known coal mine locations and coal-mining areas of China as of 2001. These data are now available for download, and may be used in a GIS for a variety of energy resource and environmental studies of China. Province-scale maps were also created to display the point locations of coal mines and the coal-mining areas. In addition, coal-field outlines from a previously published map by Dai and others (2012) were also digitized and are available for download as a separate GIS data file, and shown in a nation-scale map of China. Chemical data for 332 coal samples from a previous USGS study of China and Taiwan (Tewalt and others, 2010) are included in a downloadable GIS point shapefile, and shown on a nation-scale map of China. A brief report summarizes the methodology used for creation of the shapefiles and the chemical analyses run on the samples.

Integration of Bim, Web Maps and Iot for Supporting Comfort Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunduz, M.; Isikdag, U.; Basaraner, M.

2017-11-01

The use of the Internet is expanding and the technological capabilities of electronic devices are evolving. Today, Internet of Things (IoT) solutions can be developed that were never even imaginable before. In this paper, a case study is presented on the joint use of Building Information Model (BIM), Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies. It is a part of an ongoing study that intends to overcome some problems about the management of complex facilities. In the study, a BIM has been converted and displayed in 2D on Google Maps, and information on various sensors have been represented on the web with geographic coordinates in real-time.

A simple method for serving Web hypermaps with dynamic database drill-down

PubMed Central

Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Roudsari, Abdul V; Carson, Ewart R

2002-01-01

Background HealthCyberMap aims at mapping parts of health information cyberspace in novel ways to deliver a semantically superior user experience. This is achieved through "intelligent" categorisation and interactive hypermedia visualisation of health resources using metadata, clinical codes and GIS. HealthCyberMap is an ArcView 3.1 project. WebView, the Internet extension to ArcView, publishes HealthCyberMap ArcView Views as Web client-side imagemaps. The basic WebView set-up does not support any GIS database connection, and published Web maps become disconnected from the original project. A dedicated Internet map server would be the best way to serve HealthCyberMap database-driven interactive Web maps, but is an expensive and complex solution to acquire, run and maintain. This paper describes HealthCyberMap simple, low-cost method for "patching" WebView to serve hypermaps with dynamic database drill-down functionality on the Web. Results The proposed solution is currently used for publishing HealthCyberMap GIS-generated navigational information maps on the Web while maintaining their links with the underlying resource metadata base. Conclusion The authors believe their map serving approach as adopted in HealthCyberMap has been very successful, especially in cases when only map attribute data change without a corresponding effect on map appearance. It should be also possible to use the same solution to publish other interactive GIS-driven maps on the Web, e.g., maps of real world health problems. PMID:12437788

Modelling Multi Hazard Mapping in Semarang City Using GIS-Fuzzy Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nugraha, A. L.; Awaluddin, M.; Sasmito, B.

2018-02-01

One important aspect of disaster mitigation planning is hazard mapping. Hazard mapping can provide spatial information on the distribution of locations that are threatened by disaster. Semarang City as the capital of Central Java Province is one of the cities with high natural disaster intensity. Frequent natural disasters Semarang city is tidal flood, floods, landslides, and droughts. Therefore, Semarang City needs spatial information by doing multi hazard mapping to support disaster mitigation planning in Semarang City. Multi Hazards map modelling can be derived from parameters such as slope maps, rainfall, land use, and soil types. This modelling is done by using GIS method with scoring and overlay technique. However, the accuracy of modelling would be better if the GIS method is combined with Fuzzy Logic techniques to provide a good classification in determining disaster threats. The Fuzzy-GIS method will build a multi hazards map of Semarang city can deliver results with good accuracy and with appropriate threat class spread so as to provide disaster information for disaster mitigation planning of Semarang city. from the multi-hazard modelling using GIS-Fuzzy can be known type of membership that has a good accuracy is the type of membership Gauss with RMSE of 0.404 the smallest of the other membership and VAF value of 72.909% of the largest of the other membership.

Utilization of geoinformation tools for the development of forest fire hazard mapping system: example of Pekan fire, Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahmud, Ahmad Rodzi; Setiawan, Iwan; Mansor, Shattri; Shariff, Abdul Rashid Mohamed; Pradhan, Biswajeet; Nuruddin, Ahmed

2009-12-01

A study in modeling fire hazard assessment will be essential in establishing an effective forest fire management system especially in controlling and preventing peat fire. In this paper, we have used geographic information system (GIS), in combination with other geoinformation technologies such as remote sensing and computer modeling, for all aspects of wild land fire management. Identifying areas that have a high probability of burning is an important component of fire management planning. The development of spatially explicit GIS models has greatly facilitated this process by allowing managers to map and analyze variables contributing to fire occurrence across large, unique geographic units. Using the model and its associated software engine, the fire hazard map was produced. Extensive avenue programming scripts were written to provide additional capabilities in the development of these interfaces to meet the full complement of operational software considering various users requirements. The system developed not only possesses user friendly step by step operations to deliver the fire vulnerability mapping but also allows authorized users to edit, add or modify parameters whenever necessary. Results from the model can support fire hazard mapping in the forest and enhance alert system function by simulating and visualizing forest fire and helps for contingency planning.

Application of satellite and GIS technologies for land-cover and land-use mapping at the rural-urban fringe - A case study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Treitz, P.M.; Howarth, P.J.; Gong, Peng

1992-04-01

SPOT HRV multispectral and panchromatic data were recorded and coregistered for a portion of the rural-urban fringe of Toronto, Canada. A two-stage digital analysis algorithm incorporating a spectral-class frequency-based contextual classification of eight land-cover and land-use classes resulted in an overall Kappa coefficient of 82.2 percent for training-area data and a Kappa coefficient of 70.3 percent for test-area data. A matrix-overlay analysis was then performed within the geographic information system (GIS) to combine the land-cover and land-use classes generated from the SPOT digital classification with zoning information for the area. The map that was produced has an estimated interpretation accuracymore » of 78 percent. Global Positioning System (GPS) data provided a positional reference for new road networks. These networks, in addition to the new land-cover and land-use map derived from the SPOT HRV data, provide an up-to-date synthesis of change conditions in the area. 51 refs.« less

Spatial predictive mapping using artificial neural networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Noack, S.; Knobloch, A.; Etzold, S. H.; Barth, A.; Kallmeier, E.

2014-11-01

The modelling or prediction of complex geospatial phenomena (like formation of geo-hazards) is one of the most important tasks for geoscientists. But in practice it faces various difficulties, caused mainly by the complexity of relationships between the phenomena itself and the controlling parameters, as well by limitations of our knowledge about the nature of physical/ mathematical relationships and by restrictions regarding accuracy and availability of data. In this situation methods of artificial intelligence, like artificial neural networks (ANN) offer a meaningful alternative modelling approach compared to the exact mathematical modelling. In the past, the application of ANN technologies in geosciences was primarily limited due to difficulties to integrate it into geo-data processing algorithms. In consideration of this background, the software advangeo® was developed to provide a normal GIS user with a powerful tool to use ANNs for prediction mapping and data preparation within his standard ESRI ArcGIS environment. In many case studies, such as land use planning, geo-hazards analysis and prevention, mineral potential mapping, agriculture & forestry advangeo® has shown its capabilities and strengths. The approach is able to add considerable value to existing data.

Open-Source GIS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Vatsavai, Raju; Burk, Thomas E; Lime, Steve

2012-01-01

The components making up an Open Source GIS are explained in this chapter. A map server (Sect. 30.1) can broadly be defined as a software platform for dynamically generating spatially referenced digital map products. The University of Minnesota MapServer (UMN Map Server) is one such system. Its basic features are visualization, overlay, and query. Section 30.2 names and explains many of the geospatial open source libraries, such as GDAL and OGR. The other libraries are FDO, JTS, GEOS, JCS, MetaCRS, and GPSBabel. The application examples include derived GIS-software and data format conversions. Quantum GIS, its origin and its applications explainedmore » in detail in Sect. 30.3. The features include a rich GUI, attribute tables, vector symbols, labeling, editing functions, projections, georeferencing, GPS support, analysis, and Web Map Server functionality. Future developments will address mobile applications, 3-D, and multithreading. The origins of PostgreSQL are outlined and PostGIS discussed in detail in Sect. 30.4. It extends PostgreSQL by implementing the Simple Feature standard. Section 30.5 details the most important open source licenses such as the GPL, the LGPL, the MIT License, and the BSD License, as well as the role of the Creative Commons.« less

The GIS Weasel: An interface for the development of geographic information used in environmental simulation modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Viger, R.J.

2008-01-01

The GIS Weasel is a freely available, open-source software package built on top of ArcInfo Workstation?? [ESRI, Inc., 2001, ArcInfo Workstation (8.1 ed.), Redlands, CA] for creating maps and parameters of geographic features used in environmental simulation models. The software has been designed to minimize the need for GIS expertise and automate the preparation of the geographic information as much as possible. Although many kinds of data can be exploited with the GIS Weasel, the only information required is a raster dataset of elevation for the user's area of interest (AOI). The user-defined AOI serves as a starting point from which to create maps of many different types of geographic features, including sub-watersheds, streams, elevation bands, land cover patches, land parcels, or anything else that can be discerned from the available data. The GIS Weasel has a library of over 200 routines that can be applied to any raster map of geographic features to generate information about shape, area, or topological association with other features of the same or different maps. In addition, a wide variety of parameters can be derived using ancillary data layers such as soil and vegetation maps.

Statewide GIS mapping of recurring congestion corridors : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-07-01

Recurring congestion occurs when travel demand reaches or exceeds the available roadway : capacity. This project developed an interactive geographic information system (GIS) map of the : recurring congestion corridors (labeled herein as hotspots) in ...

NCWin — A Component Object Model (COM) for processing and visualizing NetCDF data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Liu, Jinxun; Chen, J.M.; Price, D.T.; Liu, S.

2005-01-01

NetCDF (Network Common Data Form) is a data sharing protocol and library that is commonly used in large-scale atmospheric and environmental data archiving and modeling. The NetCDF tool described here, named NCWin and coded with Borland C + + Builder, was built as a standard executable as well as a COM (component object model) for the Microsoft Windows environment. COM is a powerful technology that enhances the reuse of applications (as components). Environmental model developers from different modeling environments, such as Python, JAVA, VISUAL FORTRAN, VISUAL BASIC, VISUAL C + +, and DELPHI, can reuse NCWin in their models to read, write and visualize NetCDF data. Some Windows applications, such as ArcGIS and Microsoft PowerPoint, can also call NCWin within the application. NCWin has three major components: 1) The data conversion part is designed to convert binary raw data to and from NetCDF data. It can process six data types (unsigned char, signed char, short, int, float, double) and three spatial data formats (BIP, BIL, BSQ); 2) The visualization part is designed for displaying grid map series (playing forward or backward) with simple map legend, and displaying temporal trend curves for data on individual map pixels; and 3) The modeling interface is designed for environmental model development by which a set of integrated NetCDF functions is provided for processing NetCDF data. To demonstrate that the NCWin can easily extend the functions of some current GIS software and the Office applications, examples of calling NCWin within ArcGIS and MS PowerPoint for showing NetCDF map animations are given.

GIS Mapping and Monitoring of Health Problems Among the Elderly.

PubMed

Dermatis, Zacharias; Tsaloukidis, Nikolaos; Zacharopoulou, Georgia; Lazakidou, Athina

2017-01-01

The electronic survey in conjunction with GIS in the current study aims at presenting the needs and health problems of the elderly in individual Open Elderly Care Centres in Greece. The online GIS survey enables the continuous monitoring and developing of the health problems of the elderly and helps them in their early care by the healthcare units. GIS survey123 is a customizable tool, which can be used to conduct research that is then published on an Android, iOS, and web platform. The ArcGIS software was used for the geographic mapping of data collected from a wide range of sources, so that health care professionals can investigate the factors associated with the onset of the diseases. Also, direct geographic mapping aims at identifying health problems of the elderly in Greece and transferring information to health care professionals in order to impose proper control measures in a very small period of time.

Free and simple GIS as appropriate for health mapping in a low resource setting: a case study in eastern Indonesia.

PubMed

Fisher, Rohan P; Myers, Bronwyn A

2011-02-25

Despite the demonstrated utility of GIS for health applications, there are perceived problems in low resource settings: GIS software can be expensive and complex; input data are often of low quality. This study aimed to test the appropriateness of new, inexpensive and simple GIS tools in poorly resourced areas of a developing country. GIS applications were trialled in pilot studies based on mapping of health resources and health indicators at the clinic and district level in the predominantly rural province of Nusa Tenggara Timur in eastern Indonesia. The pilot applications were (i) rapid field collection of health infrastructure data using a GPS enabled PDA, (ii) mapping health indicator data using open source GIS software, and (iii) service availability mapping using a free modelling tool. Through contextualised training, district and clinic staff acquired skills in spatial analysis and visualisation and, six months after the pilot studies, they were using these skills for advocacy in the planning process, to inform the allocation of some health resources, and to evaluate some public health initiatives. We demonstrated that GIS can be a useful and inexpensive tool for the decentralisation of health data analysis to low resource settings through the use of free and simple software, locally relevant training materials and by providing data collection tools to ensure data reliability.

Free and simple GIS as appropriate for health mapping in a low resource setting: a case study in eastern Indonesia

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background Despite the demonstrated utility of GIS for health applications, there are perceived problems in low resource settings: GIS software can be expensive and complex; input data are often of low quality. This study aimed to test the appropriateness of new, inexpensive and simple GIS tools in poorly resourced areas of a developing country. GIS applications were trialled in pilot studies based on mapping of health resources and health indicators at the clinic and district level in the predominantly rural province of Nusa Tenggara Timur in eastern Indonesia. The pilot applications were (i) rapid field collection of health infrastructure data using a GPS enabled PDA, (ii) mapping health indicator data using open source GIS software, and (iii) service availability mapping using a free modelling tool. Results Through contextualised training, district and clinic staff acquired skills in spatial analysis and visualisation and, six months after the pilot studies, they were using these skills for advocacy in the planning process, to inform the allocation of some health resources, and to evaluate some public health initiatives. Conclusions We demonstrated that GIS can be a useful and inexpensive tool for the decentralisation of health data analysis to low resource settings through the use of free and simple software, locally relevant training materials and by providing data collection tools to ensure data reliability. PMID:21352553

The effect of human-caused visual impacts on restorative character of an arid wildland recreation setting

Treesearch

Thore Baird Christensen

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of visible visitor-caused impacts as characterized by user-created campsites on judgments about the perceived restorative character in natural areas. User-created campsites were inventoried using mapping-grade mobile Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology and photography. Photography of user-created campsites...

Using participatory design to develop (public) health decision support systems through GIS.

PubMed

Dredger, S Michelle; Kothari, Anita; Morrison, Jason; Sawada, Michael; Crighton, Eric J; Graham, Ian D

2007-11-27

Organizations that collect substantial data for decision-making purposes are often characterized as being 'data rich' but 'information poor'. Maps and mapping tools can be very useful for research transfer in converting locally collected data into information. Challenges involved in incorporating GIS applications into the decision-making process within the non-profit (public) health sector include a lack of financial resources for software acquisition and training for non-specialists to use such tools. This on-going project has two primary phases. This paper critically reflects on Phase 1: the participatory design (PD) process of developing a collaborative web-based GIS tool. A case study design is being used whereby the case is defined as the data analyst and manager dyad (a two person team) in selected Ontario Early Year Centres (OEYCs). Multiple cases are used to support the reliability of findings. With nine producer/user pair participants, the goal in Phase 1 was to identify barriers to map production, and through the participatory design process, develop a web-based GIS tool suited for data analysts and their managers. This study has been guided by the Ottawa Model of Research Use (OMRU) conceptual framework. Due to wide variations in OEYC structures, only some data analysts used mapping software and there was no consistency or standardization in the software being used. Consequently, very little sharing of maps and data occurred among data analysts. Using PD, this project developed a web-based mapping tool (EYEMAP) that was easy to use, protected proprietary data, and permit limited and controlled sharing between participants. By providing data analysts with training on its use, the project also ensured that data analysts would not break cartographic conventions (e.g. using a chloropleth map for count data). Interoperability was built into the web-based solution; that is, EYEMAP can read many different standard mapping file formats (e.g. ESRI, MapInfo, CSV). Based on the evaluation of Phase 1, the PD process has served both as a facilitator and a barrier. In terms of successes, the PD process identified two key components that are important to users: increased data/map sharing functionality and interoperability. Some of the challenges affected developers and users; both individually and as a collective. From a development perspective, this project experienced difficulties in obtaining personnel skilled in web application development and GIS. For users, some data sharing barriers are beyond what a technological tool can address (e.g. third party data). Lastly, the PD process occurs in real time; both a strength and a limitation. Programmatic changes at the provincial level and staff turnover at the organizational level made it difficult to maintain buy-in as participants changed over time. The impacts of these successes and challenges will be evaluated more concretely at the end of Phase 2. PD approaches, by their very nature, encourage buy-in to the development process, better addresses user-needs, and creates a sense of user-investment and ownership.

Infusion of Climate Change and Geospatial Science Concepts into Environmental and Biological Science Curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balaji Bhaskar, M. S.; Rosenzweig, J.; Shishodia, S.

2017-12-01

The objective of our activity is to improve the students understanding and interpretation of geospatial science and climate change concepts and its applications in the field of Environmental and Biological Sciences in the College of Science Engineering and Technology (COEST) at Texas Southern University (TSU) in Houston, TX. The courses of GIS for Environment, Ecology and Microbiology were selected for the curriculum infusion. A total of ten GIS hands-on lab modules, along with two NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research) lab modules on climate change were implemented in the "GIS for Environment" course. GIS and Google Earth Labs along with climate change lectures were infused into Microbiology and Ecology courses. Critical thinking and empirical skills of the students were assessed in all the courses. The student learning outcomes of these courses includes the ability of students to interpret the geospatial maps and the student demonstration of knowledge of the basic principles and concepts of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and climate change. At the end of the courses, students developed a comprehensive understanding of the geospatial data, its applications in understanding climate change and its interpretation at the local and regional scales during multiple years.

Using remote sensing and GIS techniques to estimate discharge and recharge. fluxes for the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

D'Agnese, F. A.; Faunt, C.C.; Keith, Turner A.

1996-01-01

The recharge and discharge components of the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system were defined by remote sensing and GIS techniques that integrated disparate data types to develop a spatially complex representation of near-surface hydrological processes. Image classification methods were applied to multispectral satellite data to produce a vegetation map. This map provided a basis for subsequent evapotranspiration and infiltration estimations. The vegetation map was combined with ancillary data in a GIS to delineate different types of wetlands, phreatophytes and wet playa areas. Existing evapotranspiration-rate estimates were then used to calculate discharge volumes for these areas. A previously used empirical method of groundwater recharge estimation was modified by GIS methods to incorporate data describing soil-moisture conditions, and a recharge potential map was produced. These discharge and recharge maps were readily converted to data arrays for numerical modelling codes. Inverse parameter estimation techniques also used these data to evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of estimated values.

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) Mapping of Environmental Samples across College Campuses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purvis-Roberts, Kathleen L.; Moeur, Harriet P.; Zanella, Andrew

2007-01-01

In this laboratory experiment, students take environmental samples at various locations around the college campuses, take geospatial coordinates with a global position systems (GPS) unit, and map their results on a geo-referenced campus map with geographical information systems (GIS) software. Nitrogen dioxide air pollution sampling is used as an…

International Conference on Remote Sensing Applications for Archaeological Research and World Heritage Conservation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

Contents include the following: Monitoring the Ancient Countryside: Remote Sensing and GIS at the Chora of Chersonesos (Crimea, Ukraine). Integration of Remote Sensing and GIS for Management Decision Support in the Pendjari Biosphere Reserve (Republic of Benin). Monitoring of deforestation invasion in natural reserves of northern Madagascar based on space imagery. Cartography of Kahuzi-Biega National Park. Cartography and Land Use Change of World Heritage Areas and the Benefits of Remote Sensing and GIS for Conservation. Assessing and Monitoring Vegetation in Nabq Protected Area, South Sinai, Egypt, using combine approach of Satellite Imagery and Land Surveys. Evaluation of forage resources in semi-arid savannah environments with satellite imagery: contribution to the management of a protected area (Nakuru National Park) in Kenya. SOGHA, the Surveillance of Gorilla Habitat in World Heritage sites using Space Technologies. Application of Remote Sensing to monitor the Mont-Saint-Michel Bay (France). Application of Remote Sensing & GIS for the Conservation of Natural and Cultural Heritage Sites of the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. Social and Environmental monitoring of a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve: Case Study over the Vosges du Nord and Pfalzerwald Parks using Corona and Spot Imagery. Satellite Remote Sensing as tool to Monitor Indian Reservation in the Brazilian Amazonia. Remote Sensing and GIS Technology for Monitoring UNESCO World Heritage Sites - A Pilot Project. Urban Green Spaces: Modern Heritage. Monitoring of the technical condition of the St. Sophia Cathedral and related monastic buildings in Kiev with Space Applications, geo-positioning systems and GIS tools. The Murghab delta palaeochannel Reconstruction on the Basis of Remote Sensing from Space. Acquisition, Registration and Application of IKONOS Space Imagery for the cultural World Heritage site at Mew, Turkmenistan. Remote Sensing and VR applications for the reconstruction of archaeological landscapes. Archaeology through Space: Experience in Indian Subcontinent. The creation of a GIS Archaeological Site Location Catalogue in Yucatan: A Tool to preserve its Cultural Heritage. Mapping the Ancient Anasazi Roads of Southeast Utah. Remote Sensing and GIS Technology for Identification of Conservation and Heritage sites in Urban Planning. Mapping Angkor: For a new appraisal of the Angkor region. Angkor and radar imaging: seeing a vast pre-industrial low-density, dispersed urban complex. Technical and methodological aspects of archaeological CRM integrating high resolution satellite imagery. The contribution of satellite imagery to archaeological survey: an example from western Syria. The use of satellite images, digital elevation models and ground truth for the monitoring of land degradation in the "Cinque Terre" National park. Remote Sensing and GIS Applications for Protection and Conservation of World Heritage Site on the coast - Case Study of Tamil Nadu Coast, India. Multispectral high resolution satellite imagery in combination with "traditional" remote sensing and ground survey methods to the study of archaeological landscapes. The case study of Tuscany. Use of Remotely-Sensed Imagery in Cultural Landscape. Characterisation at Fort Hood, Texas. Heritage Learning and Data Collection: Biodiversity & Heritage Conservation through Collaborative Monitoring & Research. A collaborative project by UNESCO's WHC (World Heritage Center) & The GLOBE Program (Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment). Practical Remote Sensing Activities in an Interdisciplinary Master-Level Space Course.

Teaching And Learning Tectonics With Web-GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anastasio, D. J.; Sahagian, D. L.; Bodzin, A.; Teletzke, A. L.; Rutzmoser, S.; Cirucci, L.; Bressler, D.; Burrows, J. E.

2012-12-01

Tectonics is a new curriculum enhancement consisting of six Web GIS investigations designed to augment a traditional middle school Earth science curriculum. The investigations are aligned to Disciplinary Core Ideas: Earth and Space Science from the National Research Council's (2012) Framework for K-12 Science Education and to tectonics benchmark ideas articulated in the AAAS Project 2061 (2007) Atlas of Science Literacy. The curriculum emphasizes geospatial thinking and scientific inquiry and consists of the following modules: Geohazards, which plate boundary is closest to me? How do we recognize plate boundaries? How does thermal energy move around the Earth? What happens when plates diverge? What happens when plate move sideways past each other? What happens when plates collide? The Web GIS interface uses JavaScript for simplicity, intuition, and convenience for implementation on a variety of platforms making it easier for diverse middle school learners and their teachers to conduct authentic Earth science investigations, including multidisciplinary visualization, analysis, and synthesis of data. Instructional adaptations allow students who are English language learners, have disabilities, or are reluctant readers to perform advanced desktop GIS functions including spatial analysis, map visualization and query. The Web GIS interface integrates graphics, multimedia, and animation in addition to newly developed features, which allow users to explore and discover geospatial patterns that would not be easily visible using typical classroom instructional materials. The Tectonics curriculum uses a spatial learning design model that incorporates a related set of frameworks and design principles. The framework builds on the work of other successful technology-integrated curriculum projects and includes, alignment of materials and assessments with learning goals, casting key ideas in real-world problems, engaging students in scientific practices that foster the use of key ideas, uses geospatial technology, and supports for teachers in adopting and implementing GIS and inquiry-based activities.

Study on the key technology of grain logistics tracking system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhen, Tong; Ge, Hongyi; Jiang, Yuying; Che, Yi

2010-07-01

In recent year, with the rapid development of GIS technology, more and more programming problems depend on the GIS technology and professional model system. The solution of auxiliary programming problem by using GIS technology, which has become very popular. GIS is an important tool and technology, that captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data that are linked to location. A grain logistics distribution system based on GIS is established, which provides a visualization scheme during the process of grain circulation and supports users making decision and analyzing for grain logistics enterprise.

Starting with Teachers: Bringing GIS technology to the secondary classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Claesgens, J.; Rubino-Hare, L.; Sample, J. C.; Fredrickson, K.; Manone, M.

2010-12-01

An aim of the NSF-ITEST funded POD project is to examine the effect that technology-integrated, problem-based learning modules have on the learning of secondary students whose teachers have participated in a curriculum implementation professional development structure. This research focuses on the professional development structure as the first step to achieving changes in student learning. The assumption is that the teachers themselves have to learn the technology before they can successfully implement it into their classrooms. Teachers attended a 2-week professional development workshop that presented pedagogy, content and GIS training. Our premise for the workshop was that modeling and practicing research-based pedagogical practice will improve participant science instruction through an immersion program focusing on real life problems. The second premise is that improving teacher technology skills and pedagogical knowledge and practice will improve student achievement in science. Professional development is necessary to help teachers learn not only how to use new technology but also how to provide meaningful instruction and activities using technology in the classroom. Therefore if our goal is to immerse the teachers in learning as the students, we need to measure if they indeed did learn. To evaluate if the teacher learned the material just as a student might, we administered a pre- and post-test to 23 teachers attending the workshops. There were 2 forms of the test, a multiple-choice test that focused on content questions in earth science, interpretation of GIS screen shots and spatial reasoning skills. The second component, the Geospatial Technology Performance Assessment, focused on the teachers’ abilities to use the GIS technology to gather data, sort and communicate information using maps, tables and keys. For the latter a grounded-theory approach was used to group teachers answers based on the responses provided. Teacher responses fell into 5 groups, scored 0-4. These scores were cumulative, meaning that for someone to earn a 3 they needed to be able to show proficiency at a 1 and 2 level. Results of the pre and posttests are in the table below. The ultimate goal of this project is to improve student understanding. At this point we have data that our teachers did develop an understanding of GIS from the professional development workshop that we hope to see implemented into the classroom.Results of pre and posttests *The scoring rubric will be presented at the conference.

Study on Global GIS architecture and its key technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Chengqi; Guan, Li; Lv, Xuefeng

2009-09-01

Global GIS (G2IS) is a system, which supports the huge data process and the global direct manipulation on global grid based on spheroid or ellipsoid surface. Based on global subdivision grid (GSG), Global GIS architecture is presented in this paper, taking advantage of computer cluster theory, the space-time integration technology and the virtual reality technology. Global GIS system architecture is composed of five layers, including data storage layer, data representation layer, network and cluster layer, data management layer and data application layer. Thereinto, it is designed that functions of four-level protocol framework and three-layer data management pattern of Global GIS based on organization, management and publication of spatial information in this architecture. Three kinds of core supportive technologies, which are computer cluster theory, the space-time integration technology and the virtual reality technology, and its application pattern in the Global GIS are introduced in detail. The primary ideas of Global GIS in this paper will be an important development tendency of GIS.

Study on Global GIS architecture and its key technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheng, Chengqi; Guan, Li; Lv, Xuefeng

2010-11-01

Global GIS (G2IS) is a system, which supports the huge data process and the global direct manipulation on global grid based on spheroid or ellipsoid surface. Based on global subdivision grid (GSG), Global GIS architecture is presented in this paper, taking advantage of computer cluster theory, the space-time integration technology and the virtual reality technology. Global GIS system architecture is composed of five layers, including data storage layer, data representation layer, network and cluster layer, data management layer and data application layer. Thereinto, it is designed that functions of four-level protocol framework and three-layer data management pattern of Global GIS based on organization, management and publication of spatial information in this architecture. Three kinds of core supportive technologies, which are computer cluster theory, the space-time integration technology and the virtual reality technology, and its application pattern in the Global GIS are introduced in detail. The primary ideas of Global GIS in this paper will be an important development tendency of GIS.

Digital Mapping Techniques '11–12 workshop proceedings

USGS Publications Warehouse

Soller, David R.

2014-01-01

At these meetings, oral and poster presentations and special discussion sessions emphasized: (1) methods for creating and publishing map products (here, "publishing" includes Web-based release); (2) field data capture software and techniques, including the use of LiDAR; (3) digital cartographic techniques; (4) migration of digital maps into ArcGIS Geodatabase formats; (5) analytical GIS techniques; and (6) continued development of the National Geologic Map Database.

Planetary Geologic Mapping Handbook - 2009

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tanaka, K. L.; Skinner, J. A.; Hare, T. M.

2009-01-01

Geologic maps present, in an historical context, fundamental syntheses of interpretations of the materials, landforms, structures, and processes that characterize planetary surfaces and shallow subsurfaces (e.g., Varnes, 1974). Such maps also provide a contextual framework for summarizing and evaluating thematic research for a given region or body. In planetary exploration, for example, geologic maps are used for specialized investigations such as targeting regions of interest for data collection and for characterizing sites for landed missions. Whereas most modern terrestrial geologic maps are constructed from regional views provided by remote sensing data and supplemented in detail by field-based observations and measurements, planetary maps have been largely based on analyses of orbital photography. For planetary bodies in particular, geologic maps commonly represent a snapshot of a surface, because they are based on available information at a time when new data are still being acquired. Thus the field of planetary geologic mapping has been evolving rapidly to embrace the use of new data and modern technology and to accommodate the growing needs of planetary exploration. Planetary geologic maps have been published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) since 1962 (Hackman, 1962). Over this time, numerous maps of several planetary bodies have been prepared at a variety of scales and projections using the best available image and topographic bases. Early geologic map bases commonly consisted of hand-mosaicked photographs or airbrushed shaded-relief views and geologic linework was manually drafted using mylar bases and ink drafting pens. Map publishing required a tedious process of scribing, color peel-coat preparation, typesetting, and photo-laboratory work. Beginning in the 1990s, inexpensive computing, display capability and user-friendly illustration software allowed maps to be drawn using digital tools rather than pen and ink, and mylar bases became obsolete. Terrestrial geologic maps published by the USGS now are primarily digital products using geographic information system (GIS) software and file formats. GIS mapping tools permit easy spatial comparison, generation, importation, manipulation, and analysis of multiple raster image, gridded, and vector data sets. GIS software has also permitted the development of project-specific tools and the sharing of geospatial products among researchers. GIS approaches are now being used in planetary geologic mapping as well (e.g., Hare and others, 2009). Guidelines or handbooks on techniques in planetary geologic mapping have been developed periodically (e.g., Wilhelms, 1972, 1990; Tanaka and others, 1994). As records of the heritage of mapping methods and data, these remain extremely useful guides. However, many of the fundamental aspects of earlier mapping handbooks have evolved significantly, and a comprehensive review of currently accepted mapping methodologies is now warranted. As documented in this handbook, such a review incorporates additional guidelines developed in recent years for planetary geologic mapping by the NASA Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PGG) Program s Planetary Cartography and Geologic Mapping Working Group s (PCGMWG) Geologic Mapping Subcommittee (GEMS) on the selection and use of map bases as well as map preparation, review, publication, and distribution. In light of the current boom in planetary exploration and the ongoing rapid evolution of available data for planetary mapping, this handbook is especially timely.

Cadastral Resurvey using High Resolution Satellite Ortho Image - challenges: A case study in Odisha, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parida, P. K.; Sanabada, M. K.; Tripathi, S.

2014-11-01

Advancements in satellite sensor technology enabling capturing of geometrically accurate images of earth's surface coupled with DGPS/ETS and GIS technology holds the capability of large scale mapping of land resources at cadastral level. High Resolution Satellite Images depict field bunds distinctly. Thus plot parcels are to be delineated from cloud free ortho-images and obscured/difficult areas are to be surveyed using DGPS and ETS. The vector datasets thus derived through RS/DGPS/ETS survey are to be integrated in GIS environment to generate the base cadastral vector datasets for further settlement/title confirmation activities. The objective of this paper is to illustrate the efficacy of a hybrid methodology employed in Pitambarpur Sasana village under Digapahandi Tahasil of Ganjam district, as a pilot project, particularly in Odisha scenario where the land parcel size is very small. One of the significant observations of the study is matching of Cadastral map area i.e. 315.454 Acres, the image map area i.e. 314.887 Acres and RoR area i.e. 313.815 Acre. It was revealed that 79 % of plots derived by high-tech survey method show acceptable level of accuracy despite the fact that the mode of area measurement by ground and automated method has significant variability. The variations are more in case of Government lands, Temple/Trust lands, Common Property Resources and plots near to river/nalas etc. The study indicates that the adopted technology can be extended to other districts and cadastral resurvey and updating work can be done for larger areas of the country using this methodology.

Improving fieldwork by using GIS for quantitative exploration, data management and digital mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marra, Wouter; Alberti, Koko; van de Grint, Liesbeth; Karssenberg, Derek

2016-04-01

Fieldwork is an essential part of teaching geosciences. The essence of a fieldwork is to study natural phenomena in its proper context. Fieldworks dominantly utilize a learning-by-experiencing learning style and are often light on abstract thinking skills. We introduce more of the latter skills to a first-year fieldwork of several weeks by using Geographical Information Systems (GIS). We use simple techniques as the involved students had no prior experience with GIS. In our project, we introduced new tutorials prior to the fieldwork where students explored their research area using aerial photos, satellite images, an elevation model and slope-map using Google Earth and QGIS. The goal of these tutorials was to get acquainted with the area, plan the first steps of the fieldwork, and formulate hypotheses in form of a preliminary map based on quantitative data. During the actual fieldwork, half of the students processed and managed their field data using GIS, used elevation data as additional data source, and made digital geomorphological maps. This was in contrast to the other half of the students that used classic techniques with paper maps. We evaluated the learning benefits by two questionnaires (one before and one after the fieldwork), and a group interview with students that used GIS in the field. Students liked the use of Google Earth and GIS, and many indicate the added value of using quantitative maps. The hypotheses and fieldwork plans of the students were quickly superseded by insights during the fieldwork itself, but making these plans and hypotheses in advance improved the student's ability to perform empirical research. Students were very positive towards the use of GIS for their fieldwork, mainly because they experienced it as a modern and relevant technique for research and the labour market. Tech-savvy students were extra motivated and explored additional methods. There were some minor technical difficulties with using GIS during the fieldwork, but these can be solved by focussing the preparatory tutorials on what to expect during the fieldwork. We did not observe a significant difference in the quality of the products created by students between both groups since both digital and classic maps show a large range of aesthetic and scientific quality. To conclude, we had a positive experience with our first attempt to add GIS components to a classic fieldwork. The main benefit is that students use quantitative data which provides a different view on the fieldwork area and triggers abstract thinking. Future plans include using the student's field data in a web-gis app to allow easy remote supervision and using digital maps in the field.

Effects of habitat map generalization in biodiversity assessment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stoms, David M.

1992-01-01

Species richness is being mapped as part of an inventory of biological diversity in California (i.e., gap analysis). Species distributions are modeled with a GIS on the basis of maps of each species' preferred habitats. Species richness is then tallied in equal-area sampling units. A GIS sensitivity analysis examined the effects of the level of generalization of the habitat map on the predicted distribution of species richness in the southern Sierra Nevada. As the habitat map was generalized, the number of habitat types mapped within grid cells tended to decrease with a corresponding decline in numbers of species predicted. Further, the ranking of grid cells in order of predicted numbers of species changed dramatically between levels of generalization. Areas predicted to be of greatest conservation value on the basis of species richness may therefore be sensitive to GIS data resolution.

Map-IT! A Web-Based GIS Tool for Watershed Science Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curtis, David H.; Hewes, Christopher M.; Lossau, Matthew J.

This paper describes the development of a prototypic, Web-accessible GIS solution for K-12 science education and citizen-based watershed monitoring. The server side consists of ArcView IMS running on an NT workstation. The client is built around MapCafe. The client interface, which runs through a standard Web browser, supports standard MapCafe…

Forest-dweller demographics in West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

PubMed

Fox, J; Atok, K

1997-03-01

This study sought to ascertain, from census and other data, the number of people living on state-claimed forest land (SCFL) in West Kalimantan in the outer islands of Indonesia. One aim was to determine why data collection is problematic. In 1990 the outer islands accounted for 38% of total population, 93% of its land mass, and 98% of its forests. 72% of the land mass of the outer islands was designated SCFL. Kalimantan has 38.5 million hectares of SCFL, while West Kalimantan has 9.2 million hectares, or 63% of the land area of the province. In 1990, 3.2 million people lived in West Kalimantan. Two sets of forest cover maps and census statistics at the village level were integrated into the geographic information system (GIS) technology by district and regency boundaries and the location of villages. The fieldwork was conducted in Sengah Temila District in Pontianak Regency and Simpang Hulu District in Ketapang Regency. Four methods were used to estimate forest populations: 1) estimating gross population density, 2) mapping forest villages, 3) adjusting density to account for uneven population distribution, and 4) estimating population densities for specific villages and generalizing to the province level. Methods 3 and 4 gave the most reasonable estimates. Population varied from 650,000 to 1 million. Government census statistics proved to be accurate representations of human population. The 1:50,000 scale of topological maps of West Kalimantan correctly identified the location of villages listed in the census. The Indonesian Ministry of Forestry's forest-planning maps and the RePPProT maps both reported similar SCFL. The GIS technology was useful in integrating data from several sources. The lack of knowledge was not due to political or institutional interests.

Effect of Climatic Factors and Population Density on the Distribution of Dengue in Sri Lanka: A GIS Based Evaluation for Prediction of Outbreaks.

PubMed

Sirisena, Pdnn; Noordeen, Faseeha; Kurukulasuriya, Harithra; Romesh, Thanuja Alar; Fernando, LakKumar

2017-01-01

Dengue is one of the major hurdles to the public health in Sri Lanka, causing high morbidity and mortality. The present study focuses on the use of geographical information systems (GIS) to map and evaluate the spatial and temporal distribution of dengue in Sri Lanka from 2009 to 2014 and to elucidate the association of climatic factors with dengue incidence. Epidemiological, population and meteorological data were collected from the Epidemiology Unit, Department of Census and Statistics and the Department of Meteorology of Sri Lanka. Data were analyzed using SPSS (Version 20, 2011) and R studio (2012) and the maps were generated using Arc GIS 10.2. The dengue incidence showed a significant positive correlation with rainfall (p<0.0001). No positive correlation was observed between dengue incidence and temperature (p = 0.107) or humidity (p = 0.084). Rainfall prior to 2 and 5 months and a rise in the temperature prior to 9 months positively correlated with dengue incidence as based on the auto-correlation values. A rise in humidity prior to 1 month had a mild positive correlation with dengue incidence. However, a rise in humidity prior to 9 months had a significant negative correlation with dengue incidence based on the auto-correlation values. Remote sensing and GIS technologies give near real time utility of climatic data together with the past dengue incidence for the prediction of dengue outbreaks. In that regard, GIS will be applicable in outbreak predictions including prompt identification of locations with dengue incidence and forecasting future risks and thus direct control measures to minimize major outbreaks.

Effect of Climatic Factors and Population Density on the Distribution of Dengue in Sri Lanka: A GIS Based Evaluation for Prediction of Outbreaks

PubMed Central

Sirisena, PDNN; Noordeen, Faseeha; Kurukulasuriya, Harithra; Romesh, Thanuja ALAR; Fernando, LakKumar

2017-01-01

Dengue is one of the major hurdles to the public health in Sri Lanka, causing high morbidity and mortality. The present study focuses on the use of geographical information systems (GIS) to map and evaluate the spatial and temporal distribution of dengue in Sri Lanka from 2009 to 2014 and to elucidate the association of climatic factors with dengue incidence. Epidemiological, population and meteorological data were collected from the Epidemiology Unit, Department of Census and Statistics and the Department of Meteorology of Sri Lanka. Data were analyzed using SPSS (Version 20, 2011) and R studio (2012) and the maps were generated using Arc GIS 10.2. The dengue incidence showed a significant positive correlation with rainfall (p<0.0001). No positive correlation was observed between dengue incidence and temperature (p = 0.107) or humidity (p = 0.084). Rainfall prior to 2 and 5 months and a rise in the temperature prior to 9 months positively correlated with dengue incidence as based on the auto-correlation values. A rise in humidity prior to 1 month had a mild positive correlation with dengue incidence. However, a rise in humidity prior to 9 months had a significant negative correlation with dengue incidence based on the auto-correlation values. Remote sensing and GIS technologies give near real time utility of climatic data together with the past dengue incidence for the prediction of dengue outbreaks. In that regard, GIS will be applicable in outbreak predictions including prompt identification of locations with dengue incidence and forecasting future risks and thus direct control measures to minimize major outbreaks. PMID:28068339

National spatial data infrastructure - coming together of GIS and EO in India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rao, Mukund; Pandey, Amitabha; Ahuja, A. K.; Ramamurthy, V. S.; Kasturirangan, K.

2002-07-01

A new wave of technological innovation is allowing us to capture, store, process and display an unprecedented amount of geographical and spatial information about Society and a wide variety of environmental and cultural phenomena. Much of this information is "spatial" - that is, it refers to a coordinate system and is representable in map form. Current and accurate spatial data must be readily available to contribute to local, state and national development and contribute to economic growth, environmental quality and stability, and social progress. India has, over the past years, produced a rich "base" of map information through systematic topographic surveys, geological surveys, soil surveys, cadastral surveys, various natural resources inventory programmes and the use of the remote sensing images. Further, with the availability of precision, high-resolution satellite images, data enabling the organisation of GIS, combined with the Global Positioning System (GPS), the accuracy and information content of these spatial datasets or maps is extremely high. Encapsulating these maps and images into a National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) is the need of the hour and the emphasis has to be on information transparency and sharing, with the recognition that spatial information is a national resource and citizens, society, private enterprise and government have a right to access it, appropriately. Only through common conventions and technical agreements, standards, metadata definitions, network and access protocols will it be easily possible for the NSDI to come into existence. India has now a NSDI strategy and the "NSDI Strategy and Action Plan" report has been prepared and is being opened up to a national debate. The first steps have been taken but the end-goal is farther away but in sight now. While Government must provide the lead, private enterprise, NGOs and academia have a major role to play in making the NSDI a reality. NSDI will require for coming together of various "groups" and harmonizing their efforts in making this national endeavor a success. The paper discusses how the convergence of technologies is being strategised in NSDI - specifically of EO images and GIS technologies and how the nation would benefit from access to these datasets. The paper also discusses and illustrates with specific examples the techniques being developed and how the NSDI would support development efforts on the country.

Evaluation of GIS Technology in Assessing and Modeling Land Management Practices

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Archer, F.; Coleman, T. L.; Manu, A.; Tadesse, W.; Liu, G.

1997-01-01

There is an increasing concern of land owners to protect and maintain healthy and sustainable agroecosystems through the implementation of best management practices (BMP). The objectives of this study were: (1) To develop and evaluate the use of a Geographic Information System (GIS) technology for enhancing field-scale management practices; (2) evaluate the use of 2-dimensional displays of the landscape and (3) define spatial classes of variables from interpretation of geostatistical parameters. Soil samples were collected to a depth of 2 m at 15 cm increments. Existing data from topographic, land use, and soil survey maps of the Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station were converted to digital format. Additional soils data which included texture, pH, and organic matter were also generated. The digitized parameters were used to create a multilayered field-scale GIS. Two dimensional (2-D) displays of the parameters were generated using the ARC/INFO software. The spatial distribution of the parameters evaluated in both fields were similar which could be attributed to the similarity in vegetation and surface elevation. The ratio of the nugget to total semivariance, expressed as a percentage, was used to assess the degree of spatial variability. The results indicated that most of the parameters were moderate spatially dependent Biophysical constraint maps were generated from the database layers, and used in multiple combination to visualize results of the BMP. Understanding the spatial relationships of physical and chemical parameters that exists within a field should enable land managers to more effectively implement BMP to ensure a safe and sustainable environment.

Methodology for a GIS-based damage assessment for researchers following large scale disasters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crawford, Patrick Shane

The 1990s were designated the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction by the United Nations General Assembly. This push for decrease of loss of life, property destruction, and social and economic disruption brought advancements in disaster management, including damage assessment. Damage assessment in the wake of natural and manmade disasters is a useful tool for government agencies, insurance companies, and researchers. As technologies evolve damage assessment processes constantly evolve as well. Alongside the advances in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, as well as the growing awareness of the needs of a standard operating procedure for GIS-based damage assessment and a need to make the damage assessment process as quick and accurate as possible, damage assessment procedures are becoming easier to execute and the results are becoming more accurate and robust. With these technological breakthroughs, multi-disciplinary damage assessment reconnaissance teams have become more efficient in their assessment methods through better organization and more robust through addition of new datasets. Damage assessment personnel are aided by software tools that offer high-level analysis and increasingly rapid damage assessment methods. GIS software has advanced the damage assessment methods of these teams by combining remotely sensed aerial imagery, GPS, and other technologies to expand the uses of the data. GIS allows researchers to use aerial imagery to show field collected data in the geographic location that it was collected so that information can be revisited, measurements can be taken, and data can be disseminated to other researchers and the public. The GIS-based data available to the reconnaissance team includes photographs of damage, worksheets, calculations, voice messages collected while studying the affected area, and many other datasets which are based on the type of disaster and the research field. Along with visually mapping the data, geometric calculations can be conducted on the data to give the viewer more information about the damage. In Chapter 4, a tornado damage contour for Moore, Oklahoma following the May 20, 2013 tornado is shown. This damage contour was created in GIS based on the Enhanced Fujita (EF) damage scale, and gives the viewer an easily understood picture of the extent and distribution of the tornado. This thesis aims to describe a foundational groundwork for activities that are performed in the GIS-based damage assessment procedure and provide uses for the damage assessment as well as research being conducted on how to use the data collected from these assessments. This will allow researchers to conduct a highly adaptable, rapid GIS-based damage assessment of their own.

Connecting Our Nation’s Crisis Information Management Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

Voice Alert is a communications solution that uses a combination of database and GIS mapping technologies to deliver outbound notifications.85 EOC...needing to be accessed through an extension is necessary. With many businesses, hotels , and other locations requiring an extension to reach...built around five major management activities of an incident.130  Command  Operations  Planning  Logistics  Finance/administration. The new

Usability evaluation of cloud-based mapping tools for the display of very large datasets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stotz, Nicole Marie

The elasticity and on-demand nature of cloud services have made it easier to create web maps. Users only need access to a web browser and the Internet to utilize cloud based web maps, eliminating the need for specialized software. To encourage a wide variety of users, a map must be well designed; usability is a very important concept in designing a web map. Fusion Tables, a new product from Google, is one example of newer cloud-based distributed GIS services. It allows for easy spatial data manipulation and visualization, within the Google Maps framework. ESRI has also introduced a cloud based version of their software, called ArcGIS Online, built on Amazon's EC2 cloud. Utilizing a user-centered design framework, two prototype maps were created with data from the San Diego East County Economic Development Council. One map was built on Fusion Tables, and another on ESRI's ArcGIS Online. A usability analysis was conducted and used to compare both map prototypes in term so of design and functionality. Load tests were also ran, and performance metrics gathered on both map prototypes. The usability analysis was taken by 25 geography students, and consisted of time based tasks and questions on map design and functionality. Survey participants completed the time based tasks for the Fusion Tables map prototype quicker than those of the ArcGIS Online map prototype. While response was generally positive towards the design and functionality of both prototypes, overall the Fusion Tables map prototype was preferred. For the load tests, the data set was broken into 22 groups for a total of 44 tests. While the Fusion Tables map prototype performed more efficiently than the ArcGIS Online prototype, differences are almost unnoticeable. A SWOT analysis was conducted for each prototype. The results from this research point to the Fusion Tables map prototype. A redesign of this prototype would incorporate design suggestions from the usability survey, while some functionality would need to be dropped. This is a free product and would therefore be the best option if cost is an issue, but this map may not be supported in the future.

Development of GIS-based Wind Potential Map of Makkah Province, Saudi Arabia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nayyar, Z. A.; Zaigham, N. A.; Aburizaiza, O. S.; Mahar, G. A.; Eusufi, S. N.

2011-12-01

Global energy scenario is changing drastically toward decline, as new major discoveries of fossil fuel are not coming up significantly on regional basis. In case of Saudi Arabia, one of the largest fossil fuel producers, the major oil fields have started exhausting significantly as revealed from the literature research study. Considering the future energy crisis, different other renewable options presently have became imperative to be consider anticipating for the national development. Wind energy in one of them. The development of wind energy technology requires the baseline data relevant to the wind trends and their potentials. Under the present study, an attempt has been made to develop wind power density map of the Makkah Province of Saudi Arabia based on the meteorological data collected at different sparsely located weather stations. GIS application has provided a good option to interpolate the gap areas between the sparsely located weather recording stations. This paper describe the methodology and results of the present study.

Mapping urban green open space in Bontang city using QGIS and cloud computing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agus, F.; Ramadiani; Silalahi, W.; Armanda, A.; Kusnandar

2018-04-01

Digital mapping techniques are available freely and openly so that map-based application development is easier, faster and cheaper. A rapid development of Cloud Computing Geographic Information System makes this system can help the needs of the community for the provision of geospatial information online. The presence of urban Green Open Space (GOS) provide great benefits as an oxygen supplier, carbon-binding agent and can contribute to providing comfort and beauty of city life. This study aims to propose a platform application of GIS Cloud Computing (CC) of Bontang City GOS mapping. The GIS-CC platform uses the basic map available that’s free and open source. The research used survey method to collect GOS data obtained from Bontang City Government, while application developing works Quantum GIS-CC. The result section describes the existence of GOS Bontang City and the design of GOS mapping application.

Collapse susceptibility mapping in karstified gypsum terrain (Sivas basin - Turkey) by conditional probability, logistic regression, artificial neural network models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yilmaz, Isik; Keskin, Inan; Marschalko, Marian; Bednarik, Martin

2010-05-01

This study compares the GIS based collapse susceptibility mapping methods such as; conditional probability (CP), logistic regression (LR) and artificial neural networks (ANN) applied in gypsum rock masses in Sivas basin (Turkey). Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was first constructed using GIS software. Collapse-related factors, directly or indirectly related to the causes of collapse occurrence, such as distance from faults, slope angle and aspect, topographical elevation, distance from drainage, topographic wetness index- TWI, stream power index- SPI, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) by means of vegetation cover, distance from roads and settlements were used in the collapse susceptibility analyses. In the last stage of the analyses, collapse susceptibility maps were produced from CP, LR and ANN models, and they were then compared by means of their validations. Area Under Curve (AUC) values obtained from all three methodologies showed that the map obtained from ANN model looks like more accurate than the other models, and the results also showed that the artificial neural networks is a usefull tool in preparation of collapse susceptibility map and highly compatible with GIS operating features. Key words: Collapse; doline; susceptibility map; gypsum; GIS; conditional probability; logistic regression; artificial neural networks.

Technology Use in Rwandan Secondary Schools: An Assessment of Teachers' Attitudes towards Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akinyemi, Felicia O.

2016-01-01

Technology use is evident in all spheres of human endeavour. Focusing on technology use in education, this paper examines teachers' attitudes towards geographic information system (GIS). An assessment was made of GIS teachers in Rwandan secondary schools. Key areas covered include how GIS is implemented in schools, teachers' attitudes and…

TRENT2D WG: a smart web infrastructure for debris-flow modelling and hazard assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zorzi, Nadia; Rosatti, Giorgio; Zugliani, Daniel; Rizzi, Alessandro; Piffer, Stefano

2016-04-01

Mountain regions are naturally exposed to geomorphic flows, which involve large amounts of sediments and induce significant morphological modifications. The physical complexity of this class of phenomena represents a challenging issue for modelling, leading to elaborate theoretical frameworks and sophisticated numerical techniques. In general, geomorphic-flows models proved to be valid tools in hazard assessment and management. However, model complexity seems to represent one of the main obstacles to the diffusion of advanced modelling tools between practitioners and stakeholders, although the UE Flood Directive (2007/60/EC) requires risk management and assessment to be based on "best practices and best available technologies". Furthermore, several cutting-edge models are not particularly user-friendly and multiple stand-alone software are needed to pre- and post-process modelling data. For all these reasons, users often resort to quicker and rougher approaches, leading possibly to unreliable results. Therefore, some effort seems to be necessary to overcome these drawbacks, with the purpose of supporting and encouraging a widespread diffusion of the most reliable, although sophisticated, modelling tools. With this aim, this work presents TRENT2D WG, a new smart modelling solution for the state-of-the-art model TRENT2D (Armanini et al., 2009, Rosatti and Begnudelli, 2013), which simulates debris flows and hyperconcentrated flows adopting a two-phase description over a mobile bed. TRENT2D WG is a web infrastructure joining advantages offered by the software-delivering model SaaS (Software as a Service) and by WebGIS technology and hosting a complete and user-friendly working environment for modelling. In order to develop TRENT2D WG, the model TRENT2D was converted into a service and exposed on a cloud server, transferring computational burdens from the user hardware to a high-performing server and reducing computational time. Then, the system was equipped with an interface supporting Web-based GIS functionalities, making the model accessible through the World Wide Web. Furthermore, WebGIS technology allows georeferenced model input data and simulation results to be produced, managed, displayed and processed in a unique and intuitive working environment. Thanks to its large flexibility, TRENT2D WG was equipped also with a BUWAL-type procedure (Heinimann et al., 1998) to assess and map debris-flow hazard. In this way, model results can be used straightforwardly as input data of the hazard-mapping procedure, avoiding work fragmentation and taking wide advantage of the functionalities offered by WebGIS technology. TRENT2D WG is intended to become a reliable tool for researchers, practitioners and stakeholders, supporting modelling and hazard mapping effectively and encouraging connections between the research field and professional needs at a working scale.

Mapping one strong 'Ohana: using network analysis and GIS to enhance the effectiveness of a statewide coalition to prevent child abuse and neglect.

PubMed

Cardazone, Gina; U Sy, Angela; Chik, Ivan; Corlew, Laura Kate

2014-06-01

Network analysis and GIS enable the presentation of meaningful data about organizational relationships and community characteristics, respectively. Together, these tools can provide a concrete representation of the ecological context in which coalitions operate, and may help coalitions identify opportunities for growth and enhanced effectiveness. This study uses network analysis and GIS mapping as part of an evaluation of the One Strong 'Ohana (OSO) campaign. The OSO campaign was launched in 2012 via a partnership between the Hawai'i Children's Trust Fund (HCTF) and the Joyful Heart Foundation. The OSO campaign uses a collaborative approach aimed at increasing public awareness of child maltreatment and protective factors that can prevent maltreatment, as well as enhancing the effectiveness of the HCTF Coalition. This study focuses on three elements of the OSO campaign evaluation: (1) Network analysis exploring the relationships between 24 active Coalition member organizations, (2) GIS mapping of responses to a randomized statewide phone survey (n = 1,450) assessing awareness of factors contributing to child maltreatment, and (3) Combined GIS maps and network data, illustrating opportunities for geographically-targeted coalition building and public awareness activities.

GeoInquiries: Addressing a Grand Challenge for Teaching with GIS in Schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DiBiase, D.; Baker, T.

2016-12-01

According to the National Research Council (2006), geographic information systems (GIS) is a powerful tool for expanding students' abilities to think spatially, a critical skill for future STEM professionals. However, educators in mainstream subjects in U.S. education have struggled for decades to use GIS effectively in classrooms. GeoInquiries are no cost, standards-based (NGSS or AP), Creative Commons-licensed instructional activities that guide inquiry around map-based concepts found in key subjects like Earth and environmental science. Web maps developed for GeoInquiries expand upon printed maps in leading textbooks by taking advantage of 21st GIS capabilities. GeoInquiry collections consist of 15 activities, each chosen to offer a map-based activity every few weeks throughout the school year. GeoInquiries use a common inquiry instructional framework, learned by many educators during their teacher preparation coursework. GeoInquiries are instructionally flexible - acting as much like building blocks for crafting custom activities as finished instructional materials. Over a half million geoinquiries will be accessed in the next twelve months - serving an anticipated 15 million students. After a generation of outreach to the educators, GIS is finally finding its way the mainstream.

Landslide hazard assessment: recent trends and techniques.

PubMed

Pardeshi, Sudhakar D; Autade, Sumant E; Pardeshi, Suchitra S

2013-01-01

Landslide hazard assessment is an important step towards landslide hazard and risk management. There are several methods of Landslide Hazard Zonation (LHZ) viz. heuristic, semi quantitative, quantitative, probabilistic and multi-criteria decision making process. However, no one method is accepted universally for effective assessment of landslide hazards. In recent years, several attempts have been made to apply different methods of LHZ and to compare results in order to find the best suited model. This paper presents the review of researches on landslide hazard mapping published in recent years. The advanced multivariate techniques are proved to be effective in spatial prediction of landslides with high degree of accuracy. Physical process based models also perform well in LHZ mapping even in the areas with poor database. Multi-criteria decision making approach also play significant role in determining relative importance of landslide causative factors in slope instability process. Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) are powerful tools to assess landslide hazards and are being used extensively in landslide researches since last decade. Aerial photographs and high resolution satellite data are useful in detection, mapping and monitoring landslide processes. GIS based LHZ models helps not only to map and monitor landslides but also to predict future slope failures. The advancements in Geo-spatial technologies have opened the doors for detailed and accurate assessment of landslide hazards.

GIS Tools For Improving Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2000-07-01

Geographic Information System (GIS) software turns statistical data, such as accidents, and geographic data, such as roads and crash locations, into meaningful information for spatial analysis and mapping. In this project, GIS-based analytical techni...

Implementation of Open-Source Web Mapping Technologies to Support Monitoring of Governmental Schemes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pulsani, B. R.

2015-10-01

Several schemes are undertaken by the government to uplift social and economic condition of people. The monitoring of these schemes is done through information technology where involvement of Geographic Information System (GIS) is lacking. To demonstrate the benefits of thematic mapping as a tool for assisting the officials in making decisions, a web mapping application for three government programs such as Mother and Child Tracking system (MCTS), Telangana State Housing Corporation Limited (TSHCL) and Ground Water Quality Mapping (GWQM) has been built. Indeed the three applications depicted the distribution of various parameters thematically and helped in identifying the areas with higher and weaker distributions. Based on the three applications, the study tends to find similarities of many government schemes reflecting the nature of thematic mapping and hence deduces to implement this kind of approach for other schemes as well. These applications have been developed using SharpMap Csharp library which is a free and open source mapping library for developing geospatial applications. The study highlights upon the cost benefits of SharpMap and brings out the advantage of this library over proprietary vendors and further discusses its advantages over other open source libraries as well.

Mapping as a Spatial Data Source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hudecová, Ľubica

2013-03-01

The basic database for a geographic information system (BD GIS) forms the core of a national spatial data infrastructure. Nowadays decisions are being made about the potential data sources for additional data updates and refinement of the BD GIS. Will the data from departmental or other information system administrators serve for this purpose? This paper gives an answer as to whether it is advisable to use "geodetic mapping" (the results realized in the process of land consolidation) or "cadastral mapping" (the results realized in the process of the renewal of cadastral documentation by new mapping) for additional data updates. In our analysis we focus on the quality parameters at the individual data element level, namely the positional accuracy, attribute accuracy, logical consistency, and data resolution. The results of the analysis are compared with the contents of the Object Class Catalog of BD GIS (OCC), which describes the group of objects managed by BD GIS and defines the data collection methods, types of geometry and its properties.

Field-based Digital Mapping of the November 3, 2002 Susitna Glacier Fault Rupture - Integrating remotely sensed data, GIS, and photo-linking technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Staft, L. A.; Craw, P. A.

2003-12-01

In July 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey and the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) conducted field studies on the Susitna Glacier Fault (SGF), which ruptured on November 2002 during the M 7.9 Denali fault earthquake. The DGGS assumed responsibility for Geographic Information System (GIS) and data management, integrating remotely sensed imagery, GPS data, GIS, and photo-linking software to aid in planning and documentation of fieldwork. Pre-field preparation included acquisition of over 150, 1:6,000-scale true-color aerial photographs taken shortly after the SGF rupture, 1:63,360-scale color-infrared (CIR) 1980 aerial photographs, and digital geographic information including a 15-minute Digital Elevation Model (DEM), 1:63,360-scale Digital Raster Graphics (DRG), and LandSat 7 satellite imagery. Using Orthomapper software, we orthorectified and mosaiced seven CIRs, creating a georeferenced, digital photo base of the study area. We used this base to reference the 1:6,000-scale aerial photography, to view locations of field sites downloaded from GPS, and to locate linked digital photographs that were taken in the field. Photos were linked using GPS-Photo Link software which "links" digital photographs to GPS data by correlating time stamps from the GPS track log or waypoint file to those of the digital photos, using the correlated point data to create a photo location ESRI shape file. When this file is opened in ArcMap or ArcView with the GPS-Photo Link utility enabled, a thumbnail image of the linked photo appears when the cursor is over the photo location. Viewing photographed features and scarp-profile locations in GIS allowed us to evaluate data coverage of the rupture daily. Using remotely sensed imagery in the field with GIS gave us the versatility to display data on a variety of bases, including topographic maps, air photos, and satellite imagery, during fieldwork. In the field, we downloaded, processed, and reviewed data as it was collected, taking major steps toward final digital map production. Using the described techniques greatly enhanced our ability to analyze and interpret field data; the resulting digital data structure allows us to efficiently gather, disseminate, and archive critical field data.

US Topo Maps 2014: Program updates and research

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fishburn, Kristin A.

2014-01-01

The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) US Topo map program is now in year two of its second three-year update cycle. Since the program was launched in 2009, the product and the production system tools and processes have undergone enhancements that have made the US Topo maps a popular success story. Research and development continues with structural and content product enhancements, streamlined and more fully automated workflows, and the evaluation of a GIS-friendly US Topo GIS Packet. In addition, change detection methodologies are under evaluation to further streamline product maintenance and minimize resource expenditures for production in the future. The US Topo map program will continue to evolve in the years to come, providing traditional map users and Geographic Information System (GIS) analysts alike with a convenient, freely available product incorporating nationally consistent data that are quality assured to high standards.

Creation of a Web-Based GIS Server and Custom Geoprocessing Tools for Enhanced Hydrologic Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Welton, B.; Chouinard, K.; Sultan, M.; Becker, D.; Milewski, A.; Becker, R.

2010-12-01

Rising populations in the arid and semi arid parts of the World are increasing the demand for fresh water supplies worldwide. Many data sets needed for assessment of hydrologic applications across vast regions of the world are expensive, unpublished, difficult to obtain, or at varying scales which complicates their use. Fortunately, this situation is changing with the development of global remote sensing datasets and web-based platforms such as GIS Server. GIS provides a cost effective vehicle for comparing, analyzing, and querying a variety of spatial datasets as geographically referenced layers. We have recently constructed a web-based GIS, that incorporates all relevant geological, geochemical, geophysical, and remote sensing data sets that were readily used to identify reservoir types and potential well locations on local and regional scales in various tectonic settings including: (1) extensional environment (Red Sea rift), (2) transcurrent fault system (Najd Fault in the Arabian-Nubian Shield), and (3) compressional environments (Himalayas). The web-based GIS could also be used to detect spatial and temporal trends in precipitation, recharge, and runoff in large watersheds on local, regional, and continental scales. These applications were enabled through the construction of a web-based ArcGIS Server with Google Map’s interface and the development of customized geoprocessing tools. ArcGIS Server provides out-of-the-box setups that are generic in nature. This platform includes all of the standard web based GIS tools (e.g. pan, zoom, identify, search, data querying, and measurement). In addition to the standard suite of tools provided by ArcGIS Server an additional set of advanced data manipulation and display tools was also developed to allow for a more complete and customizable view of the area of interest. The most notable addition to the standard GIS Server tools is the custom on-demand geoprocessing tools (e.g., graph, statistical functions, custom raster creation, profile, TRMM). The generation of a wide range of derivative maps (e.g., buffer zone, contour map, graphs, temporal rainfall distribution maps) from various map layers (e.g., geologic maps, geophysics, satellite images) allows for more user flexibility. The use of these tools along with Google Map’s API which enables the website user to utilize high quality GeoEye 2 images provide by Google in conjunction with our data, creates a more complete image of the area being observed and allows for custom derivative maps to be created in the field and viewed immediately on the web, processes that were restricted to offline databases.

Future Perspective and Long-Term Strategy of the Indian EO Programme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rao, Mukund; Jayaraman, V.; Sridhara Murthi, K. R.; Kasturirangan, K.

EO technology development will continue to have profound effects on spatial information activities, as we are seeing it today - the changing demand of GIS technology to understanding processes around us and its representation as maps. In the longer term, information needs will drive further RS and GIS technological developments - creating stringent demands for technology solutions for spatial data capture, integration and representation. The emergence of Spatial Business from the highly volatile and dynamic synergy of information, technology and access will see a truly Spatial Society. EO will have a major impact on day-to-day life of nations, communities and even an individual. It will become the One-stop source for information - spatial information at that - thus enabling not only development oriented activities but also Business GIS, quality research and Info-savvy communities. Internationally, there will be a mix of Government and Commercial satellites vying to provide information services to a wide variety of users. EO satellites are also becoming smaller, efficient and less costlier. Almost 5-6 commercial systems will orbit around the Earth in the foreseeable future to generate massive, seamless archives of high-resolution panchromatic and multispectral images - almost reducing the need for aerial surveys for photography and mapping. Reaching resolution of cm level and covering narrower and more spectral bands, the trend is to IMAGE the Earth in its entirety and organize Image Infrastructures. The race will be to imaginatively capture the market with the fullest archive of the globe and cater to any imaging demand of users. One will also see efficient satellite operations that will enable imaging any part of the globe with minimum turn-around time - reaching concepts of IMAGING ON DEMAND. The need of the hour is looking forward now towards how the EO technology can adapt itself to the changing scenario and the steps to be taken to sustain use of EO data it in the future. The continuity of the EO services in India is the fundamental requirement for sustenance and further development of the technology and its utilisation, the stage is now set for transitioning the EO technology by initiating policy adjustments for the commercial use of space-based EO. Orientation needs to change from a "facility concept", which was the adage for the "promotional" era, to "Services concept" for the RS technology. The orientation also needs to change from RS data to Spatial Information and GIS databases. Demand for information would increase with a larger involvement of players in the developmental activities and catering to the information needs is what would be the driver for the commercial development. To that extent, the commercial development of Spatial Information needs to be thrusted forward and RS technology will be the back-bone for this information services initiative, because EO has the capability to provide accurate and timely information at large-scales in a repeated manner which is directly amenable to GIS manipulation. The thrust has to be towards developing an independent sector for Spatial Information with the active involvement of users, private entrepreneurs and other agencies to develop space-based RS market segments. This paper discusses the policy adjustments that will be required to be done for developing a viable and effective commercial EO programme in the country with a major thrust of initial government and industry partnership ultimately leading to a true industry sector for Spatial Information services.

Using participatory design to develop (public) health decision support systems through GIS

PubMed Central

Dredger, S Michelle; Kothari, Anita; Morrison, Jason; Sawada, Michael; Crighton, Eric J; Graham, Ian D

2007-01-01

Background Organizations that collect substantial data for decision-making purposes are often characterized as being 'data rich' but 'information poor'. Maps and mapping tools can be very useful for research transfer in converting locally collected data into information. Challenges involved in incorporating GIS applications into the decision-making process within the non-profit (public) health sector include a lack of financial resources for software acquisition and training for non-specialists to use such tools. This on-going project has two primary phases. This paper critically reflects on Phase 1: the participatory design (PD) process of developing a collaborative web-based GIS tool. Methods A case study design is being used whereby the case is defined as the data analyst and manager dyad (a two person team) in selected Ontario Early Year Centres (OEYCs). Multiple cases are used to support the reliability of findings. With nine producer/user pair participants, the goal in Phase 1 was to identify barriers to map production, and through the participatory design process, develop a web-based GIS tool suited for data analysts and their managers. This study has been guided by the Ottawa Model of Research Use (OMRU) conceptual framework. Results Due to wide variations in OEYC structures, only some data analysts used mapping software and there was no consistency or standardization in the software being used. Consequently, very little sharing of maps and data occurred among data analysts. Using PD, this project developed a web-based mapping tool (EYEMAP) that was easy to use, protected proprietary data, and permit limited and controlled sharing between participants. By providing data analysts with training on its use, the project also ensured that data analysts would not break cartographic conventions (e.g. using a chloropleth map for count data). Interoperability was built into the web-based solution; that is, EYEMAP can read many different standard mapping file formats (e.g. ESRI, MapInfo, CSV). Discussion Based on the evaluation of Phase 1, the PD process has served both as a facilitator and a barrier. In terms of successes, the PD process identified two key components that are important to users: increased data/map sharing functionality and interoperability. Some of the challenges affected developers and users; both individually and as a collective. From a development perspective, this project experienced difficulties in obtaining personnel skilled in web application development and GIS. For users, some data sharing barriers are beyond what a technological tool can address (e.g. third party data). Lastly, the PD process occurs in real time; both a strength and a limitation. Programmatic changes at the provincial level and staff turnover at the organizational level made it difficult to maintain buy-in as participants changed over time. The impacts of these successes and challenges will be evaluated more concretely at the end of Phase 2. Conclusion PD approaches, by their very nature, encourage buy-in to the development process, better addresses user-needs, and creates a sense of user-investment and ownership. PMID:18042298

Geographic information system as country-level development and monitoring tool, Senegal example

USGS Publications Warehouse

Moore, Donald G.; Howard, Stephen M.; ,

1990-01-01

Geographic information systems (GIS) allow an investigator the capability to merge and analyze numerous types of country-level resource data. Hypothetical resource analysis applications in Senegal were conducted to illustrate the utility of a GIS for development planning and resource monitoring. Map and attribute data for soils, vegetation, population, infrastructure, and administrative units were merged to form a database within a GIS. Several models were implemented using a GIS to: analyze development potential for sustainable dryland agriculture; prioritize where agricultural development should occur based upon a regional food budget; and monitor dynamic events with remote sensing. The steps for implementing a GIS analysis are described and illustrated, and the use of a GIS for conducting an economic analysis is outlined. Using a GIS for analysis and display of results opens new methods of communication between resource scientists and decision makers. Analyses yielding country-wide map output and detailed statistical data for each level of administration provide the advantage of a single system that can serve a variety of users.

GIS Facility and Services at the Ronald Greeley Center for Planetary Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, D. M.; Williams, D. A.

2017-06-01

At the RGCPS, we established a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) computer laboratory, where we instruct researchers how to use GIS and image processing software. Seminars demonstrate viewing, integrating, and digitally mapping planetary data.

Communicating and Evaluating the Causes of Seismicity in Oklahoma Using ArcGIS Online Story Map Web Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Justman, D.; Rose, K.; Bauer, J. R.; Miller, R., III; Vasylkivska, V.; Romeo, L.

2016-12-01

ArcGIS Online story maps allows users to communicate complex topics with geospatially enabled stories. This story map web application entitled "Evaluating the Mysteries of Seismicity in Oklahoma" has been employed as part of a broader research effort investigating the relationships between spatiotemporal systems and seismicity to understand the recent increase in seismicity by reviewing literature, exploring, and performing analyses on key datasets. It offers information about the unprecedented increase in seismic events since 2008, earthquake history, the risk to the population, physical mechanisms behind earthquakes, natural and anthropogenic earthquake factors, and individual & cumulative spatial extents of these factors. The cumulative spatial extents for natural, anthropogenic, and all combined earthquake factors were determined using the Cumulative Spatial Impact Layers (CSILs) tool developed at the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). Results show positive correlations between the average number of influences (datasets related to individual factors) and the number of earthquakes for every 100 square mile grid cell in Oklahoma, along with interesting spatial correlations for the individual & cumulative spatial extents of these factors when overlaid with earthquake density and a hotspot analysis for earthquake magnitude from 2010 to 2015.

Integrating 3D Visualization and GIS in Planning Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yin, Li

2010-01-01

Most GIS-related planning practices and education are currently limited to two-dimensional mapping and analysis although 3D GIS is a powerful tool to study the complex urban environment in its full spatial extent. This paper reviews current GIS and 3D visualization uses and development in planning practice and education. Current literature…

Coupling transfer function and GIS for assessing non-point-source groundwater vulnerability at regional scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Coppola, A.; Comegna, V.; de Simone, L.

2009-04-01

Non-point source (NPS) pollution in the vadose zone is a global environmental problem. The knowledge and information required to address the problem of NPS pollutants in the vadose zone cross several technological and sub disciplinary lines: spatial statistics, geographic information systems (GIS), hydrology, soil science, and remote sensing. The main issues encountered by NPS groundwater vulnerability assessment, as discussed by Stewart [2001], are the large spatial scales, the complex processes that govern fluid flow and solute transport in the unsaturated zone, the absence of unsaturated zone measurements of diffuse pesticide concentrations in 3-D regional-scale space as these are difficult, time consuming, and prohibitively costly, and the computational effort required for solving the nonlinear equations for physically-based modeling of regional scale, heterogeneous applications. As an alternative solution, here is presented an approach that is based on coupling of transfer function and GIS modeling that: a) is capable of solute concentration estimation at a depth of interest within a known error confidence class; b) uses available soil survey, climatic, and irrigation information, and requires minimal computational cost for application; c) can dynamically support decision making through thematic mapping and 3D scenarios This result was pursued through 1) the design and building of a spatial database containing environmental and physical information regarding the study area, 2) the development of the transfer function procedure for layered soils, 3) the final representation of results through digital mapping and 3D visualization. One side GIS modeled environmental data in order to characterize, at regional scale, soil profile texture and depth, land use, climatic data, water table depth, potential evapotranspiration; on the other side such information was implemented in the up-scaling procedure of the Jury's TFM resulting in a set of texture based travel time probability density functions for layered soils each describing a characteristic leaching behavior for soil profiles with similar hydraulic properties. Such behavior, in terms of solute travel time to water table, was then imported back into GIS and finally estimation groundwater vulnerability for each soil unit was represented into a map as well as visualized in 3D.

Geographic Information Systems and travel health.

PubMed

Bauer, Irmgard L; Puotinen, Marji

2002-01-01

Questions dealing with space and/or location have always been integral to understanding and addressing health issues, such as charting the spread of a disease. Health researchers have traditionally used paper maps to explore the spatial dimensions of health. However, due to advances in technology, it is now possible to ask such questions using a suite of computer-based methods and tools that are collectively known as a Geographic Information System (GIS).

Mapping suitability of rice production systems for mitigation: Strategic approach for prioritizing improved irrigation management across scales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wassmann, Reiner; Sander, Bjoern Ole

2016-04-01

After the successful conclusion of the COP21 in Paris, many developing countries are now embracing the task of reducing emissions with much vigor than previously. In many countries of South and South-East Asia, the agriculture sector constitutes a vast share of the national GHG budget which can mainly be attributed to methane emissions from flooded rice production. Thus, rice growing countries are now looking for tangible and easily accessible information as to how to reduce emissions from rice production in an efficient manner. Given present and future food demand, mitigation options will have to comply with aim of increasing productivity. At the same time, limited financial resources demand for strategic planning of potential mitigation projects based on cost-benefit ratios. At this point, the most promising approach for mitigating methane emissions from rice is an irrigation technique called Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD). AWD was initially developed for saving water and subsequently, represents an adaptation strategy in its own right by coping with less rainfall. Moreover, AWD also reduces methane emissions in a range from 30-70%. However, AWD is not universally suitable. It is attractive to farmers who have to pump water and may save fuel under AWD, but renders limited incentives in situations where there is no real pressing water scarcity. Thus, planning for AWD adoption at larger scale, e.g. for country-wide programs, should be based on a systematic prioritization of target environments. This presentation encompasses a new methodology for mapping suitability of water-saving in rice production - as a means for planning adaptation and mitigation programs - alongside with preliminary results. The latter comprises three new GIS maps on climate-driven suitability of AWD in major rice growing countries (Philippines, Vietnam, Bangladesh). These maps have been derived from high-resolution data of the areal and temporal extent of rice production that are now available for most Asian countries. These GIS maps have been expanded by adding relevant data on climate and soil texture to assess the water balance at any given point (in space and time). In the next step, these water balances (available in 10d intervals) have been integrated over the entire season to determine the climate-driven suitability for AWD implementation. These new GIS maps are vital for policy makers and other stakeholders who are now faced with the challenge of developing mitigation programs. The GIS data bases could further be expanded by more GIS layers on irrigation specific information (e.g. use of pumps) as well as on other mitigation approaches such as improved post-harvest technologies for preventing straw burning.

Research and Analysis Home Page- Department of Labor and Workforce

Science.gov Websites

) Demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics for Alaska and its boroughs/census areas , communities, and statistical areas. Maps & GIS Maps and GIS data for Alaska, economic regions, boroughs Alaska. Industry-related Trends Alaska Economic Trends articles highlighting various Alaska industries

Web GIS in practice III: creating a simple interactive map of England's Strategic Health Authorities using Google Maps API, Google Earth KML, and MSN Virtual Earth Map Control

PubMed Central

Boulos, Maged N Kamel

2005-01-01

This eye-opener article aims at introducing the health GIS community to the emerging online consumer geoinformatics services from Google and Microsoft (MSN), and their potential utility in creating custom online interactive health maps. Using the programmable interfaces provided by Google and MSN, we created three interactive demonstrator maps of England's Strategic Health Authorities. These can be browsed online at – Google Maps API (Application Programming Interface) version, – Google Earth KML (Keyhole Markup Language) version, and – MSN Virtual Earth Map Control version. Google and MSN's worldwide distribution of "free" geospatial tools, imagery, and maps is to be commended as a significant step towards the ultimate "wikification" of maps and GIS. A discussion is provided of these emerging online mapping trends, their expected future implications and development directions, and associated individual privacy, national security and copyrights issues. Although ESRI have announced their planned response to Google (and MSN), it remains to be seen how their envisaged plans will materialize and compare to the offerings from Google and MSN, and also how Google and MSN mapping tools will further evolve in the near future. PMID:16176577

Regulations in the field of Geo-Information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Felus, Y.; Keinan, E.; Regev, R.

2013-10-01

The geomatics profession has gone through a major revolution during the last two decades with the emergence of advanced GNSS, GIS and Remote Sensing technologies. These technologies have changed the core principles and working procedures of geomatics professionals. For this reason, surveying and mapping regulations, standards and specifications should be updated to reflect these changes. In Israel, the "Survey Regulations" is the principal document that regulates the professional activities in four key areas geodetic control, mapping, cadastre and Georaphic information systems. Licensed Surveyors and mapping professionals in Israel are required to work according to those regulations. This year a new set of regulations have been published and include a few major amendments as follows: In the Geodesy chapter, horizontal control is officially based on the Israeli network of Continuously Operating GNSS Reference Stations (CORS). The regulations were phrased in a manner that will allow minor datum changes to the CORS stations due to Earth Crustal Movements. Moreover, the regulations permit the use of GNSS for low accuracy height measurements. In the Cadastre chapter, the most critical change is the move to Coordinate Based Cadastre (CBC). Each parcel corner point is ranked according to its quality (accuracy and clarity of definition). The highest ranking for a parcel corner is 1. A point with a rank of 1 is defined by its coordinates alone. Any other contradicting evidence is inferior to the coordinates values. Cadastral Information is stored and managed via the National Cadastral Databases. In the Mapping and GIS chapter; the traditional paper maps (ranked by scale) are replaced by digital maps or spatial databases. These spatial databases are ranked by their quality level. Quality level is determined (similar to the ISO19157 Standard) by logical consistency, completeness, positional accuracy, attribute accuracy, temporal accuracy and usability. Metadata is another critical component of any spatial database. Every component in a map should have a metadata identification, even if the map was compiled from multiple resources. The regulations permit the use of advanced sensors and mapping techniques including LIDAR and digita l cameras that have been certified and meet the defined criteria. The article reviews these new regulations and the decision that led to them.

15 maps merged in one data structure - GIS-based template for Dawn at Ceres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naß, A.; Dawn Mapping Team

2017-09-01

Derive regional and global valid statements out of the map (quadrangles) is already a very time intensive task. However, another challenge is how individual mappers can generate one homogenous GIS-based project (w.r.t. geometrical and visual character) representing one geologically-consistent final map. Within this contribution a template will be presented which was generated for the process of the interpretative mapping project of Ceres to accomplish the requirement of unifying and merging individual quadrangle.

Digital floodplain mapping and an analysis of errors involved

USGS Publications Warehouse

Hamblen, C.S.; Soong, D.T.; Cai, X.

2007-01-01

Mapping floodplain boundaries using geographical information system (GIS) and digital elevation models (DEMs) was completed in a recent study. However convenient this method may appear at first, the resulting maps potentially can have unaccounted errors. Mapping the floodplain using GIS is faster than mapping manually, and digital mapping is expected to be more common in the future. When mapping is done manually, the experience and judgment of the engineer or geographer completing the mapping and the contour resolution of the surface topography are critical in determining the flood-plain and floodway boundaries between cross sections. When mapping is done digitally, discrepancies can result from the use of the computing algorithm and digital topographic datasets. Understanding the possible sources of error and how the error accumulates through these processes is necessary for the validation of automated digital mapping. This study will evaluate the procedure of floodplain mapping using GIS and a 3 m by 3 m resolution DEM with a focus on the accumulated errors involved in the process. Within the GIS environment of this mapping method, the procedural steps of most interest, initially, include: (1) the accurate spatial representation of the stream centerline and cross sections, (2) properly using a triangulated irregular network (TIN) model for the flood elevations of the studied cross sections, the interpolated elevations between them and the extrapolated flood elevations beyond the cross sections, and (3) the comparison of the flood elevation TIN with the ground elevation DEM, from which the appropriate inundation boundaries are delineated. The study area involved is of relatively low topographic relief; thereby, making it representative of common suburban development and a prime setting for the need of accurately mapped floodplains. This paper emphasizes the impacts of integrating supplemental digital terrain data between cross sections on floodplain delineation. ?? 2007 ASCE.

Collaborative GIS for flood susceptibility mapping: An example from Mekong river basin of Viet Nam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thanh, B.

2016-12-01

Flooding is one of the most dangerous natural disasters in Vietnam. Floods have caused serious damages to people and made adverse impact on social economic development across the country, especially in lower river basin where there is high risk of flooding as consequences of the climate change and social activities. This paper presents a collaborative platform of a combination of an interactive web-GIS framework and a multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) tool. MCE is carried out in server side through web interface, in which parameters used for evaluation are groups into three major categories, including (1) climatic factor: precipitation, typhoon frequency, temperature, humidity (2) physiographic data: DEM, topographic wetness index, NDVI, stream power index, soil texture, distance to river (3) social factor: NDBI, land use pattern. Web-based GIS is based on open-source technology that includes an information page, a page for MCE tool that users can interactively alter parameters in flood susceptible mapping, and a discussion page. The system is designed for local participation in prediction of the flood risk magnitude under impacts of natural processes and human intervention. The proposed flood susceptibility assessment prototype was implemented in the Mekong river basin, Viet Nam. Index images were calculated using Landsat data, and other were collected from authorized agencies. This study shows the potential to combine web-GIS and spatial analysis tool to flood hazard risk assessment. The combination can be a supportive solution that potentially assists the interaction between stakeholders in information exchange and in disaster management, thus provides for better analysis, control and decision-making.

Digital geologic map and GIS database of Venezuela

USGS Publications Warehouse

Garrity, Christopher P.; Hackley, Paul C.; Urbani, Franco

2006-01-01

The digital geologic map and GIS database of Venezuela captures GIS compatible geologic and hydrologic data from the 'Geologic Shaded Relief Map of Venezuela,' which was released online as U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2005-1038. Digital datasets and corresponding metadata files are stored in ESRI geodatabase format; accessible via ArcGIS 9.X. Feature classes in the geodatabase include geologic unit polygons, open water polygons, coincident geologic unit linework (contacts, faults, etc.) and non-coincident geologic unit linework (folds, drainage networks, etc.). Geologic unit polygon data were attributed for age, name, and lithologic type following the Lexico Estratigrafico de Venezuela. All digital datasets were captured from source data at 1:750,000. Although users may view and analyze data at varying scales, the authors make no guarantee as to the accuracy of the data at scales larger than 1:750,000.

A Web-GIS Procedure Based on Satellite Multi-Spectral and Airborne LIDAR Data to Map the Road blockage Due to seismic Damages of Built-Up Urban Areas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costanzo, Antonio; Montuori, Antonio; Silva, Juan Pablo; Silvestri, Malvina; Musacchio, Massimo; Buongiorno, Maria Fabrizia; Stramondo, Salvatore

2016-08-01

In this work, a web-GIS procedure to map the risk of road blockage in urban environments through the combined use of space-borne and airborne remote sensing sensors is presented. The methodology concerns (1) the provision of a geo-database through the integration of space-borne multispectral images and airborne LiDAR data products; (2) the modeling of building vulnerability, based on the corresponding 3D geometry and construction time information; (3) the GIS-based mapping of road closure due to seismic- related building collapses based on the building characteristic height and the width of the road. Experimental results, gathered for the Cosenza urban area, allow demonstrating the benefits of both the proposed approach and the GIS-based integration of multi-platforms remote sensing sensors and techniques for seismic road assessment purposes.

Recent Observations of Increased Thinning of the Greenland Ice Sheet Measured by Aircraft GPS and Laser Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Krabill, William B.

2004-01-01

The Arctic Ice Mapping group (Project AIM) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Wallops Flight Facility has been conducting systematic topographic surveys of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIs) since 1993, using scanning airborne laser altimeters combined with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology onboard NASA's P-3 aircraft. Flight lines have covered all major ice drainage basins, with repeating surveys after a 5-year interval during the decade of the 90's. Analysis of this data documented significant thinning in many areas near the ice sheet margins and an overall negative mass balance of the GIS (Science, 2000). In 2001, 2002, and 2003 many of these flight lines were re-surveyed, providing evidence of continued or accelerated thinning in all observed areas around the margin of the GIs. Additionally, however, a highly-anomalous snowfall was observed between 2002 and 2003 in SE Greenland - perhaps an indicator of a shift in the regional climate?

GIS In-Service Teacher Training Based on TPACK

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hong, Jung Eun; Stonier, Francis

2015-01-01

This article introduces the geographic information systems (GIS) in-service teacher training, focusing on the intersection of technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK) for successful implementation of GIS in the classroom. Eleven social studies teachers in Georgia learned GIS technologies, inquiry-based learning, and social studies…

Digital geologic map of part of the Thompson Falls 1:100,000 quadrangle, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lewis, Reed S.; Derkey, Pamela D.

1999-01-01

The geology of the Thompson Falls 1:100,000 quadrangle, Idaho was compiled by Reed S. Lewis in 1997 onto a 1:100,000-scale greenline mylar of the topographic base map for input into a geographic information system (GIS). The resulting digital geologic map GIS can be queried in many ways to produce a variety of geologic maps. Digital base map data files (topography, roads, towns, rivers and lakes, etc.) are not included: they may be obtained from a variety of commercial and government sources. This database is not meant to be used or displayed at any scale larger than 1:100,000 (e.g., 1:62,500 or 1:24,000). The map area is located in north Idaho. This open-file report describes the geologic map units, the methods used to convert the geologic map data into a digital format, the Arc/Info GIS file structures and relationships, and explains how to download the digital files from the U.S. Geological Survey public access World Wide Web site on the Internet.

Digital engineering aspects of Karst map: a GIS version of Davies, W.E., Simpson, J.H., Ohlmacher, G.C., Kirk, W.S., and Newton, E.G., 1984, Engineering aspects of Karst: U.S. Geological Survey, National Atlas of the United States of America, Scale 1:7,500,000

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tobin, Bret D.; Weary, David J.

2004-01-01

These data are digital facsimiles of the original 1984 Engineering Aspects of Karst map by Davies and others. This data set was converted from a printed map to a digital GIS coverage to provide users with a citable national scale karst data set to use for graphic and demonstration purposes until new, improved data are developed. These data may be used freely with proper citation. Because it has been converted to GIS format, these data can be easily projected, displayed and queried for multiple uses in GIS. The karst polygons of the original map were scanned from the stable base negatives of the original, vectorized, edited and then attributed with unit descriptions. All of these processes potentially introduce small errors and distortions to the geography. The original map was produced at a scale of 1:7,500,000; this coverage is not as accurate, and should be used for broad-scale purposes only. It is not intended for any site-specific studies.

Implementation of a near-real time cross-border web-mapping platform on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration with open-source software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knörchen, Achim; Ketzler, Gunnar; Schneider, Christoph

2015-01-01

Although Europe has been growing together for the past decades, cross-border information platforms on environmental issues are still scarce. With regard to the establishment of a web-mapping tool on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration for the Euregio Meuse-Rhine located in the border region of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, this article describes the research on methodical and technical backgrounds implementing such a platform. An open-source solution was selected for presenting the data in a Web GIS (OpenLayers/GeoExt; both JavaScript-based), applying other free tools for data handling (Python), data management (PostgreSQL), geo-statistical modelling (Octave), geoprocessing (GRASS GIS/GDAL) and web mapping (MapServer). The multilingual, made-to-order online platform provides access to near-real time data on PM concentration as well as additional background information. In an open data section, commented configuration files for the Web GIS client are being made available for download. Furthermore, all geodata generated by the project is being published under public domain and can be retrieved in various formats or integrated into Desktop GIS as Web Map Services (WMS).

Accuracy and precision of stream reach water surface slopes estimated in the field and from maps

USGS Publications Warehouse

Isaak, D.J.; Hubert, W.A.; Krueger, K.L.

1999-01-01

The accuracy and precision of five tools used to measure stream water surface slope (WSS) were evaluated. Water surface slopes estimated in the field with a clinometer or from topographic maps used in conjunction with a map wheel or geographic information system (GIS) were significantly higher than WSS estimated in the field with a surveying level (biases of 34, 41, and 53%, respectively). Accuracy of WSS estimates obtained with an Abney level did not differ from surveying level estimates, but conclusions regarding the accuracy of Abney levels and clinometers were weakened by intratool variability. The surveying level estimated WSS most precisely (coefficient of variation [CV] = 0.26%), followed by the GIS (CV = 1.87%), map wheel (CV = 6.18%), Abney level (CV = 13.68%), and clinometer (CV = 21.57%). Estimates of WSS measured in the field with an Abney level and estimated for the same reaches with a GIS used in conjunction with l:24,000-scale topographic maps were significantly correlated (r = 0.86), but there was a tendency for the GIS to overestimate WSS. Detailed accounts of the methods used to measure WSS and recommendations regarding the measurement of WSS are provided.

Earth Observation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1994-01-01

For pipeline companies, mapping, facilities inventory, pipe inspections, environmental reporting, etc. is a monumental task. An Automated Mapping/Facilities Management/Geographic Information Systems (AM/FM/GIS) is the solution. However, this is costly and time consuming. James W. Sewall Company, an AM/FM/GIS consulting firm proposed an EOCAP project to Stennis Space Center (SSC) to develop a computerized system for storage and retrieval of digital aerial photography. This would provide its customer, Algonquin Gas Transmission Company, with an accurate inventory of rights-of-way locations and pipeline surroundings. The project took four years to complete and an important byproduct was SSC's Digital Aerial Rights-of-Way Monitoring System (DARMS). DARMS saves substantial time and money. EOCAP enabled Sewall to develop new products and expand its customer base. Algonquin now manages regulatory requirements more efficiently and accurately. EOCAP provides government co-funding to encourage private investment in and broader use of NASA remote sensing technology. Because changes on Earth's surface are accelerating, planners and resource managers must assess the consequences of change as quickly and accurately as possible. Pacific Meridian Resources and NASA's Stennis Space Center (SSC) developed a system for monitoring changes in land cover and use, which incorporated the latest change detection technologies. The goal of this EOCAP project was to tailor existing technologies to a system that could be commercialized. Landsat imagery enabled Pacific Meridian to identify areas that had sustained substantial vegetation loss. The project was successful and Pacific Meridian's annual revenues have substantially increased. EOCAP provides government co-funding to encourage private investment in and broader use of NASA remote sensing technology.

Seismic hazard assessment of Syria using seismicity, DEM, slope, active tectonic and GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmad, Raed; Adris, Ahmad; Singh, Ramesh

2016-07-01

In the present work, we discuss the use of an integrated remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques for evaluation of seismic hazard areas in Syria. The present study is the first time effort to create seismic hazard map with the help of GIS. In the proposed approach, we have used Aster satellite data, digital elevation data (30 m resolution), earthquake data, and active tectonic maps. Many important factors for evaluation of seismic hazard were identified and corresponding thematic data layers (past earthquake epicenters, active faults, digital elevation model, and slope) were generated. A numerical rating scheme has been developed for spatial data analysis using GIS to identify ranking of parameters to be included in the evaluation of seismic hazard. The resulting earthquake potential map delineates the area into different relative susceptibility classes: high, moderate, low and very low. The potential earthquake map was validated by correlating the obtained different classes with the local probability that produced using conventional analysis of observed earthquakes. Using earthquake data of Syria and the peak ground acceleration (PGA) data is introduced to the model to develop final seismic hazard map based on Gutenberg-Richter (a and b values) parameters and using the concepts of local probability and recurrence time. The application of the proposed technique in Syrian region indicates that this method provides good estimate of seismic hazard map compared to those developed from traditional techniques (Deterministic (DSHA) and probabilistic seismic hazard (PSHA). For the first time we have used numerous parameters using remote sensing and GIS in preparation of seismic hazard map which is found to be very realistic.

The GIS map coloring support decision-making system based on case-based reasoning and simulated annealing algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Shuang; Xiang, Wenting; Tian, Yangge

2009-10-01

Map coloring is a hard task even to the experienced map experts. In the GIS project, usually need to color map according to the customer, which make the work more complex. With the development of GIS, more and more programmers join the project team, which lack the training of cartology, their coloring map are harder to meet the requirements of customer. From the experience, customers with similar background usually have similar tastes for coloring map. So, we developed a GIS color scheme decision-making system which can select color schemes of similar customers from case base for customers to select and adjust. The system is a BS/CS mixed system, the client side use JSP and make it possible for the system developers to go on remote calling of the colors scheme cases in the database server and communicate with customers. Different with general case-based reasoning, even the customers are very similar, their selection may have difference, it is hard to provide a "best" option. So, we select the Simulated Annealing Algorithm (SAA) to arrange the emergence order of different color schemes. Customers can also dynamically adjust certain features colors based on existing case. The result shows that the system can facilitate the communication between the designers and the customers and improve the quality and efficiency of coloring map.

The Lichen-GIS Project, Teaching Students How to Use Bioindicator Species to Assess Environmental Quality.

PubMed

Wagner, Stephen C; McDonald, Darrel; Watson, Trey; Taylor, Josephine; Sowards, Alan B

2009-01-01

A content-driven biology course for preservice K-8 teachers has been developed. This course uses the constructivist approach, where instructors engage students by organizing information around concept-based problems. To this end, a semester-long, inquiry-based project was introduced where students studied lichen populations on trees located on their campus to monitor air quality. Data were incorporated into a geographical information systems (GIS) database to demonstrate how it can be used to map communities. Student teams counted the number of each lichen type within a grid placed on each tree trunk sampled and entered this information into a GIS database. The students constructed maps of lichen populations at each sample site and wrote abstracts about their research. Student performance was assessed by the preparation of these abstracts as well as by scores on pre- and posttests of key content measures. Students also completed a survey to determine whether the project aided in their comprehension as well as their interest in incorporating this activity into their own curricula. The students' pre- and posttest results showed an eightfold improvement in the total score after the semester project. Additionally, correct responses to each individual content measure increased by at least 35%. Total scores for the abstract ranged from 12 to 20 points out of 20 total points possible (60% to 100%), with a mean score of 15.8 points (78%). These results indicate that this exercise provided an excellent vehicle to teach students about lichens and their use as bioindicators and the application of geospatial technologies to map environmental data.

An early warning system for groundwater pollution based on the assessment of groundwater pollution risks.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Weihong.; Zhao, Yongsheng; Hong, Mei; Guo, Xiaodong

2009-04-01

Groundwater pollution usually is complex and concealed, remediation of which is difficult, high cost, time-consuming, and ineffective. An early warning system for groundwater pollution is needed that detects groundwater quality problems and gets the information necessary to make sound decisions before massive groundwater quality degradation occurs. Groundwater pollution early warning were performed by considering comprehensively the current groundwater quality, groundwater quality varying trend and groundwater pollution risk . The map of the basic quality of the groundwater was obtained by fuzzy comprehensive evaluation or BP neural network evaluation. Based on multi-annual groundwater monitoring datasets, Water quality state in sometime of the future was forecasted using time-sequenced analyzing methods. Water quality varying trend was analyzed by Spearman's rank correlative coefficient.The relative risk map of groundwater pollution was estimated through a procedure that identifies, cell by cell,the values of three factors, that is inherent vulnerability, load risk of pollution source and contamination hazard. DRASTIC method was used to assess inherent vulnerability of aquifer. Load risk of pollution source was analyzed based on the potential of contamination and pollution degree. Assessment index of load risk of pollution source which involves the variety of pollution source, quantity of contaminants, releasing potential of pollutants, and distance were determined. The load risks of all sources considered by GIS overlay technology. Early warning model of groundwater pollution combined with ComGIS technology organically, the regional groundwater pollution early-warning information system was developed, and applied it into Qiqiha'er groundwater early warning. It can be used to evaluate current water quality, to forecast water quality changing trend, and to analyze space-time influencing range of groundwater quality by natural process and human activities. Keywords: groundwater pollution, early warning, aquifer vulnerability, pollution load, pollution risk, ComGIS

Comparison of RS/GIS analysis with classic mapping approaches for siting low-yield boreholes for hand pumps in crystalline terrains. An application to rural communities of the Caimbambo province, Angola

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martín-Loeches, Miguel; Reyes-López, Jaime; Ramírez-Hernández, Jorge; Temiño-Vela, Javier; Martínez-Santos, Pedro

2018-02-01

In poverty-stricken regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, groundwater for supply is often obtained by means of hand pumps, which means that low-yield boreholes are acceptable. However, boreholes are often sited without sufficient hydrogeological information due to budget constraints, which leads to high failure rates. Cost-effective techniques for borehole siting need to be developed in order to maximize the success rate. In regions underlain by granite, weathered formations are usually targeted for drilling, as these are generally presented as a better cost-benefit ratio than the fractured basement. Within this context, this research focuses on a granite region of Angola. A comparison of two mapping techniques for borehole siting-groundwater prospect is presented. A classic hydrogeomorphological map was developed first based on aerial photographs, field mapping and a geophysical survey. This map represents a considerable time investment and was developed by qualified technicians. The second map (RS/GIS) is considerably simpler and more cost-effective. It was developed by the integration in a GIS platform of six maps of equal importance-slope, drainage density, vegetation vigor, presence of clay in the soil, lineaments and rock outcrops-prepared from Landsat 8 imagery and a Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Similar results were obtained in both cases. By means of a supervised classification of Landsat images, RS/GIS analysis allows for the identification of granitic outcrops, house clusters and sandy alluvial valleys. This in turn allows for the delineation of low-interest or contamination-prone areas, thus contributing additional qualitative information. The position of a well that is going to be powered by a handpump is chosen also upon social and local matters as the distance to the stakeholders, information that are not difficult to integrate in the GIS. Although the second map needs some field inputs (i.e. surveys to determine the thickness of the weathered pack), results show that RS/GIS analyses such as this one provide a valuable and cost-effective alternative for siting low-yield boreholes in remote regions.

Mapping of mosquito breeding sites in malaria endemic areas in Pos Lenjang, Kuala Lipis, Pahang, Malaysia.

PubMed

Ahmad, Rohani; Ali, Wan N W M; Nor, Zurainee M; Ismail, Zamree; Hadi, Azahari A; Ibrahim, Mohd N; Lim, Lee H

2011-12-13

The application of the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to the study of vector transmitted diseases considerably improves the management of the information obtained from the field survey and facilitates the study of the distribution patterns of the vector species. As part of a study to assess remote sensing data as a tool for vector mapping, geographical features like rivers, small streams, forest, roads and residential area were digitized from the satellite images and overlaid with entomological data. Map of larval breeding habitats distribution and map of malaria transmission risk area were developed using a combination of field data, satellite image analysis and GIS technique. All digital data in the GIS were displayed in the WGS 1984 coordinate system. Six occasions of larval surveillance were also conducted to determine the species of mosquitoes, their characteristics and the abundance of habitats. Larval survey studies showed that anopheline and culicine larvae were collected and mapped from 79 and 67 breeding sites respectively. Breeding habitats were located at 100-400 m from human settlement. Map of villages with 400 m buffer zone visualizes that more than 80% of Anopheles maculatus s.s. immature habitats were found within the buffer zone. This study amplifies the need for a broadening of the GIS approach which is emphasized with the aim of rejuvenating the dynamic aspect of entomological studies in Malaysia. In fact, the use of such basic GIS platforms promote a more rational basis for strategic planning and management in the control of endemic diseases at the national level.

Mapping of mosquito breeding sites in malaria endemic areas in Pos Lenjang, Kuala Lipis, Pahang, Malaysia

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The application of the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to the study of vector transmitted diseases considerably improves the management of the information obtained from the field survey and facilitates the study of the distribution patterns of the vector species. Methods As part of a study to assess remote sensing data as a tool for vector mapping, geographical features like rivers, small streams, forest, roads and residential area were digitized from the satellite images and overlaid with entomological data. Map of larval breeding habitats distribution and map of malaria transmission risk area were developed using a combination of field data, satellite image analysis and GIS technique. All digital data in the GIS were displayed in the WGS 1984 coordinate system. Six occasions of larval surveillance were also conducted to determine the species of mosquitoes, their characteristics and the abundance of habitats. Results Larval survey studies showed that anopheline and culicine larvae were collected and mapped from 79 and 67 breeding sites respectively. Breeding habitats were located at 100-400 m from human settlement. Map of villages with 400 m buffer zone visualizes that more than 80% of Anopheles maculatus s.s. immature habitats were found within the buffer zone. Conclusions This study amplifies the need for a broadening of the GIS approach which is emphasized with the aim of rejuvenating the dynamic aspect of entomological studies in Malaysia. In fact, the use of such basic GIS platforms promote a more rational basis for strategic planning and management in the control of endemic diseases at the national level. PMID:22166101

Spatial Analysis of Geohazards using ArcGIS--A web-based Course.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harbert, W.; Davis, D.

2003-12-01

As part of the Environmental Systems Research Incorporated (ESRI) Virtual Campus program, a course was designed to present the benefits of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) based spatial analysis as applied towards a variety of geohazards. We created this on-line ArcGIS 8.x-based course to aid the motivated student or professional in his or her efforts to use GIS in determining where geohazards are likely to occur and for assessing their potential impact on the human community. Our course is broadly designed for earth scientists, public sector professionals, students, and others who want to apply GIS to the study of geohazards. Participants work with ArcGIS software and diverse datasets to display, visualize and analyze a wide variety of data sets and map a variety of geohazards including earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tsunamis, and floods. Following the GIS-based methodology of posing a question, decomposing the question into specific criteria, applying the criteria to spatial or tabular geodatasets and then analyzing feature relationships, from the beginning the course content was designed in order to enable the motivated student to answer questions. For example, to explain the relationship between earth quake location, earthquake depth, and plate boundaries; use a seismic hazard map to identify population and features at risk from an earthquake; import data from an earthquake catalog and visualize these data in 3D; explain the relationship between earthquake damage and local geology; use a flood scenario map to identify features at risk for forecast river discharges; use a tsunami inundation map to identify population and features at risk from tsunami; use a hurricane inundation map to identify the population at risk for any given category hurricane; estimate accumulated precipitation by integrating time-series Doppler radar data; and model a real-life landslide event. The six on-line modules for our course are Earthquakes I, Earthquakes II, Volcanoes, Floods, Coastal Geohazards and Landslides. Earthquake I can be viewed and accessed for no cost at http://campus.esri.com.

GIS application on modern Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prakash, Bharath

This is a GIS based tool for showcasing the history of modern Mexico starting from the post-colonial era to the elections of 2012. The tool is developed using simple language and is flexible so as to allow for future enhancements. The application consists of numerous images and textual information, and also some links which can be used by primary and high school students to understand the history of modern Mexico, and also by tourists to look for all the international airports and United States of America consulates. This software depicts the aftermaths of the Colonial Era or the Spanish rule of Mexico. It covers various topics like the wars, politics, important personalities, drug cartels and violence. All these events are shown on GIS (Geographic information Science) maps. The software can be customized according to the user requirements and is developed using JAVA and GIS technology. The user interface is created using JAVA and MOJO which contributes to effective learning and understanding of the concepts with ease. Some of the user interface features provided in this tool includes zoom-in, zoom-out, legend editing, location identifier, print command, adding a layer and numerous menu items.

First GIS Analysis of Modern Stone Tools Used by Wild Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) in Bossou, Guinea, West Africa

PubMed Central

Arroyo, Adrian; Matsuzawa, Tetsuro; de la Torre, Ignacio

2015-01-01

Stone tool use by wild chimpanzees of West Africa offers a unique opportunity to explore the evolutionary roots of technology during human evolution. However, detailed analyses of chimpanzee stone artifacts are still lacking, thus precluding a comparison with the earliest archaeological record. This paper presents the first systematic study of stone tools used by wild chimpanzees to crack open nuts in Bossou (Guinea-Conakry), and applies pioneering analytical techniques to such artifacts. Automatic morphometric GIS classification enabled to create maps of use wear over the stone tools (anvils, hammers, and hammers/ anvils), which were blind tested with GIS spatial analysis of damage patterns identified visually. Our analysis shows that chimpanzee stone tool use wear can be systematized and specific damage patterns discerned, allowing to discriminate between active and passive pounders in lithic assemblages. In summary, our results demonstrate the heuristic potential of combined suites of GIS techniques for the analysis of battered artifacts, and have enabled creating a referential framework of analysis in which wild chimpanzee battered tools can for the first time be directly compared to the early archaeological record. PMID:25793642

Using remote sensing and GIS techniques to estimate discharge and recharge fluxes for the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

D'Agnese, F. A.; Faunt, C.C.; Turner, A.K.; ,

1996-01-01

The recharge and discharge components of the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system were defined by techniques that integrated disparate data types to develop a spatially complex representation of near-surface hydrological processes. Image classification methods were applied to multispectral satellite data to produce a vegetation map. The vegetation map was combined with ancillary data in a GIS to delineate different types of wetlands, phreatophytes and wet playa areas. Existing evapotranspiration-rate estimates were used to calculate discharge volumes for these area. An empirical method of groundwater recharge estimation was modified to incorporate data describing soil-moisture conditions, and a recharge potential map was produced. These discharge and recharge maps were readily converted to data arrays for numerical modelling codes. Inverse parameter estimation techniques also used these data to evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of estimated values.The recharge and discharge components of the Death Valley regional groundwater flow system were defined by remote sensing and GIS techniques that integrated disparate data types to develop a spatially complex representation of near-surface hydrological processes. Image classification methods were applied to multispectral satellite data to produce a vegetation map. This map provided a basis for subsequent evapotranspiration and infiltration estimations. The vegetation map was combined with ancillary data in a GIS to delineate different types of wetlands, phreatophytes and wet playa areas. Existing evapotranspiration-rate estimates were then used to calculate discharge volumes for these areas. A previously used empirical method of groundwater recharge estimation was modified by GIS methods to incorporate data describing soil-moisture conditions, and a recharge potential map was produced. These discharge and recharge maps were readily converted to data arrays for numerical modelling codes. Inverse parameter estimation techniques also used these data to evaluate the reliability and sensitivity of estimated values.

The benefits of GIS to land use planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strielko, Irina; Pereira, Paulo

2014-05-01

The development of information technologies has significantly changed the approach to land use and spatial planning, management of natural resources. GIS considerably simplifies territorial planning operating analyzing necessary data concerning their spatial relationship that allows carrying out complex assessment of the situation and creates a basis for adoption of more exact and scientifically reasonable decisions in the course of land use. To assess the current land use situation and the possibility of modeling possible future changes associated with complex of adopted measures GIS allows the integration of diverse spatial data, for example, data about soils, climate, vegetation, and other and also to visualize available information in the form of maps, graphs or charts, 3D models. For the purposes of land use GIS allow using data of remote sensing, which allows to make monitoring of anthropogenic influence in a particular area and estimate scales and rates of degradation of green cover, flora and fauna. Assessment of land use can be made in complex or componentwise, indicating the test sites depending on the goals. GIS make it easy to model spatial distribution of various types of pollution of stationary and mobile sources in soil, atmosphere and the hydrological network. Based on results of the analysis made by GIS choose the optimal solutions of land use that provide the minimum impact on environment, make optimal decisions of conflict associated with land use and control of their using. One of the major advantages of using GIS is possibility of the complex analysis in concrete existential aspect. Analytical opportunities of GIS define conditionality of spatial distribution of objects and interrelation communication between them. For a variety of land management objectives analysis method is chosen based on the parameters of the problem and parameters of use of its results.

Eutrophication assessment of the Baltic Sea Protected Areas by available data and GIS technologies.

PubMed

Ranft, Susanne; Pesch, Roland; Schröder, Winfried; Boedeker, Dieter; Paulomäki, Hanna; Fagerli, Hilde

2011-01-01

Concerning increased degradation of marine ecosystems, there is a great political and institutional demand for an array of different tools to restore a good environmental status. Thereby, eutrophication is acknowledged as one of the major human induced stressors which has to be monitored and reduced. The present study concentrates on an assessment of the eutrophication status of the Baltic Sea Protected Areas by use of available data and GIS technologies. Two geodata layers were used for analysis: (1) a map on the eutrophication status of the Baltic Sea generated by the Helsinki Commission applying the HELCOM Eutrophication Assessment Tool (HEAT), and (2) modelled data on atmospheric nitrogen deposition made available by the European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme (EMEP). The results yielded comprehensive and conclusive data indicating that most of the BSPAs may be classified as being 'affected by eutrophication' and underlining the need to decrease the overall emissions of nutrients. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Digital release of the Alaska Quaternary fault and fold database

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koehler, R. D.; Farrell, R.; Burns, P.; Combellick, R. A.; Weakland, J. R.

2011-12-01

The Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) has designed a Quaternary fault and fold database for Alaska in conformance with standards defined by the U.S. Geological Survey for the National Quaternary fault and fold database. Alaska is the most seismically active region of the United States, however little information exists on the location, style of deformation, and slip rates of Quaternary faults. Thus, to provide an accurate, user-friendly, reference-based fault inventory to the public, we are producing a digital GIS shapefile of Quaternary fault traces and compiling summary information on each fault. Here, we present relevant information pertaining to the digital GIS shape file and online access and availability of the Alaska database. This database will be useful for engineering geologic studies, geologic, geodetic, and seismic research, and policy planning. The data will also contribute to the fault source database being constructed by the Global Earthquake Model (GEM), Faulted Earth project, which is developing tools to better assess earthquake risk. We derived the initial list of Quaternary active structures from The Neotectonic Map of Alaska (Plafker et al., 1994) and supplemented it with more recent data where available. Due to the limited level of knowledge on Quaternary faults in Alaska, pre-Quaternary fault traces from the Plafker map are shown as a layer in our digital database so users may view a more accurate distribution of mapped faults and to suggest the possibility that some older traces may be active yet un-studied. The database will be updated as new information is developed. We selected each fault by reviewing the literature and georegistered the faults from 1:250,000-scale paper maps contained in 1970's vintage and earlier bedrock maps. However, paper map scales range from 1:20,000 to 1:500,000. Fault parameters in our GIS fault attribute tables include fault name, age, slip rate, slip sense, dip direction, fault line type (i.e., well constrained, moderately constrained, or inferred), and mapped scale. Each fault is assigned a three-integer CODE, based upon age, slip rate, and how well the fault is located. This CODE dictates the line-type for the GIS files. To host the database, we are developing an interactive web-map application with ArcGIS for Server and the ArcGIS API for JavaScript from Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. (Esri). The web-map application will present the database through a visible scale range with each fault displayed at the resolution of the original map. Application functionality includes: search by name or location, identification of fault by manual selection, and choice of base map. Base map options include topographic, satellite imagery, and digital elevation maps available from ArcGIS on-line. We anticipate that the database will be publically accessible from a portal embedded on the DGGS website by the end of 2011.

Wireless technology applied to GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Casademont, Jordi; Lopez-Aguilera, Elena; Paradells, Josep; Rojas, Alfonso; Calveras, Anna; Barceló, Francisco; Cotrina, Josep

2004-07-01

At present, there is a growing interest in wireless applications, due to the fact that the technology begins to support them at reasonable costs. In this paper, we present the technology currently available for use in wireless environments, focusing on Geographic Information Systems. As an example, we present a newly developed platform for the commercialization of advanced geographical information services for use in portable devices. This platform uses available mobile telephone networks and wireless local area networks, but it is completely scalable to new technologies such as third generation mobile networks. Users access the service using a vector map player that runs on a Personal Digital Assistant with wireless access facilities and a Global Positioning System receiver. Before accessing the information, the player will request authorization from the server and download the requested map from it, if necessary. The platform also includes a system for improving Global Positioning System localization with the Real Time Differential Global Positioning System, which uses short GSM messages as the transmission medium.

A GIS based spatially-explicit sensitivity and uncertainty analysis approach for multi-criteria decision analysis.

PubMed

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-03-01

GIS multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) techniques are increasingly used in landslide susceptibility mapping for the prediction of future hazards, land use planning, as well as for hazard preparedness. However, the uncertainties associated with MCDA techniques are inevitable and model outcomes are open to multiple types of uncertainty. In this paper, we present a systematic approach to uncertainty and sensitivity analysis. We access the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility maps produced with GIS-MCDA techniques. A new spatially-explicit approach and Dempster-Shafer Theory (DST) are employed to assess the uncertainties associated with two MCDA techniques, namely Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA) implemented in GIS. The methodology is composed of three different phases. First, weights are computed to express the relative importance of factors (criteria) for landslide susceptibility. Next, the uncertainty and sensitivity of landslide susceptibility is analyzed as a function of weights using Monte Carlo Simulation and Global Sensitivity Analysis. Finally, the results are validated using a landslide inventory database and by applying DST. The comparisons of the obtained landslide susceptibility maps of both MCDA techniques with known landslides show that the AHP outperforms OWA. However, the OWA-generated landslide susceptibility map shows lower uncertainty than the AHP-generated map. The results demonstrate that further improvement in the accuracy of GIS-based MCDA can be achieved by employing an integrated uncertainty-sensitivity analysis approach, in which the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility model is decomposed and attributed to model's criteria weights.

A GIS based spatially-explicit sensitivity and uncertainty analysis approach for multi-criteria decision analysis☆

PubMed Central

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-01-01

GIS multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) techniques are increasingly used in landslide susceptibility mapping for the prediction of future hazards, land use planning, as well as for hazard preparedness. However, the uncertainties associated with MCDA techniques are inevitable and model outcomes are open to multiple types of uncertainty. In this paper, we present a systematic approach to uncertainty and sensitivity analysis. We access the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility maps produced with GIS-MCDA techniques. A new spatially-explicit approach and Dempster–Shafer Theory (DST) are employed to assess the uncertainties associated with two MCDA techniques, namely Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA) implemented in GIS. The methodology is composed of three different phases. First, weights are computed to express the relative importance of factors (criteria) for landslide susceptibility. Next, the uncertainty and sensitivity of landslide susceptibility is analyzed as a function of weights using Monte Carlo Simulation and Global Sensitivity Analysis. Finally, the results are validated using a landslide inventory database and by applying DST. The comparisons of the obtained landslide susceptibility maps of both MCDA techniques with known landslides show that the AHP outperforms OWA. However, the OWA-generated landslide susceptibility map shows lower uncertainty than the AHP-generated map. The results demonstrate that further improvement in the accuracy of GIS-based MCDA can be achieved by employing an integrated uncertainty–sensitivity analysis approach, in which the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility model is decomposed and attributed to model's criteria weights. PMID:25843987

A GIS based spatially-explicit sensitivity and uncertainty analysis approach for multi-criteria decision analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-03-01

GIS multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) techniques are increasingly used in landslide susceptibility mapping for the prediction of future hazards, land use planning, as well as for hazard preparedness. However, the uncertainties associated with MCDA techniques are inevitable and model outcomes are open to multiple types of uncertainty. In this paper, we present a systematic approach to uncertainty and sensitivity analysis. We access the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility maps produced with GIS-MCDA techniques. A new spatially-explicit approach and Dempster-Shafer Theory (DST) are employed to assess the uncertainties associated with two MCDA techniques, namely Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and Ordered Weighted Averaging (OWA) implemented in GIS. The methodology is composed of three different phases. First, weights are computed to express the relative importance of factors (criteria) for landslide susceptibility. Next, the uncertainty and sensitivity of landslide susceptibility is analyzed as a function of weights using Monte Carlo Simulation and Global Sensitivity Analysis. Finally, the results are validated using a landslide inventory database and by applying DST. The comparisons of the obtained landslide susceptibility maps of both MCDA techniques with known landslides show that the AHP outperforms OWA. However, the OWA-generated landslide susceptibility map shows lower uncertainty than the AHP-generated map. The results demonstrate that further improvement in the accuracy of GIS-based MCDA can be achieved by employing an integrated uncertainty-sensitivity analysis approach, in which the uncertainty of landslide susceptibility model is decomposed and attributed to model's criteria weights.

Making Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Sustainable in Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dascombe, Brett

2006-01-01

Spatial technologies, particularly Geographic Information Systems (GIS), have become invaluable and persuasive tools in society today. These technologies have also made their way into classrooms around the world and Australian teachers are leaders in implementing GIS technology into their classrooms. There is still a way to go in order to make…

Cloud-Based Distributed Control of Unmanned Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

during mission execution. At best, the data is saved onto hard-drives and is accessible only by the local team. Data history in a form available and...following open source technologies: GeoServer, OpenLayers, PostgreSQL , and PostGIS are chosen to implement the back-end database and server. A brief...geospatial map data. 3. PostgreSQL : An SQL-compliant object-relational database that easily scales to accommodate large amounts of data - upwards to

Development of management information system for land in mine area based on MapInfo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Shi-Dong; Liu, Chuang-Hua; Wang, Xin-Chuang; Pan, Yan-Yu

2008-10-01

MapInfo is current a popular GIS software. This paper introduces characters of MapInfo and GIS second development methods offered by MapInfo, which include three ones based on MapBasic, OLE automation, and MapX control usage respectively. Taking development of land management information system in mine area for example, in the paper, the method of developing GIS applications based on MapX has been discussed, as well as development of land management information system in mine area has been introduced in detail, including development environment, overall design, design and realization of every function module, and simple application of system, etc. The system uses MapX 5.0 and Visual Basic 6.0 as development platform, takes SQL Server 2005 as back-end database, and adopts Matlab 6.5 to calculate number in back-end. On the basis of integrated design, the system develops eight modules including start-up, layer control, spatial query, spatial analysis, data editing, application model, document management, results output. The system can be used in mine area for cadastral management, land use structure optimization, land reclamation, land evaluation, analysis and forecasting for land in mine area and environmental disruption, thematic mapping, and so on.

Digital Mapping Techniques '07 - Workshop Proceedings

USGS Publications Warehouse

Soller, David R.

2008-01-01

The Digital Mapping Techniques '07 (DMT'07) workshop was attended by 85 technical experts from 49 agencies, universities, and private companies, including representatives from 27 state geological surveys. This year's meeting, the tenth in the annual series, was hosted by the South Carolina Geological Survey, from May 20-23, 2007, on the University of South Carolina campus in Columbia, South Carolina. Each DMT workshop has been coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Geologic Map Database Project and the Association of American State Geologists (AASG). As in previous year's meetings, the objective was to foster informal discussion and exchange of technical information, principally in order to develop more efficient methods for digital mapping, cartography, GIS analysis, and information management. At this meeting, oral and poster presentations and special discussion sessions emphasized: 1) methods for creating and publishing map products (here, 'publishing' includes Web-based release); 2) field data capture software and techniques, including the use of LIDAR; 3) digital cartographic techniques; 4) migration of digital maps into ArcGIS Geodatabase format; 5) analytical GIS techniques; and 6) continued development of the National Geologic Map Database.

Groundwater favorability map using GIS multicriteria data analysis on crystalline terrain, São Paulo State, Brazil

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Madrucci, Vanessa; Taioli, Fabio; de Araújo, Carlos César

2008-08-01

SummaryThis paper presents the groundwater favorability mapping on a fractured terrain in the eastern portion of São Paulo State, Brazil. Remote sensing, airborne geophysical data, photogeologic interpretation, geologic and geomorphologic maps and geographic information system (GIS) techniques have been used. The results of cross-tabulation between these maps and well yield data allowed groundwater prospective parameters in a fractured-bedrock aquifer. These prospective parameters are the base for the favorability analysis whose principle is based on the knowledge-driven method. The multicriteria analysis (weighted linear combination) was carried out to give a groundwater favorability map, because the prospective parameters have different weights of importance and different classes of each parameter. The groundwater favorability map was tested by cross-tabulation with new well yield data and spring occurrence. The wells with the highest values of productivity, as well as all the springs occurrence are situated in the excellent and good favorability mapped areas. It shows good coherence between the prospective parameters and the well yield and the importance of GIS techniques for definition of target areas for detail study and wells location.

The impact of geographic information systems on emergency management decision making at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, Steven Gray

Geographic information systems (GIS) reveal relationships and patterns from large quantities of diverse data in the form of maps and reports. The United States spends billions of dollars to use GIS to improve decisions made during responses to natural disasters and terrorist attacks, but precisely how GIS improves or impairs decision making is not known. This research examined how GIS affect decision making during natural disasters, and how GIS can be more effectively used to improve decision making for emergency management. Using a qualitative case study methodology, this research examined decision making at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) during a large full-scale disaster exercise. This study indicates that GIS provided decision makers at DHS with an outstanding context for information that would otherwise be challenging to understand, especially through the integration of multiple data sources and dynamic three-dimensional interactive maps. Decision making was hampered by outdated information, a reliance on predictive models based on hypothetical data rather than actual event data, and a lack of understanding of the capabilities of GIS beyond cartography. Geospatial analysts, emergency managers, and other decision makers who use GIS should take specific steps to improve decision making based on GIS for disaster response and emergency management.

Earth sciences, GIS and geomatics for natural hazards assessment and risks mitigation: a civil protection perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perotti, Luigi; Conte, Riccardo; Lanfranco, Massimo; Perrone, Gianluigi; Giardino, Marco; Ratto, Sara

2010-05-01

Geo-information and remote sensing are proper tools to enhance functional strategies for increasing awareness on natural hazards and risks and for supporting research and operational activities devoted to disaster reduction. An improved Earth Sciences knowledge coupled with Geomatics advanced technologies has been developed by the joint research group and applied by the ITHACA (Information Technology for Humanitarian Assistance, Cooperation and Action) centre, within its partnership with the UN World Food Programme (WFP) with the goal of reducing human, social, economic and environmental losses due to natural hazards and related disasters. By cooperating with local and regional authorities (Municipalities, Centro Funzionale of the Aosta Valley, Civil Protection Agency of Regione Piemonte), data on natural hazards and risks have been collected, compared to national and global data, then interpreted for helping communities and civil protection agencies of sensitive mountain regions to make strategic choices and decisions to better mitigation and adaption measures. To enhance the application of GIS and Remote-sensing technologies for geothematic mapping of geological and geomorphological risks of mountain territories of Europe and Developing Countries, research activities led to the collection and evaluation of data from scientific literature and historical technical archives, for the definition of predisposing/triggering factors and evolutionary processes of natural instability phenomena (landslides, floods, storms, …) and for the design and implementation of early-warning and early-impact systems. Geodatabases, Remote Sensing and Mobile-GIS applications were developed to perform analysis of : 1) large climate-related disaster (Hurricane Mitch, Central America), by the application of remote sensing techniques, either for early warning or mitigation measures at the national and international scale; 2) distribution of slope instabilities at the regional scale (Aosta Valley, NW-Italy), for preventing and recovering measures; 3) geological and geomorphological controlling factors of seismicity, to provide microzonation maps and scenarios for co-seismic response of instable zones (Dronero, NW- Italian Alps); 4) earthquake effects on ground and infrastructures, in order to register early assessment for awareness situations and for compile damage inventories (Asti-Alessandria seismic events, 2000, 2001, 2003). The research results has been able to substantiate early warning models by structuring geodatabases on natural disasters, and to support humanitarian relief and disaster management activities by creating and testing SRG2, a mobile-GIS application for field-data collection on natural hazards and risks.

Ten years of change: National Library of Medicine TOXMAP gets a new look.

PubMed

Hochstein, Colette; Gemoets, Darren; Goshorn, Jeanne

2014-01-01

The United States National Library of Medicine (NLM) TOXNET® databases < http://toxnet.nlm.nih.gov > provide broad coverage of environmental health information covering a wide variety of topics, including access to the U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA)'s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data. The NLM web-based geographic information system (GIS), TOXMAP® < http://toxmap.nlm.nih.gov/ >, provides interactive maps which show where TRI chemicals are released into the environment and links to TOXNET for information about these chemicals. TOXMAP also displays locations of Superfund sites on the EPA National Priority List, as well as information about the chemical contaminants at these sites. This column focuses on a new version of TOXMAP which brings it up to date with current web GIS technologies and user expectations.

U.S.-Mexico Border Geographic Information System

USGS Publications Warehouse

Parcher, Jean W.

2008-01-01

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the development of extensive geodatabases have become invaluable tools for addressing a variety of contemporary societal issues and for making predictions about the future. The United States-Mexico Geographic Information System (USMX-GIS) is based on fundamental datasets that are produced and/or approved by the national geography agencies of each country, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Instituto Nacional de Estadistica Y Geografia (INEGI) of Mexico, and the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC). The data are available at various scales to allow both regional and local analysis. The USGS and the INEGI have an extensive history of collaboration for transboundary mapping including exchanging digital technology and developing methods for harmonizing seamless national level geospatial datasets for binational environmental monitoring, urban growth analysis, and other scientific applications.

Spatial data software integration - Merging CAD/CAM/mapping with GIS and image processing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Logan, Thomas L.; Bryant, Nevin A.

1987-01-01

The integration of CAD/CAM/mapping with image processing using geographic information systems (GISs) as the interface is examined. Particular emphasis is given to the development of software interfaces between JPL's Video Image Communication and Retrieval (VICAR)/Imaged Based Information System (IBIS) raster-based GIS and the CAD/CAM/mapping system. The design and functions of the VICAR and IBIS are described. Vector data capture and editing are studied. Various software programs for interfacing between the VICAR/IBIS and CAD/CAM/mapping are presented and analyzed.

Environmental applications based on GIS and GRID technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Demontis, R.; Lorrai, E.; Marrone, V. A.; Muscas, L.; Spanu, V.; Vacca, A.; Valera, P.

2009-04-01

In the last decades, the collection and use of environmental data has enormously increased in a wide range of applications. Simultaneously, the explosive development of information technology and its ever wider data accessibility have made it possible to store and manipulate huge quantities of data. In this context, the GRID approach is emerging worldwide as a tool allowing to provision a computational task with administratively-distant resources. The aim of this paper is to present three environmental applications (Land Suitability, Desertification Risk Assessment, Georesources and Environmental Geochemistry) foreseen within the AGISGRID (Access and query of a distributed GIS/Database within the GRID infrastructure, http://grida3.crs4.it/enginframe/agisgrid/index.xml) activities of the GRIDA3 (Administrator of sharing resources for data analysis and environmental applications, http://grida3.crs4.it) project. This project, co-funded by the Italian Ministry of research, is based on the use of shared environmental data through GRID technologies and accessible by a WEB interface, aimed at public and private users in the field of environmental management and land use planning. The technologies used for AGISGRID include: - the client-server-middleware iRODS™ (Integrated Rule-Oriented Data System) (https://irods.org); - the EnginFrame system (http://www.nice-italy.com/main/index.php?id=32), the grid portal that supplies a frame to make available, via Intranet/Internet, the developed GRID applications; - the software GIS GRASS (Geographic Resources Analysis Support System) (http://grass.itc.it); - the relational database PostgreSQL (http://www.posgresql.org) and the spatial database extension PostGis; - the open source multiplatform Mapserver (http://mapserver.gis.umn.edu), used to represent the geospatial data through typical WEB GIS functionalities. Three GRID nodes are directly involved in the applications: the application workflow is implemented at the CRS4 (Pula, Southern Sardinia, Italy), the soil database is managed at the DISTER node (Cagliari, southern Sardinia, Italy), and the geochemical database is managed at the DIGITA node (Cagliari, southern Sardinia, Italy). The input data are files (raster ASCII format) and database tables. The raster files have been zipped and stored in iRods. The tables are imported into a PostgreSQL database and accessed by the Rule-oriented Database Access (RDA) system available for PostgreSQL in iRODS 1.1. From the EnginFrame portal it is possible to view and use the applications through three services: "Upload Data", "View Data and Metadata", and "Execute Application". The Land Suitability application, based on the FAO framework for land evaluation, produces suitability maps (at the scale 1:10,000) for 11 different possible alternative uses. The maps, with a ASCII raster format, are downloadable by the user and viewable by Mapserver. This application has been implemented in an area of southern Sardinia (Monastir) and may be useful to direct municipal urban planning towards a rational land use. The Desertification Risk Assessment application produces, by means of biophysical and socioeconomic key indicators, a final combined map showing critical, fragile, and potential Environmentally Sensitive Areas to desertification. This application has been implemented in an area of south-west Sardinia (Muravera). The final index for the sensitivity is obtained by the geometric mean among four parameters: SQI (Soil Quality Index), CQI (Climate Quality Index), VQI (Vegetation Quality Index) e MQI (Management Quality Index). The final result (ESAs = (SQI * CQI * VQI * MQI)1•4) is a map at the scale 1:50,000, with a ASCII raster format, downloadable by the user and viewable by Mapserver. This type of map may be useful to direct land planning at catchment basin level. The Georesources and Environmental Geochemistry application, whose test is in progress in the area of Muravera (south-west Sardinia) through stream sediment sampling, aims at producing maps defining, with high precision, areas (hydrographic basins) where the values of a given element exceed the lithological background (i.e. geochemically anomalous). Such a product has a double purpose. First of all, it identifies releasing sources and may be useful for the necessary remediation actions, if they insist on areas historically prone to more or less intense anthropical activities. On the other hand, if these sources are of natural origin, they could also be interpreted as ore mineral occurrences. In the latter case the study of these occurrences could lead to discover economic ore bodies of small-to-medium size (at least in the present target area) and consequently to the revival of a local mining industry.

Malaria diagnosis and mapping with m-Health and geographic information systems (GIS): evidence from Uganda.

PubMed

Larocca, Alberto; Moro Visconti, Roberto; Marconi, Michele

2016-10-24

Rural populations experience several barriers to accessing clinical facilities for malaria diagnosis. Increasing penetration of ICT and mobile-phones and subsequent m-Health applications can contribute overcoming such obstacles. GIS is used to evaluate the feasibility of m-Health technologies as part of anti-malaria strategies. This study investigates where in Uganda: (1) malaria affects the largest number of people; (2) the application of m-Health protocol based on the mobile network has the highest potential impact. About 75% of the population affected by Plasmodium falciparum malaria have scarce access to healthcare facilities. The introduction of m-Health technologies should be based on the 2G protocol, as 3G mobile network coverage is still limited. The western border and the central-Southeast are the regions where m-Health could reach the largest percentage of the remote population. Six districts (Arua, Apac, Lira, Kamuli, Iganga, and Mubende) could have the largest benefit because they account for about 28% of the remote population affected by falciparum malaria with access to the 2G mobile network. The application of m-Health technologies could improve access to medical services for distant populations. Affordable remote malaria diagnosis could help to decongest health facilities, reducing costs and contagion. The combination of m-Health and GIS could provide real-time and geo-localized data transmission, improving anti-malarial strategies in Uganda. Scalability to other countries and diseases looks promising.

Coastline planning and management through digital mapping systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hysenaj, M.

2015-11-01

Albania is a country with a coastline of 316 km. The potentiality offered turns into a determinant factor for the Albanian economy. However specific issues need a solution. One of them remains the shoreline pollution. It affects mostly foreign visitors, also local population which recently tends to avoid attending these areas, instead they frequent foreign places. The importance of GIS technology in the water sector is undisputed. This paper will present a full set of digital maps representing a complete picture of the Albanian shoreline situation. The entire coastline is divided into the major frequented areas with a spatial extension based mainly on district level.

Concept Maps as a Tool to Analyse College Students' Knowledge of Geospatial Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oda, Katsuhiko

2016-01-01

This study focused on college students' development of conceptual knowledge in geographic information system (GIS). The aim of this study was to examine if and how students developed their conceptual knowledge during their enrollment in an introductory-level GIS course. Twelve undergraduate students constructed 36 concept maps and revised 24…

Aaron's Solution, Instructor's Problem: Teaching Surface Analysis Using GIS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koch, Tom; Denike, Ken

2007-01-01

Teaching GIS is relatively simple, a matter of helping students develop familiarity with the software. Mapping as an aid to thinking is harder to instruct. This article presents a laboratory and lecture package developed to teach the utility of mapping in a course on spatial data analysis. Following a historical review of the use of surface…

New Mexico Geothermal Play Fairway Analysis from LANL

DOE Data Explorer

Rick Kelley

2015-10-27

This submission contains geospatial (GIS) data on water table gradient and depth, subcrop gravity and magnetic, propsectivity, heat flow, physiographic, boron and BHT for the Southwest New Mexico Geothermal Play Fairway Analysis by LANL Earth & Environmental Sciences. GIS data is in ArcGIS map package format.

Teaching Tectonics to Undergraduates with Web GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anastasio, D. J.; Bodzin, A.; Sahagian, D. L.; Rutzmoser, S.

2013-12-01

Geospatial reasoning skills provide a means for manipulating, interpreting, and explaining structured information and are involved in higher-order cognitive processes that include problem solving and decision-making. Appropriately designed tools, technologies, and curriculum can support spatial learning. We present Web-based visualization and analysis tools developed with Javascript APIs to enhance tectonic curricula while promoting geospatial thinking and scientific inquiry. The Web GIS interface integrates graphics, multimedia, and animations that allow users to explore and discover geospatial patterns that are not easily recognized. Features include a swipe tool that enables users to see underneath layers, query tools useful in exploration of earthquake and volcano data sets, a subduction and elevation profile tool which facilitates visualization between map and cross-sectional views, drafting tools, a location function, and interactive image dragging functionality on the Web GIS. The Web GIS platform is independent and can be implemented on tablets or computers. The GIS tool set enables learners to view, manipulate, and analyze rich data sets from local to global scales, including such data as geology, population, heat flow, land cover, seismic hazards, fault zones, continental boundaries, and elevation using two- and three- dimensional visualization and analytical software. Coverages which allow users to explore plate boundaries and global heat flow processes aided learning in a Lehigh University Earth and environmental science Structural Geology and Tectonics class and are freely available on the Web.

Digital surveying and mapping of forest road network for development of a GIS tool for the effective protection and management of natural ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drosos, Vasileios C.; Liampas, Sarantis-Aggelos G.; Doukas, Aristotelis-Kosmas G.

2014-08-01

In our time, the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become important tools, not only in the geosciences and environmental sciences, as well as virtually for all researches that require monitoring, planning or land management. The purpose of this paper was to develop a planning tool and decision making tool using AutoCAD Map software, ArcGIS and Google Earth with emphasis on the investigation of the suitability of forest roads' mapping and the range of its implementation in Greece in prefecture level. Integrating spatial information into a database makes data available throughout the organization; improving quality, productivity, and data management. Also working in such an environment, you can: Access and edit information, integrate and analyze data and communicate effectively. To select desirable information such as forest road network in a very early stage in the planning of silviculture operations, for example before the planning of the harvest is carried out. The software programs that were used were AutoCAD Map for the export in shape files for the GPS data, and ArcGIS in shape files (ArcGlobe), while Google Earth with KML files (Keyhole Markup Language) in order to better visualize and evaluate existing conditions, design in a real-world context and exchange information with government agencies, utilities, and contractors in both CAD and GIS data formats. The automation of the updating procedure and transfer of any files between agencies-departments is one of the main tasks of the integrated GIS-tool among the others should be addressed.

Digital soil map of the Ussuri River basin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bugaets, A. N.; Pschenichnikova, N. F.; Tereshkina, A. A.; Krasnopeev, S. M.; Gartsman, B. I.; Golodnaya, O. M.; Oznobikhin, V. I.

2017-08-01

On the basis of digital soil, topographic, and geological maps; raster topography model; forestry materials; and literature data, the digital soil map of the Ussuri River basin (24400 km2) was created on a scale of 1: 100000. To digitize the initial paper-based maps and analyze the results, an ESRI ArcGIS Desktop (ArcEditor) v.10.1 (http://www.esri.com) and an open-code SAGA GIS v.2.3 (System for Automated Geoscientific Analyses, http://www.saga-gis.org) were used. The spatial distribution of soil areas on the obtained digital soil map is in agreement with modern cartographic data and the SRTM digital elevation model (SRTM DEM). The regional soil classification developed by G.I. Ivanov was used in the legend to the soil map. The names of soil units were also correlated with the names suggested in the modern Russian soil classification system. The major soil units on the map are at the soil subtypes that reflect the entire vertical spectrum of soils in the south of the Far East of Russia (Primorye region). These are mountainous tundra soils, podzolic soils, brown taiga soils, mountainous brown forest soils, bleached brown soils, meadow-brown soils, meadow gley soils, and floodplain soils). With the help of the spatial analysis function of GIS, the comparison of the particular characteristics of the soil cover with numerical characteristics of the topography, geological composition of catchments, and vegetation cover was performed.

National Conference on the Educational Applications of Geographic Information Systems (EdGIS): Conference Report (1st, Washington, D.C., January 27-29, 1994).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barstow, Daniel, Ed.; And Others

The goals of the Educational Applications of Geographic Information Systems (EdGIS) Conference were to: showcase current applications of Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing, and other mapping software in pre-college education; develop a better understanding of the current state of the art in both GIS software and related…

Development of Web GIS for complex processing and visualization of climate geospatial datasets as an integral part of dedicated Virtual Research Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gordov, Evgeny; Okladnikov, Igor; Titov, Alexander

2017-04-01

For comprehensive usage of large geospatial meteorological and climate datasets it is necessary to create a distributed software infrastructure based on the spatial data infrastructure (SDI) approach. Currently, it is generally accepted that the development of client applications as integrated elements of such infrastructure should be based on the usage of modern web and GIS technologies. The paper describes the Web GIS for complex processing and visualization of geospatial (mainly in NetCDF and PostGIS formats) datasets as an integral part of the dedicated Virtual Research Environment for comprehensive study of ongoing and possible future climate change, and analysis of their implications, providing full information and computing support for the study of economic, political and social consequences of global climate change at the global and regional levels. The Web GIS consists of two basic software parts: 1. Server-side part representing PHP applications of the SDI geoportal and realizing the functionality of interaction with computational core backend, WMS/WFS/WPS cartographical services, as well as implementing an open API for browser-based client software. Being the secondary one, this part provides a limited set of procedures accessible via standard HTTP interface. 2. Front-end part representing Web GIS client developed according to a "single page application" technology based on JavaScript libraries OpenLayers (http://openlayers.org/), ExtJS (https://www.sencha.com/products/extjs), GeoExt (http://geoext.org/). It implements application business logic and provides intuitive user interface similar to the interface of such popular desktop GIS applications, as uDIG, QuantumGIS etc. Boundless/OpenGeo architecture was used as a basis for Web-GIS client development. According to general INSPIRE requirements to data visualization Web GIS provides such standard functionality as data overview, image navigation, scrolling, scaling and graphical overlay, displaying map legends and corresponding metadata information. The specialized Web GIS client contains three basic tires: • Tier of NetCDF metadata in JSON format • Middleware tier of JavaScript objects implementing methods to work with: o NetCDF metadata o XML file of selected calculations configuration (XML task) o WMS/WFS/WPS cartographical services • Graphical user interface tier representing JavaScript objects realizing general application business logic Web-GIS developed provides computational processing services launching to support solving tasks in the area of environmental monitoring, as well as presenting calculation results in the form of WMS/WFS cartographical layers in raster (PNG, JPG, GeoTIFF), vector (KML, GML, Shape), and binary (NetCDF) formats. It has shown its effectiveness in the process of solving real climate change research problems and disseminating investigation results in cartographical formats. The work is supported by the Russian Science Foundation grant No 16-19-10257.

Tile prediction schemes for wide area motion imagery maps in GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michael, Chris J.; Lin, Bruce Y.

2017-11-01

Wide-area surveillance, traffic monitoring, and emergency management are just several of many applications benefiting from the incorporation of Wide-Area Motion Imagery (WAMI) maps into geographic information systems. Though the use of motion imagery as a GIS base map via the Web Map Service (WMS) standard is not a new concept, effectively streaming imagery is particularly challenging due to its large scale and the multidimensionally interactive nature of clients that use WMS. Ineffective streaming from a server to one or more clients can unnecessarily overwhelm network bandwidth and cause frustratingly large amounts of latency in visualization to the user. Seamlessly streaming WAMI through GIS requires good prediction to accurately guess the tiles of the video that will be traversed in the near future. In this study, we present an experimental framework for such prediction schemes by presenting a stochastic interaction model that represents a human user's interaction with a GIS video map. We then propose several algorithms by which the tiles of the stream may be predicted. Results collected both within the experimental framework and using human analyst trajectories show that, though each algorithm thrives under certain constraints, the novel Markovian algorithm yields the best results overall. Furthermore, we make the argument that the proposed experimental framework is sufficient for the study of these prediction schemes.

Remote sensing and GIS for mapping groundwater recharge and discharge areas in salinity prone catchments, southeastern Australia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tweed, Sarah O.; Leblanc, Marc; Webb, John A.; Lubczynski, Maciek W.

2007-02-01

Identifying groundwater recharge and discharge areas across catchments is critical for implementing effective strategies for salinity mitigation, surface-water and groundwater resource management, and ecosystem protection. In this study, a synergistic approach has been developed, which applies a combination of remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) techniques to map groundwater recharge and discharge areas. This approach is applied to an unconfined basalt aquifer, in a salinity and drought prone region of southeastern Australia. The basalt aquifer covers ~11,500 km2 in an agriculturally intensive region. A review of local hydrogeological processes allowed a series of surface and subsurface indicators of groundwater recharge and discharge areas to be established. Various remote sensing and GIS techniques were then used to map these surface indicators including: terrain analysis, monitoring of vegetation activity, and mapping of infiltration capacity. All regions where groundwater is not discharging to the surface were considered potential recharge areas. This approach, applied systematically across a catchment, provides a framework for mapping recharge and discharge areas. A key component in assigning surface and subsurface indicators is the relevance to the dominant recharge and discharge processes occurring and the use of appropriate remote sensing and GIS techniques with the capacity to identify these processes.

Web-GIS visualisation of permafrost-related Remote Sensing products for ESA GlobPermafrost

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haas, A.; Heim, B.; Schaefer-Neth, C.; Laboor, S.; Nitze, I.; Grosse, G.; Bartsch, A.; Kaab, A.; Strozzi, T.; Wiesmann, A.; Seifert, F. M.

2016-12-01

The ESA GlobPermafrost (www.globpermafrost.info) provides a remote sensing service for permafrost research and applications. The service comprises of data product generation for various sites and regions as well as specific infrastructure allowing overview and access to datasets. Based on an online user survey conducted within the project, the user community extensively applies GIS software to handle remote sensing-derived datasets and requires preview functionalities before accessing them. In response, we develop the Permafrost Information System PerSys which is conceptualized as an open access geospatial data dissemination and visualization portal. PerSys will allow visualisation of GlobPermafrost raster and vector products such as land cover classifications, Landsat multispectral index trend datasets, lake and wetland extents, InSAR-based land surface deformation maps, rock glacier velocity fields, spatially distributed permafrost model outputs, and land surface temperature datasets. The datasets will be published as WebGIS services relying on OGC-standardized Web Mapping Service (WMS) and Web Feature Service (WFS) technologies for data display and visualization. The WebGIS environment will be hosted at the AWI computing centre where a geodata infrastructure has been implemented comprising of ArcGIS for Server 10.4, PostgreSQL 9.2 and a browser-driven data viewer based on Leaflet (http://leafletjs.com). Independently, we will provide an `Access - Restricted Data Dissemination Service', which will be available to registered users for testing frequently updated versions of project datasets. PerSys will become a core project of the Arctic Permafrost Geospatial Centre (APGC) within the ERC-funded PETA-CARB project (www.awi.de/petacarb). The APGC Data Catalogue will contain all final products of GlobPermafrost, allow in-depth dataset search via keywords, spatial and temporal coverage, data type, etc., and will provide DOI-based links to the datasets archived in the long-term, open access PANGAEA data repository.

Geographic information systems (GIS) spatial data compilation of geodynamic, tectonic, metallogenic, mineral deposit, and geophysical maps and associated descriptive data for northeast Asia

USGS Publications Warehouse

Naumova, Vera V.; Patuk, Mikhail I.; Kapitanchuk, Marina Yu.; Nokleberg, Warren J.; Khanchuk, Alexander I.; Parfenov, Leonid M.; Rodionov, Sergey M.; Miller, Robert J.; Diggles, Michael F.

2006-01-01

This is the online version of a CD-ROM publication. It contains all of the data that are on the disc but extra files have been removed: index files, software installers, and Windows autolaunch files. The purpose of this publication is to provide a high-quality spatial data compilation (Geographical Information System or GIS) of geodynamic, mineral deposit, and metallogenic belt maps, and descriptive data for Northeast Asia for customers and users. This area consists of Eastern Siberia, Russian Far East, Mongolia, northern China, South Korea, and Japan. The GIS compilation contains integrated spatial data for: (1) a geodynamics map at a scale of 1:5,000,000; (2) a mineral deposit location map; (3) metallogenic belt maps; (4) detailed descriptions of geologic units, including tectonostratigraphic terranes, cratons, major melange zones, and overlap assemblages, with references; (5) detailed descriptions of metallogenic belts with references; (6) detailed mineral deposit descriptions with references; and (7) page-size stratigraphic columns for major terranes.

A GIS Library of Multibeam Data for Massachusetts Bay and the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, Offshore of Boston, Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Butman, Bradford; Valentine, Page C.; Middleton, Tammie J.; Danforth, William W.

2007-01-01

Introduction The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has mapped the sea floor of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and western Massachusetts Bay, offshore of Boston, Massachusetts (figure 1a, figure 1b). The mapping was carried out using a Simrad Subsea EM1000 Multibeam Echo Sounder (95 kHz) on the Frederick G. Creed on four cruises between 1994 and 1998. The mapping was conducted in cooperation with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and with support from the Canadian Hydrographic Service and the University of New Brunswick. This GIS Library contains images and grids of bathymetry, shaded relief bathymetry, and backscatter intensity data from these surveys in an Environmental Systems Research Institute (http://www.esri.com) (ESRI) ArcMap 9.1 Geographic Information System (GIS) project. The shapefiles, images, grids and associated metadata may also be downloaded individually. Descriptions and interpretations of the data are available in a series of published maps.

Mapping Unhealthy Behavior Among Economically Active Men Using GIS in Suburban and Rural Areas of Sri Lanka

PubMed Central

Silva, J Padmaka; Gunathunga, M W; Jayasinghe, S

2016-01-01

The burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and certain behavioral risk factors related to NCDs (unhealthy behaviors) are becoming more common. This survey aims to map out such common unhealthy behaviors among all men 35 to 50 years old in a Medical Officer of Health area in the Western Province of Sri Lanka using a geographical information system (GIS) and an interviewer administered questionnaire by visiting all households in the study area. Data were analyzed with ARC GIS and SPSS software. Geographical areas where men with unhealthy behaviors cluster together (clusters) were identified and visually and statistically related to locations of schools, places of religious worship, and factories in the area. It was revealed that clusters of unhealthy behaviors are mostly seen in areas with less population density. Smoking and alcohol are clustering in estate areas occupied by Tamils. This way GIS mapping could be used to identify and reduce the burden of NCDs by visualizing clusters and how certain locations affect their spread. PMID:26489433

Mapping Unhealthy Behavior Among Economically Active Men Using GIS in Suburban and Rural Areas of Sri Lanka.

PubMed

Silva, J Padmaka

2016-01-01

The burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and certain behavioral risk factors related to NCDs (unhealthy behaviors) are becoming more common. This survey aims to map out such common unhealthy behaviors among all men 35 to 50 years old in a Medical Officer of Health area in the Western Province of Sri Lanka using a geographical information system (GIS) and an interviewer administered questionnaire by visiting all households in the study area. Data were analyzed with ARC GIS and SPSS software. Geographical areas where men with unhealthy behaviors cluster together (clusters) were identified and visually and statistically related to locations of schools, places of religious worship, and factories in the area. It was revealed that clusters of unhealthy behaviors are mostly seen in areas with less population density. Smoking and alcohol are clustering in estate areas occupied by Tamils. This way GIS mapping could be used to identify and reduce the burden of NCDs by visualizing clusters and how certain locations affect their spread. © 2015 APJPH.

Leveraging community health worker system to map a mountainous rural district in low resource setting: a low-cost approach to expand use of geographic information systems for public health.

PubMed

Munyaneza, Fabien; Hirschhorn, Lisa R; Amoroso, Cheryl L; Nyirazinyoye, Laetitia; Birru, Ermyas; Mugunga, Jean Claude; Murekatete, Rachel M; Ntaganira, Joseph

2014-12-06

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have become an important tool in monitoring and improving health services, particularly at local levels. However, GIS data are often unavailable in rural settings and village-level mapping is resource-intensive. This study describes the use of community health workers' (CHW) supervisors to map villages in a mountainous rural district of Northern Rwanda and subsequent use of these data to map village-level variability in safe water availability. We developed a low literacy and skills-focused training in the local language (Kinyarwanda) to train 86 CHW Supervisors and 25 nurses in charge of community health at the health center (HC) and health post (HP) levels to collect the geographic coordinates of the villages using Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Data were validated through meetings with key stakeholders at the sub-district and district levels and joined using ArcMap 10 Geo-processing tools. Costs were calculated using program budgets and activities' records, and compared with the estimated costs of mapping using a separate, trained GIS team. To demonstrate the usefulness of this work, we mapped drinking water sources (DWS) from data collected by CHW supervisors from the chief of the village. DWSs were categorized as safe versus unsafe using World Health Organization definitions. Following training, each CHW Supervisor spent five days collecting data on the villages in their coverage area. Over 12 months, the CHW supervisors mapped the district's 573 villages using 12 shared GPS devices. Sector maps were produced and distributed to local officials. The cost of mapping using CHW supervisors was $29,692, about two times less than the estimated cost of mapping using a trained and dedicated GIS team ($60,112). The availability of local mapping was able to rapidly identify village-level disparities in DWS, with lower access in populations living near to lakes and wetlands (p < .001). Existing national CHW system can be leveraged to inexpensively and rapidly map villages even in mountainous rural areas. These data are important to provide managers and decision makers with local-level GIS data to rapidly identify variability in health and other related services to better target and evaluate interventions.

Geographic Information Systems as Applied to the Manipulation of Environmental Data.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hill, J. M.; And Others

1983-01-01

Discusses two aspects of a Geographic Information System (GIS), a computerized system for processing geographic and/or mapped data and components/implementation of a GIS and GIS demonstration in natural resources management. Demonstrations related to lignite mining permit requirements in coastal zone, and location of potential landfills/hazardous…

Peeking Beneath the Caldera: Communicating Subsurface Knowledge of Newberry Volcano

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mark-Moser, M.; Rose, K.; Schultz, J.; Cameron, E.

2016-12-01

"Imaging the Subsurface: Enhanced Geothermal Systems and Exploring Beneath Newberry Volcano" is an interactive website that presents a three-dimensional subsurface model of Newberry Volcano developed at National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). Created using the Story Maps application by ArcGIS Online, this format's dynamic capabilities provide the user the opportunity for multimedia engagement with the datasets and information used to build the subsurface model. This website allows for an interactive experience that the user dictates, including interactive maps, instructive videos and video capture of the subsurface model, and linked information throughout the text. This Story Map offers a general background on the technology of enhanced geothermal systems and the geologic and development history of Newberry Volcano before presenting NETL's modeling efforts that support the installation of enhanced geothermal systems. The model is driven by multiple geologic and geophysical datasets to compare and contrast results which allow for the targeting of potential EGS sites and the reduction of subsurface uncertainty. This Story Map aims to communicate to a broad audience, and provides a platform to effectively introduce the model to researchers and stakeholders.

Web Platform for Sharing Spatial Data and Manipulating Them Online

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bachelet, Dominique; Comendant, Tosha; Strittholt, Jim

2011-04-01

To fill the need for readily accessible conservation-relevant spatial data sets, the Conservation Biology Institute (CBI) launched in 2010 a Web-based platform called Data Basin (http://www.databasin.org). It is the first custom application of ArcGIS technology, which provides Web access to free maps and imagery using the most current version of Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI; http://www.esri.com/) geographic information system (GIS) software, and its core functionality is being made freely available. Data Basin includes spatial data sets (Arc format shapefiles and grids, or layer packages) that can be biological (e.g., prairie dog range), physical (e.g., average summer temperature, 1950-2000), or socioeconomic (e.g., locations of Alaska oil and gas wells); based on observations as well as on simulation results; and of local to global relevance. They can be uploaded, downloaded, or simply visualized. Maps (overlays of multiple data sets) can be created and customized (e.g., western Massachusetts protected areas, time series of the Deep Water Horizon oil spill). Galleries are folders containing data sets and maps focusing on a theme (e.g., sea level rise projections for the Pacific Northwest region from the National Wildlife Federation, soil data sets for the conterminous United States).

WebGIS based on semantic grid model and web services

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, WangFei; Yue, CaiRong; Gao, JianGuo

2009-10-01

As the combination point of the network technology and GIS technology, WebGIS has got the fast development in recent years. With the restriction of Web and the characteristics of GIS, traditional WebGIS has some prominent problems existing in development. For example, it can't accomplish the interoperability of heterogeneous spatial databases; it can't accomplish the data access of cross-platform. With the appearance of Web Service and Grid technology, there appeared great change in field of WebGIS. Web Service provided an interface which can give information of different site the ability of data sharing and inter communication. The goal of Grid technology was to make the internet to a large and super computer, with this computer we can efficiently implement the overall sharing of computing resources, storage resource, data resource, information resource, knowledge resources and experts resources. But to WebGIS, we only implement the physically connection of data and information and these is far from the enough. Because of the different understanding of the world, following different professional regulations, different policies and different habits, the experts in different field will get different end when they observed the same geographic phenomenon and the semantic heterogeneity produced. Since these there are large differences to the same concept in different field. If we use the WebGIS without considering of the semantic heterogeneity, we will answer the questions users proposed wrongly or we can't answer the questions users proposed. To solve this problem, this paper put forward and experienced an effective method of combing semantic grid and Web Services technology to develop WebGIS. In this paper, we studied the method to construct ontology and the method to combine Grid technology and Web Services and with the detailed analysis of computing characteristics and application model in the distribution of data, we designed the WebGIS query system driven by ontology based on Grid technology and Web Services.

Detection of the Nitrate Pollution Sources in Shallow Aquifer, Using Integration of RS&GIS with Stable Isotopes Technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shakak, N. B. I.

2018-04-01

Geographical information system (GIS) and remote sensing technique is a tool which is used for acquiring data from space, storing, analyzing and displaying spatial data, also can use for investigating source of environmental pollution which is affect health. Sudan landsat mosaic image which acquired in 2013 was used in this study to develop land use and land cover maps for tow selected study area, Khartoum urban area, and Bara locality in North kordofan state western Sudan. The main objective to assess the source of Nitrate pollution in shallow aquifer. ERDAS software was used to create land cover-land use maps for the study areas. For Khartoum town we used land sat mosaic image which acquire in 2013, and used supervised classification which more closely controlled than unsupervised. In this process, we select pixel that represent patterns you recognized or can identify with help from knowledge of the data, the classes desired, and the algorithm to be used is required. In this paper we integrated the (GIS&RS), and stable isotopes methods for fingerprinting Nitrate sources in shallow boreholes. The global positioning system (GPS), used in the field to identify the shallow boreholes location in a three dimensional coordinate (Latitude, longitude, and altitude), Water samples were collected from 19 shallow boreholes in the study areas according to the standard sampling method send to laboratory to measure stable nitrogen (δ15Nnitrate), and Nitrate-oxygen (δ18Onitrate) isotopes. Analysis were conducted by using isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). We can conclude that, special distribution and integration of GIs & RS help to identify the source of nitrate pollution.

From Particles and Point Clouds to Voxel Models: High Resolution Modeling of Dynamic Landscapes in Open Source GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitasova, H.; Hardin, E. J.; Kratochvilova, A.; Landa, M.

2012-12-01

Multitemporal data acquired by modern mapping technologies provide unique insights into processes driving land surface dynamics. These high resolution data also offer an opportunity to improve the theoretical foundations and accuracy of process-based simulations of evolving landforms. We discuss development of new generation of visualization and analytics tools for GRASS GIS designed for 3D multitemporal data from repeated lidar surveys and from landscape process simulations. We focus on data and simulation methods that are based on point sampling of continuous fields and lead to representation of evolving surfaces as series of raster map layers or voxel models. For multitemporal lidar data we present workflows that combine open source point cloud processing tools with GRASS GIS and custom python scripts to model and analyze dynamics of coastal topography (Figure 1) and we outline development of coastal analysis toolbox. The simulations focus on particle sampling method for solving continuity equations and its application for geospatial modeling of landscape processes. In addition to water and sediment transport models, already implemented in GIS, the new capabilities under development combine OpenFOAM for wind shear stress simulation with a new module for aeolian sand transport and dune evolution simulations. Comparison of observed dynamics with the results of simulations is supported by a new, integrated 2D and 3D visualization interface that provides highly interactive and intuitive access to the redesigned and enhanced visualization tools. Several case studies will be used to illustrate the presented methods and tools and demonstrate the power of workflows built with FOSS and highlight their interoperability.Figure 1. Isosurfaces representing evolution of shoreline and a z=4.5m contour between the years 1997-2011at Cape Hatteras, NC extracted from a voxel model derived from series of lidar-based DEMs.

Operational SAR Data Processing in GIS Environments for Rapid Disaster Mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bahr, Thomas

2014-05-01

The use of SAR data has become increasingly popular in recent years and in a wide array of industries. Having access to SAR can be highly important and critical especially for public safety. Updating a GIS with contemporary information from SAR data allows to deliver a reliable set of geospatial information to advance civilian operations, e.g. search and rescue missions. SAR imaging offers the great advantage, over its optical counterparts, of not being affected by darkness, meteorological conditions such as clouds, fog, etc., or smoke and dust, frequently associated with disaster zones. In this paper we present the operational processing of SAR data within a GIS environment for rapid disaster mapping. For this technique we integrated the SARscape modules for ENVI with ArcGIS®, eliminating the need to switch between software packages. Thereby the premier algorithms for SAR image analysis can be directly accessed from ArcGIS desktop and server environments. They allow processing and analyzing SAR data in almost real time and with minimum user interaction. This is exemplified by the November 2010 flash flood in the Veneto region, Italy. The Bacchiglione River burst its banks on Nov. 2nd after two days of heavy rainfall throughout the northern Italian region. The community of Bovolenta, 22 km SSE of Padova, was covered by several meters of water. People were requested to stay in their homes; several roads, highways sections and railroads had to be closed. The extent of this flooding is documented by a series of Cosmo-SkyMed acquisitions with a GSD of 2.5 m (StripMap mode). Cosmo-SkyMed is a constellation of four Earth observation satellites, allowing a very frequent coverage, which enables monitoring using a very high temporal resolution. This data is processed in ArcGIS using a single-sensor, multi-mode, multi-temporal approach consisting of 3 steps: (1) The single images are filtered with a Gamma DE-MAP filter. (2) The filtered images are geocoded using a reference DEM without the need of ground control points. This step includes radiometric calibration. (3) A subsequent change detection analysis generates the final map showing the extent of the flash flood on Nov. 5th 2010. The underlying algorithms are provided by three different sources: Geocoding & radiometric calibration (2) is a standard functionality from the commercial SARscape Toolbox for ArcGIS. This toolbox is extended by the filter tool (1), which is called from the SARscape modules in ENVI. The change detection analysis (3) is based on ENVI processing routines and scripted with IDL. (2) and (3) are integrated with ArcGIS using a predefined Python interface. These 3 processing steps are combined using the ArcGIS ModelBuilder to create a new model for rapid disaster mapping in ArcGIS, based on SAR data. Moreover, this model can be dissolved from its desktop environment and published to users across the ArcGIS Server enterprise. Thus disaster zones, e.g. after severe flooding, can be automatically identified and mapped to support local task forces - using an operational workflow for SAR image analysis, which can be executed by the responsible operators without SAR expert knowledge.

Study on GIS-based sport-games information system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Hongzhi; Yang, Lingbin; Deng, Meirong; Han, Yongshun

2008-10-01

With the development of internet and such info-technologies as, Information Superhighway, Computer Technology, Remote Sensing(RS), Global Positioning System(GPS), Digital Communication and National Information Network(NIN),etc. Geographic Information System (GIS) becomes more and more popular in fields of science and industries. It is not only feasible but also necessary to apply GIS to large-scale sport games. This paper firstly discussed GIS technology and its application, then elaborated on the frame and content of Sport-Games Geography Information System(SG-GIS) with the function of gathering, storing, processing, sharing, exchanging and utilizing all kind of spatial-temporal information about sport games, and lastly designed and developed a public service GIS for the 6th Asian Winter Games in Changchun, China(CAWGIS). The application of CAWGIS showed that the established SG-GIS was feasible and GIS-based sport games information system was able to effectively process a large amount of sport-games information and provide the real-time sport games service for governors, athletes and the public.

Using GIS and secondary data to target diabetes-related public health efforts.

PubMed

Curtis, Amy B; Kothari, Catherine; Paul, Rajib; Connors, Elyse

2013-01-01

To efficiently help communities prevent and manage diabetes, health departments need to be able to target populations with high risk but low resources. To aid in this process, we mapped county-level diabetes-related rates and resources/use using publicly available secondary data to identify Michigan counties with high diabetes prevalence and low or no medical and/or community resources. We collected county-level diabetes-related rates and resources from Web-based sources and mapped them using geographic information systems (GIS) software. Data included age-adjusted county diabetes rates, diabetes-related medical resource and resource use (i.e., the number of endocrinologists and percentage of Medicare patients with diabetes who received hemoglobin A1c testing in the past year), community resources (i.e., the number of certified diabetes self-management education and diabetes support groups), as well as population estimates and demographics (e.g., rural residence, education, poverty, and race/ethnicity). We created GIS maps highlighting areas that had higher-than-median rates of disease and lower-than-median resources. We also conducted linear, logistic, and Poisson regression analyses to confirm GIS findings. There were clear regional trends in resource distribution across Michigan. The 15 counties in the Upper Peninsula were lacking in medical resources but higher in community resources compared with the 68 counties in the Lower Peninsula. There was little apparent association between need (diabetes prevalence) and diabetes-related resources/use. Specific counties with high diabetes prevalence and low resources were easily identified using GIS mapping. Using public data and mapping tools identified diabetes health-service shortage areas for targeted public health programming.

Earth Observation Services (Image Processing Software)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

San Diego State University and Environmental Systems Research Institute, with other agencies, have applied satellite imaging and image processing techniques to geographic information systems (GIS) updating. The resulting images display land use and are used by a regional planning agency for applications like mapping vegetation distribution and preserving wildlife habitats. The EOCAP program provides government co-funding to encourage private investment in, and to broaden the use of NASA-developed technology for analyzing information about Earth and ocean resources.

GRASS GIS: The first Open Source Temporal GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebbert, Sören; Leppelt, Thomas

2015-04-01

GRASS GIS is a full featured, general purpose Open Source geographic information system (GIS) with raster, 3D raster and vector processing support[1]. Recently, time was introduced as a new dimension that transformed GRASS GIS into the first Open Source temporal GIS with comprehensive spatio-temporal analysis, processing and visualization capabilities[2]. New spatio-temporal data types were introduced in GRASS GIS version 7, to manage raster, 3D raster and vector time series. These new data types are called space time datasets. They are designed to efficiently handle hundreds of thousands of time stamped raster, 3D raster and vector map layers of any size. Time stamps can be defined as time intervals or time instances in Gregorian calendar time or relative time. Space time datasets are simplifying the processing and analysis of large time series in GRASS GIS, since these new data types are used as input and output parameter in temporal modules. The handling of space time datasets is therefore equal to the handling of raster, 3D raster and vector map layers in GRASS GIS. A new dedicated Python library, the GRASS GIS Temporal Framework, was designed to implement the spatio-temporal data types and their management. The framework provides the functionality to efficiently handle hundreds of thousands of time stamped map layers and their spatio-temporal topological relations. The framework supports reasoning based on the temporal granularity of space time datasets as well as their temporal topology. It was designed in conjunction with the PyGRASS [3] library to support parallel processing of large datasets, that has a long tradition in GRASS GIS [4,5]. We will present a subset of more than 40 temporal modules that were implemented based on the GRASS GIS Temporal Framework, PyGRASS and the GRASS GIS Python scripting library. These modules provide a comprehensive temporal GIS tool set. The functionality range from space time dataset and time stamped map layer management over temporal aggregation, temporal accumulation, spatio-temporal statistics, spatio-temporal sampling, temporal algebra, temporal topology analysis, time series animation and temporal topology visualization to time series import and export capabilities with support for NetCDF and VTK data formats. We will present several temporal modules that support parallel processing of raster and 3D raster time series. [1] GRASS GIS Open Source Approaches in Spatial Data Handling In Open Source Approaches in Spatial Data Handling, Vol. 2 (2008), pp. 171-199, doi:10.1007/978-3-540-74831-19 by M. Neteler, D. Beaudette, P. Cavallini, L. Lami, J. Cepicky edited by G. Brent Hall, Michael G. Leahy [2] Gebbert, S., Pebesma, E., 2014. A temporal GIS for field based environmental modeling. Environ. Model. Softw. 53, 1-12. [3] Zambelli, P., Gebbert, S., Ciolli, M., 2013. Pygrass: An Object Oriented Python Application Programming Interface (API) for Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) Geographic Information System (GIS). ISPRS Intl Journal of Geo-Information 2, 201-219. [4] Löwe, P., Klump, J., Thaler, J. (2012): The FOSS GIS Workbench on the GFZ Load Sharing Facility compute cluster, (Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 14, EGU2012-4491, 2012), General Assembly European Geosciences Union (Vienna, Austria 2012). [5] Akhter, S., Aida, K., Chemin, Y., 2010. "GRASS GIS on High Performance Computing with MPI, OpenMP and Ninf-G Programming Framework". ISPRS Conference, Kyoto, 9-12 August 2010

Analysis of Ground Water Fluoride Content and its Association with Prevalence of Fluorosis in Zarand/Kerman: (Using GIS).

PubMed

T, Malek Mohammadi; R, Derakhshani; M, Tavallaie; M, Raoof; N, Hasheminejad; Aa, Haghdoost

2017-06-01

The concentration of fluoride in water is usually higher in areas around the coal mines. Zarand region in the south-east of Iran is known for its coal mines. Some studies have shown the high prevalence of fluorosis and some studies reported high levels of fluoride in the region. This study aimed to use Geographic Information System (GIS) to assess the relationship between water fluoride content and the prevalence of fluorosis and its spatial distribution in Zarand region. This cross-sectional study aimed to recruit 550 people aged 7-40 years in Zarand. Dental examination for fluorosis was conducted based on the Dean's Index. The level of fluoride in the water was determined in samples of water taken from 35 areas. Information on fluorosis and fluoride content was mapped on GIS. Most participants lived in rural areas (87.25%) and had an educational status of high school level (66%). About 23% of the examined people had normal teeth, 10% had severe and 67% had mild to moderate fluorosis. Distribution of severe fluorosis was higher in areas with higher levels of fluoride in the water according to GIS map. GIS map clearly showed a positive relationship between the prevalence and severity of fluorosis with the level of fluoride in water in Zarand. The GIS analysis may be useful in the analysis of other oral conditions.

Inland area contingency plan and maps for Pennsylvania (on CD-ROM). Data file

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1996-12-01

EPA Region III has assembled on this CD a multitude of environmental data, in both visual and textual formats. While targeted for Facility Response Planning under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, this information will prove helpful to anyone in the environmental arena. Specifically, the CD will aid contingency planning and emergency response personnel. Combining innovative GIS technology with EPA`s state-specific data allows you to display maps, find and identify map features, look at tabular information about map features, and print out maps. The CD was designed to be easy to use and incorporates example maps as well as helpmore » sections describing the use of the environmental data on the CD, and introduces you to the IACP Viewer and its capabilities. These help features will make it easy for you to conduct analysis, produce maps, and browse the IACP Plan. The IACP data are included in two formats: shapefiles, which can be viewed with the IACP Viewer or ESRI`s ArcView software (Version 2.1 or higher), and ARC/INFO export files, which can be imported into ARC/INFO or converted to other GIS data formats. Point Data Sources: Sensitive Areas, Surface Drinking Water Intakes, Groundwater Intakes, Groundwater Supply Facilities, NPL (National Priority List) Sites, FRP (Facility Response Plan) Facilities, NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Facilities, Hospitals, RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) Sites, TRI (Toxic Release Inventory) Sites, CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act) Sites Line Data Sources: TIGER Roads, TIGER Railroads, TIGER Hydrography, Pipelines Polygon Data Sources: State Boundaries, County Boundaries, Watershed Boundaries (8-digit HUC), TIGER Hydrography, Public Lands, Populated Places, IACP Boundaries, Coast Guard Boundaries, Forest Types, US Congressional Districts, One-half Mile Buffer of Surface Drinking Water Intakes.« less

Inland area contingency plan and maps for Virginia (on CD-ROM). Data file

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1996-12-01

EPA Region III has assembled on this CD a multitude of environmental data, in both visual and textual formats. While targeted for Facility Response Planning under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, this information will prove helpful to anyone in the environmental arena. Specifically, the CD will aid contingency planning and emergency response personnel. Combining innovative GIS technology with EPA`s state-specific data allows you to display maps, find and identify map features, look at tabular information about map features, and print out maps. The CD was designed to be easy to use and incorporates example maps as well as helpmore » sections describing the use of the environmental data on the CD, and introduces you to the IACP Viewer and its capabilities. These help features will make it easy for you to conduct analysis, produce maps, and browse the IACP Plan. The IACP data are included in two formats: shapefiles, which can be viewed with the IACP Viewer or ESRI`s ArcView software (Version 2.1 or higher), and ARC/INFO export files, which can be imported into ARC/INFO or converted to other GIS data formats. Point Data Sources: Sensitive Areas, Surface Drinking Water Intakes, Groundwater Intakes, Groundwater Supply Facilities, NPL (National Priority List) Sites, FRP (Facility Response Plan) Facilities, NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Facilities, Hospitals, RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) Sites, TRI (Toxic Release Inventory) Sites, CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act) Sites Line Data Sources: TIGER Roads, TIGER Railroads, TIGER Hydrography, Pipelines Polygon Data Sources: State Boundaries, County Boundaries, Watershed Boundaries (8-digit HUC), TIGER Hydrography, Public Lands, Populated Places, IACP Boundaries, Coast Guard Boundaries, Forest Types, US Congressional Districts, One-half Mile Buffer of Surface Drinking Water Intakes.« less

Demonstration of Hadoop-GIS: A Spatial Data Warehousing System Over MapReduce.

PubMed

Aji, Ablimit; Sun, Xiling; Vo, Hoang; Liu, Qioaling; Lee, Rubao; Zhang, Xiaodong; Saltz, Joel; Wang, Fusheng

2013-11-01

The proliferation of GPS-enabled devices, and the rapid improvement of scientific instruments have resulted in massive amounts of spatial data in the last decade. Support of high performance spatial queries on large volumes data has become increasingly important in numerous fields, which requires a scalable and efficient spatial data warehousing solution as existing approaches exhibit scalability limitations and efficiency bottlenecks for large scale spatial applications. In this demonstration, we present Hadoop-GIS - a scalable and high performance spatial query system over MapReduce. Hadoop-GIS provides an efficient spatial query engine to process spatial queries, data and space based partitioning, and query pipelines that parallelize queries implicitly on MapReduce. Hadoop-GIS also provides an expressive, SQL-like spatial query language for workload specification. We will demonstrate how spatial queries are expressed in spatially extended SQL queries, and submitted through a command line/web interface for execution. Parallel to our system demonstration, we explain the system architecture and details on how queries are translated to MapReduce operators, optimized, and executed on Hadoop. In addition, we will showcase how the system can be used to support two representative real world use cases: large scale pathology analytical imaging, and geo-spatial data warehousing.

Development of Waypoint Planning Tool in Response to NASA Field Campaign Challenges

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

He, Matt; Hardin, Danny; Mayer, Paul; Blakeslee, Richard; Goodman, Michael

2012-01-01

Airborne real time observations are a major component of NASA 's Earth Science research and satellite ground validation studies. Multiple aircraft are involved in most NASA field campaigns. The coordination of the aircraft with satellite overpasses, other airplanes and the constantly evolving, dynamic weather conditions often determines the success of the campaign. Planning a research aircraft mission within the context of meeting the science objectives is a complex task because it requires real time situational awareness of the weather conditions that affect the aircraft track. A flight planning tools is needed to provide situational awareness information to the mission scientists, and help them plan and modify the flight tracks. Scientists at the University of Alabama ]Huntsville and the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center developed the Waypoint Planning Tool, an interactive software tool that enables scientists to develop their own flight plans (also known as waypoints) with point -and-click mouse capabilities on a digital map filled with real time raster and vector data. The development of this Waypoint Planning Tool demonstrates the significance of mission support in responding to the challenges presented during NASA field campaigns. Analysis during and after each campaign helped identify both issues and new requirements, and initiated the next wave of development. Currently the Waypoint Planning Tool has gone through three rounds of development and analysis processes. The development of this waypoint tool is directly affected by the technology advances on GIS/Mapping technologies. From the standalone Google Earth application and simple KML functionalities, to Google Earth Plugin on web platform, and to the rising open source GIS tools with New Java Script frameworks, the Waypoint Planning Tool has entered its third phase of technology advancement. Adapting new technologies for the Waypoint Planning Tool ensures its success in helping scientist reach their mission objectives.

BIA interpretation techniques for vegetation mapping using thematic mapper false color composites (interim report for San Carlos Reservation)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bonner, W.J.; English, T.C.; Haas, R.H.; Feagan, T.R.; McKinley, R.A.

1987-01-01

The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) is responsible for the natural resource management of approximately 52 million acres of Trust lands in the contiguous United States. The lands are distributed in a "patchwork" fashion throughout the country. Management responsibilities on these areas include: minerals, range, timber, fish and wildlife, agricultural, cultural, and archaeological resources. In an age of decreasing natural resources and increasing natural resource values, effective multiple resource management is critical. BIA has adopted a "systems approach" to natural resource management which utilizes Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. The GIS encompasses a continuum of spatial and relational data elements, and included functional capabilities such as: data collection, data entry, data base development, data analysis, data base management, display, and report generalization. In support of database development activities, BIA and BLM/TGS conducted a cooperative effort to investigate the potential of 1:100,000 scale Thematic Mapper (TM) False Color Composites (FCCs) for providing vegetation information suitable for input to the GIS and to later be incorporated as a generalized Bureau wide land cover map. Land cover information is critical as the majority of reservations currently have no land cover information in either map or digital form. This poster outlines an approach which includes the manual interpretation of land cover using TM FCCs, the digitizing of interpreted polygons, and the editing of digital data, used upon ground truthing exercises. An efficient and cost-effective methodology for generating large area land cover information is illustrated for the Mineral Strip area on the San Carlos Indian Reservation in Arizona. Techniques which capitalize on the knowledge of the local natural resources professionals, while minimizing machine processing requirements, are suggested.

The National Landslide Database and GIS for Great Britain: construction, development, data acquisition, application and communication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pennington, Catherine; Dashwood, Claire; Freeborough, Katy

2014-05-01

The National Landslide Database has been developed by the British Geological Survey (BGS) and is the focus for national geohazard research for landslides in Great Britain. The history and structure of the geospatial database and associated Geographical Information System (GIS) are explained, along with the future developments of the database and its applications. The database is the most extensive source of information on landslides in Great Britain with over 16,500 records of landslide events, each documented as fully as possible. Data are gathered through a range of procedures, including: incorporation of other databases; automated trawling of current and historical scientific literature and media reports; new field- and desk-based mapping technologies with digital data capture, and crowd-sourcing information through social media and other online resources. This information is invaluable for the investigation, prevention and mitigation of areas of unstable ground in accordance with Government planning policy guidelines. The national landslide susceptibility map (GeoSure) and a national landslide domain map currently under development rely heavily on the information contained within the landslide database. Assessing susceptibility to landsliding requires knowledge of the distribution of failures and an understanding of causative factors and their spatial distribution, whilst understanding the frequency and types of landsliding present is integral to modelling how rainfall will influence the stability of a region. Communication of landslide data through the Natural Hazard Partnership (NHP) contributes to national hazard mitigation and disaster risk reduction with respect to weather and climate. Daily reports of landslide potential are published by BGS through the NHP and data collected for the National Landslide Database is used widely for the creation of these assessments. The National Landslide Database is freely available via an online GIS and is used by a variety of stakeholders for research purposes.

Putting Chronic Disease on the Map: Building GIS Capacity in State and Local Health Departments

PubMed Central

Casper, Michele; Tootoo, Joshua; Schieb, Linda

2013-01-01

Techniques based on geographic information systems (GIS) have been widely adopted and applied in the fields of infectious disease and environmental epidemiology; their use in chronic disease programs is relatively new. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention is collaborating with the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors and the University of Michigan to provide health departments with capacity to integrate GIS into daily operations, which support priorities for surveillance and prevention of chronic diseases. So far, 19 state and 7 local health departments participated in this project. On the basis of these participants’ experiences, we describe our training strategy and identify high-impact GIS skills that can be mastered and applied over a short time in support of chronic disease surveillance. We also describe the web-based resources in the Chronic Disease GIS Exchange that were produced on the basis of this training and are available to anyone interested in GIS and chronic disease (www.cdc.gov/DHDSP/maps/GISX). GIS offers diverse sets of tools that promise increased productivity for chronic disease staff of state and local health departments. PMID:23786907

Putting chronic disease on the map: building GIS capacity in state and local health departments.

PubMed

Miranda, Marie Lynn; Casper, Michele; Tootoo, Joshua; Schieb, Linda

2013-06-20

Techniques based on geographic information systems (GIS) have been widely adopted and applied in the fields of infectious disease and environmental epidemiology; their use in chronic disease programs is relatively new. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention is collaborating with the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors and the University of Michigan to provide health departments with capacity to integrate GIS into daily operations, which support priorities for surveillance and prevention of chronic diseases. So far, 19 state and 7 local health departments participated in this project. On the basis of these participants' experiences, we describe our training strategy and identify high-impact GIS skills that can be mastered and applied over a short time in support of chronic disease surveillance. We also describe the web-based resources in the Chronic Disease GIS Exchange that were produced on the basis of this training and are available to anyone interested in GIS and chronic disease (www.cdc.gov/DHDSP/maps/GISX). GIS offers diverse sets of tools that promise increased productivity for chronic disease staff of state and local health departments.

The status of soil mapping for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Olson, G.L.; Lee, R.D.; Jeppesen, D.J.

This report discusses the production of a revised version of the general soil map of the 2304-km{sup 2} (890-mi{sup 2}) Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) site in southeastern Idaho and the production of a geographic information system (GIS) soil map and supporting database. The revised general soil map replaces an INEL soil map produced in 1978 and incorporates the most current information on INEL soils. The general soil map delineates large soil associations based on National Resources Conservation Services [formerly the Soil Conservation Service (SCS)] principles of soil mapping. The GIS map incorporates detailed information that could not be presentedmore » on the general soil map and is linked to a database that contains the soil map unit descriptions, surficial geology codes, and other pertinent information.« less

Modeling of natural risks in GIS, decision support in the Civil Protection and Emergency Planning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Santos, M.; Martins, L.; Moreira, S.; Costa, A.; Matos, F.; Teixeira, M.; Bateira, C.

2012-04-01

The assessment of natural hazards in Civil Protection is essential in the prevention and mitigation of emergency situations. This paper presents the results of the development of mapping susceptibility to landslides, floods, forest fires and soil erosion, using GIS (Geographic Information System) tools in two municipalities - Santo Tirso and Trofa - in the district of Oporto, in the northwest of Portugal. The mapping of natural hazards fits in the legislative plan of the Municipal Civil Protection (Law No. 65/2007 of 12 November) and it provides the key elements to planning and preparing an appropriate response in case some of the processes / phenomena occur, thus optimizing the procedures for protection and relief provided by the Municipal Civil Protection Service. Susceptibility mapping to landslides, floods, forest fires and soil erosion was performed with GIS tools resources. The methodology used to compile the mapping of landslides, forest fires and soil erosion was based on the modeling of different conditioning factors and validated with field work and event log. The mapping of susceptibility to floods and flooding was developed through mathematical parameters (statistical, hydrologic and hydraulic), supported by field work and the recognition of individual characteristics of each sector analysis and subsequently analyzed in a GIS environment The mapping proposal was made in 1:5000 scale which allows not only the identification of large sets affected by the spatial dynamics of the processes / phenomena, but also a more detailed analysis, especially when combined with geographic information systems (GIS) thus allowing to study more specific situations that require a quick response. The maps developed in this study are fundamental to the understanding, prediction and prevention of susceptibility and risks present in the municipalities, being a valuable tool in the process of Emergency Planning, since it identifies priority areas of intervention for farther detail analysis, promote and safeguard mechanisms to prevent injury and it anticipates the possibility of potential interventions that can minimize the risk.

GeoMEx: Geographic Information System (GIS) Prototype for Mars Express Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manaud, N.; Frigeri, A.; Ivanov, A. B.

2013-09-01

As of today almost a decade of observational data have been returned by the multidisciplinary instruments on-board the ESA's Mars Express spacecraft. All data are archived into the ESA's Planetary Science Archive (PSA), which is the central repository for all ESA's Solar System missions [1]. Data users can perform advanced queries and retrieve data from the PSA using graphical and map-based search interfaces, or via direct FTP download [2]. However the PSA still offers limited geometrical search and visualisation capabilities that are essential for scientists to identify their data of interest. A former study has shown [3] that this limitation is mostly due to the fact that (1) only a subset of the instruments observations geometry information has been modeled and ingested into the PSA, and (2) that the access to that information from GIS software is impossible without going through a cumbersome and undocumented process. With the increasing number of Mars GIS data sets available to the community [4], GIS software have become invaluable tools for researchers to capture, manage, visualise, and analyse data from various sources. Although Mars Express surface imaging data are natural candidates for use in a GIS environment, other non-imaging instruments data (subsurface, atmosphere, plasma) integration is being investigated [5]. The objective of this work is to develop a GIS prototype that will integrate all the Mars Express instruments observations geometry information into a spatial database that can be accessed from external GIS software using standard WMS and WFS protocols. We will firstly focus on the integration of surface and subsurface instruments data (HRSC, OMEGA, MARSIS). In addition to the geometry information, base and context maps of Mars derived from surface mapping instruments data will also be ingested into the system. The system back-end architecture will be implemented using open-source GIS frameworks: PostgreSQL/PostGIS for the database, and MapServer for the web publishing module. Interfaces with existing GIS front-end software (such as QGIS, GRASS, ArcView, or OpenLayers) will be investigated and tested in a second phase. This prototype is primarily intended to be used by the Mars Express instruments teams in support to their scientific investigations. It will also be used by the mission Archive Scientist in support to the data validation and PSA interface requirements definition tasks. Depending on its success, this prototype might be used in the future to demonstrate the benefit of a GIS component integration to ESA's planetary science operations planning systems.

Digital Mapping Techniques '08—Workshop Proceedings, Moscow, Idaho, May 18–21, 2008

USGS Publications Warehouse

Soller, David R.

2009-01-01

The Digital Mapping Techniques '08 (DMT'08) workshop was attended by more than 100 technical experts from 40 agencies, universities, and private companies, including representatives from 24 State geological surveys. This year's meeting, the twelfth in the annual series, was hosted by the Idaho Geological Survey, from May 18-21, 2008, on the University of Idaho campus in Moscow, Idaho. Each DMT workshop has been coordinated by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Geologic Map Database Project and the Association of American State Geologists (AASG). As in previous years' meetings, the objective was to foster informal discussion and exchange of technical information, principally in order to develop more efficient methods for digital mapping, cartography, GIS analysis, and information management. At this meeting, oral and poster presentations and special discussion sessions emphasized (1) methods for creating and publishing map products (here, "publishing" includes Web-based release); (2) field data capture software and techniques, including the use of LiDAR; (3) digital cartographic techniques; (4) migration of digital maps into ArcGIS Geodatabase format; (5) analytical GIS techniques; and (6) continued development of the National Geologic Map Database.

Surficial Geologic Map of the Ashby-Lowell-Sterling-Billerica 11-Quadrangle Area in Northeast-Central Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, Byron D.; Stone, Janet R.

2007-01-01

The surficial geologic map shows the distribution of nonlithified earth materials at land surface in an area of eleven 7.5-minute quadrangles (total 505 mi2) in northeast-central Massachusetts. The geologic map differentiates surficial materials of Quaternary age on the basis of their lithologic characteristics (such as grain size and sedimentary structures), constructional geomorphic features, stratigraphic relationships, and age. Surficial earth materials significantly affect human use of the land, and an accurate description of their distribution is particularly important for water resources, construction aggregate resources, earth-surface hazards assessments, and land-use decisions. This compilation of surficial geologic materials is an interim product that defines the areas of exposed bedrock, and the boundaries between glacial till, glacial stratified deposits, and overlying postglacial deposits. This work is part of a comprehensive study to produce a statewide digital map of the surficial geology at a 1:24,000-scale level of accuracy. This report includes explanatory text (PDF), a regional map at 1:50,000 scale (PDF), quadrangle maps at 1:24,000 scale (PDF files), GIS data layers (ArcGIS shapefiles), metadata for the GIS layers, scanned topographic base maps (TIF), and a readme.txt file.

Surficial Geologic Map of the Salem Depot-Newburyport East-Wilmington-Rockport 16-Quadrangle Area in Northeast Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, Byron D.; Stone, Janet Radway; DiGiacomo-Cohen, Mary L.

2006-01-01

The surficial geologic map shows the distribution of nonlithified earth materials at land surface in an area of 16 7.5-minute quadrangles (total 658 mi2) in northeast Massachusetts. The geologic map differentiates surficial materials of Quaternary age on the basis of their lithologic characteristics (grain size, sedimentary structures, mineral and rock-particle composition), constructional geomorphic features, stratigraphic relationships, and age. Surficial earth materials significantly affect human use of the land, and an accurate description of their distribution is particularly important for water resources, construction aggregate resources, earth-surface hazards assessments, and land-use decisions. This compilation of surficial geologic materials is an interim product that defines the areas of exposed bedrock, and the boundaries between glacial till, glacial stratified deposits, and overlying postglacial deposits. This work is part of a comprehensive study to produce a statewide digital map of the surficial geology at a 1:24,000-scale level of accuracy. This report includes explanatory text (PDF), a regional map at 1:50,000 scale (PDF), quadrangle maps at 1:24,000 scale (PDF files), GIS data layers (ArcGIS shapefiles), metadata for the GIS layers, scanned topographic base maps (TIF), and a readme.txt file.

Evaluating geographic information systems technology

USGS Publications Warehouse

Guptill, Stephen C.

1989-01-01

Computerized geographic information systems (GISs) are emerging as the spatial data handling tools of choice for solving complex geographical problems. However, few guidelines exist for assisting potential users in identifying suitable hardware and software. A process to be followed in evaluating the merits of GIS technology is presented. Related standards and guidelines, software functions, hardware components, and benchmarking are discussed. By making users aware of all aspects of adopting GIS technology, they can decide if GIS is an appropriate tool for their application and, if so, which GIS should be used.

Data Access System for Hydrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whitenack, T.; Zaslavsky, I.; Valentine, D.; Djokic, D.

2007-12-01

As part of the CUAHSI HIS (Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc., Hydrologic Information System), the CUAHSI HIS team has developed Data Access System for Hydrology or DASH. DASH is based on commercial off the shelf technology, which has been developed in conjunction with a commercial partner, ESRI. DASH is a web-based user interface, developed in ASP.NET developed using ESRI ArcGIS Server 9.2 that represents a mapping, querying and data retrieval interface over observation and GIS databases, and web services. This is the front end application for the CUAHSI Hydrologic Information System Server. The HIS Server is a software stack that organizes observation databases, geographic data layers, data importing and management tools, and online user interfaces such as the DASH application, into a flexible multi- tier application for serving both national-level and locally-maintained observation data. The user interface of the DASH web application allows online users to query observation networks by location and attributes, selecting stations in a user-specified area where a particular variable was measured during a given time interval. Once one or more stations and variables are selected, the user can retrieve and download the observation data for further off-line analysis. The DASH application is highly configurable. The mapping interface can be configured to display map services from multiple sources in multiple formats, including ArcGIS Server, ArcIMS, and WMS. The observation network data is configured in an XML file where you specify the network's web service location and its corresponding map layer. Upon initial deployment, two national level observation networks (USGS NWIS daily values and USGS NWIS Instantaneous values) are already pre-configured. There is also an optional login page which can be used to restrict access as well as providing a alternative to immediate downloads. For large request, users would be notified via email with a link to their data when it is ready.

Mapping of risk prone areas of kala-azar (Visceral leishmaniasis) in parts of Bihar State, India: an RS and GIS approach.

PubMed

Sudhakar, S; Srinivas, T; Palit, A; Kar, S K; Battacharya, S K

2006-09-01

The kala-azar fever (Visceral leishmaniasis) is continuing unabated in India for over a century, now being largely confined to the eastern part of India mainly in Bihar state and to some extent in its bordering states like West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. Two study sites namely Patepur block in Vaishali district with high endemicity in northern part and Lohardagga block in Lohardagga district with absolute non-endemicity in southern part of Bihar were selected for the study with the following objectives : (i) to study the macro-ecosystem in relation to distribution of vector -Phlebotomus argentipes; (ii) to identify/map the risk prone areas or villages in a block for quick remedial measures; and (iii) to make use of satellite remote sensing and GIS to demonstrate the utility for rapid assessment of landuse/landcover and their relation with the incidence of kalaazar leading to the mapping of risk prone areas. Indian Remote Sensing (IRS)-1D LISS III satellite data for the periods of March and November 2000 were analysed in Silicon graphic image processing system using ERDAS software. False color composites (FCC) were generated and landuse/landcover was assessed using Maximum likelihood supervised classification techniques based on ground truth training sets. During the study the GIS functions are used to quantify the remotely sensed landscape proportions of 5 km2 buffer surrounding each known group of villages of high occurrence of sandflies in endemic and nonendemic study sites. Instead of traditional ground based survey methods to vector surveillance, the present study used a combination of remote sensing (RS) and geographical information system (GIS) approach to develop landscape predictors of sandfly abundance-an indicator of human vector contact and as a measure of risk prone areas. Statistical analysis using the remotely sensed landscape variables showed that rural villages surrounded by higher proportion of transitional swamps with soft stemmed edible plants and banana, sugarcane plantations had higher sandfly abundance and would, therefore, be at higher risk prone areas for man-vector contact. The present study clearly brought out the usefulness of satellite remote sensing technology in generating the crucial information on spatial distribution of landuse/landcover classes with special emphasis on indicator landcover classes thereby helping in prioritising the area to identify risk prone areas of kala-azar through GIS application tools.

Employing Geodatabases for Planetary Mapping Conduct - Requirements, Concepts and Solutions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

vanGasselt, Stephan; Nass, A.

2010-01-01

Planetary geologic mapping has become complex in terms of merging and co-registering a variety of different datasets for analysis and mapping. But it has also become more convenient when it comes to conducting actual (geoscientific) mapping with the help of desktop Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The complexity and variety of data, however, are major issues that need to be taken care of in order to provide mappers with a consistent and easy-to-use mapping basis. Furthermore, a high degree of functionality and interoperability of various commercial and open-source GIS and remote sensing applications allow mappers to organize map data, map components and attribute data in a more sophisticated and intuitional way when compared to workflows 15 years ago. Integration of mapping results of different groups becomes an awkward task as each mapper follows his/her own style, especially if mapping conduct is not coordinated and organized programmatically. Problems of data homogenization start with various interpretations and implementations of planetary map projections and reference systems which form the core component of any mapping and analysis work. If the data basis is inconsistent, mapping results in terms of objects georeference become hard to integrate. Apart from data organization and referencing issues, which are important on the mapping as well as the data-processing side of every project, the organization of planetary geologic map units and attributes, as well as their representation within a common GIS environment, are key components that need to be taken care of in a consistent and persistent way.

Using GIS with real-time water quality assessment to guide scientific inquiry and learning in a community college environmental studies program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwartz, M. C.; Beauregard, A.

2011-12-01

The overarching goal of this project is to introduce community college students to the use of environmental analytical technology and geographical information systems (GIS) through the development of a new course in Aquatic Environmental Science at Northwest Florida State College (NWFSC), a community college in Niceville, FL. During the new course, NWFSC students are guided by an instructor from NWFSC and one from the local university, the University of West Florida (UWF), as well as a UWF graduate student. Students learn to use field instruments to measure water quality variables (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and nutrients) during several field trips on a local estuary. While still in the field, students on multiple boats in different parts of the estuary use a wireless broadband interface to upload field data to a web-based GIS system interface developed by commissioned GIS professionals. This GIS system compiles the data and generates maps to show a whole-basin view of variations in water quality parameters that students access from the field. The capstone of each field trip is a "floating classroom" during which students and instructors discuss summary results, test field hypotheses, and compare results with historical data collected during previous field trips. Our continuing assessment of the impact on student learning of this real-time geospatial assessment suggests that student interest in environmental science and technology has been positively affected by the use of these methods. Furthermore, students show considerable improvement in their use of the technology and their understanding of the related scientific concepts (e.g., aquatic biogeochemistry). While the primary goal of this course is the academic benefit provided to NWFSC students, the in-class sampling also provides access to important data that can be used to support ongoing research by both authors. We are currently assessing the precision of the data collected by NWFSC students in hopes that it can support data collected in the same area as part of biogeochemical research projects.

A study on spatial decision support systems for HIV/AIDS prevention based on COM GIS technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Kun; Luo, Huasong; Peng, Shungyun; Xu, Quanli

2007-06-01

Based on the deeply analysis of the current status and the existing problems of GIS technology applications in Epidemiology, this paper has proposed the method and process for establishing the spatial decision support systems of AIDS epidemic prevention by integrating the COM GIS, Spatial Database, GPS, Remote Sensing, and Communication technologies, as well as ASP and ActiveX software development technologies. One of the most important issues for constructing the spatial decision support systems of AIDS epidemic prevention is how to integrate the AIDS spreading models with GIS. The capabilities of GIS applications in the AIDS epidemic prevention have been described here in this paper firstly. Then some mature epidemic spreading models have also been discussed for extracting the computation parameters. Furthermore, a technical schema has been proposed for integrating the AIDS spreading models with GIS and relevant geospatial technologies, in which the GIS and model running platforms share a common spatial database and the computing results can be spatially visualized on Desktop or Web GIS clients. Finally, a complete solution for establishing the decision support systems of AIDS epidemic prevention has been offered in this paper based on the model integrating methods and ESRI COM GIS software packages. The general decision support systems are composed of data acquisition sub-systems, network communication sub-systems, model integrating sub-systems, AIDS epidemic information spatial database sub-systems, AIDS epidemic information querying and statistical analysis sub-systems, AIDS epidemic dynamic surveillance sub-systems, AIDS epidemic information spatial analysis and decision support sub-systems, as well as AIDS epidemic information publishing sub-systems based on Web GIS.

Owgis 2.0: Open Source Java Application that Builds Web GIS Interfaces for Desktop Andmobile Devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zavala Romero, O.; Chassignet, E.; Zavala-Hidalgo, J.; Pandav, H.; Velissariou, P.; Meyer-Baese, A.

2016-12-01

OWGIS is an open source Java and JavaScript application that builds easily configurable Web GIS sites for desktop and mobile devices. The current version of OWGIS generates mobile interfaces based on HTML5 technology and can be used to create mobile applications. The style of the generated websites can be modified using COMPASS, a well known CSS Authoring Framework. In addition, OWGIS uses several Open Geospatial Consortium standards to request datafrom the most common map servers, such as GeoServer. It is also able to request data from ncWMS servers, allowing the websites to display 4D data from NetCDF files. This application is configured by XML files that define which layers, geographic datasets, are displayed on the Web GIS sites. Among other features, OWGIS allows for animations; streamlines from vector data; virtual globe display; vertical profiles and vertical transects; different color palettes; the ability to download data; and display text in multiple languages. OWGIS users are mainly scientists in the oceanography, meteorology and climate fields.

GIS Representation of Coal-Bearing Areas in North, Central, and South America

USGS Publications Warehouse

Tewalt, Susan J.; Kinney, Scott A.; Merrill, Matthew D.

2008-01-01

Worldwide coal consumption and international coal trade are projected to increase in the next several decades (Energy Information Administration, 2007). A search of existing literature indicates that in the Western Hemisphere, coal resources are known to occur in about 30 countries. The need exists to be able to depict these areas in a digital format for use in Geographic Information System (GIS) applications at small scales (large areas) and in visual presentations. Existing surficial geology GIS layers of the appropriate geologic age have been used as an approximation to depict the extent of coal-bearing areas in North, Central, and South America, as well as Greenland (fig. 1). Global surficial geology GIS data were created by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for use in world petroleum assessments (Hearn and others, 2003). These USGS publications served as the major sources for the selection and creation of polygons to represent coal-bearing areas. Additional publications and maps by various countries and agencies were also used as sources of coal locations. GIS geologic polygons were truncated where literature or hardcopy maps did not indicate the presence of coal. The depicted areas are not adequate for use in coal resource calculations, as they were not adjusted for geologic structure and do not include coal at depth. Additionally, some coal areas in Central America could not be represented by the mapped surficial geology and are shown only as points based on descriptions or depictions from scientific publications or available maps. The provided GIS files are intended to serve as a backdrop for display of coal information. Three attributes of the coal that are represented by the polygons or points include geologic age (or range of ages), published rank (or range of ranks), and information source (published sources for age, rank, or physical location, or GIS geology base).

Web GIS in practice V: 3-D interactive and real-time mapping in Second Life

PubMed Central

Boulos, Maged N Kamel; Burden, David

2007-01-01

This paper describes technologies from Daden Limited for geographically mapping and accessing live news stories/feeds, as well as other real-time, real-world data feeds (e.g., Google Earth KML feeds and GeoRSS feeds) in the 3-D virtual world of Second Life, by plotting and updating the corresponding Earth location points on a globe or some other suitable form (in-world), and further linking those points to relevant information and resources. This approach enables users to visualise, interact with, and even walk or fly through, the plotted data in 3-D. Users can also do the reverse: put pins on a map in the virtual world, and then view the data points on the Web in Google Maps or Google Earth. The technologies presented thus serve as a bridge between mirror worlds like Google Earth and virtual worlds like Second Life. We explore the geo-data display potential of virtual worlds and their likely convergence with mirror worlds in the context of the future 3-D Internet or Metaverse, and reflect on the potential of such technologies and their future possibilities, e.g. their use to develop emergency/public health virtual situation rooms to effectively manage emergencies and disasters in real time. The paper also covers some of the issues associated with these technologies, namely user interface accessibility and individual privacy. PMID:18042275

Mapping of Student Sustainable Development Education Knowledge in Malaysia Using Geographical Information System (GIS)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mahat, Hanifah; Hashim, Mohmadisa; Nayan, Nasir; Saleh, Yazid; Norkhaidi, Saiyidatina Balkhis

2018-01-01

This article aims to examine the levels of education for sustainable development (ESD) knowledge among students in secondary schools according to zones in Malaysia by using GIS mapping. The five main zones of the study were the north zone, the south zone, the east coast zone, the central zone, and the East Malaysia zone. This quantitative form of…

A multifaceted comparison of ArcGIS and MapMarker for automated geocoding.

PubMed

Kumar, Sanjaya; Liu, Ming; Hwang, Syni-An

2012-11-01

Geocoding is increasingly being used for public health surveillance and spatial epidemiology studies. Public health departments in the United States of America (USA) often use this approach to investigate disease outbreaks and clusters or assign health records to appropriate geographic units. We evaluated two commonly used geocoding software packages, ArcGIS and MapMarker, for automated geocoding of a large number of residential addresses from health administrative data in New York State, USA to better understand their features, performance and limitations. The comparison was based on three metrics of evaluation: completeness (or match rate), geocode similarity and positional accuracy. Of the 551,798 input addresses, 318,302 (57.7%) were geocoded by MapMarker and 420,813 (76.3%) by the ArcGIS composite address locator. High similarity between the geocodes assigned by the two methods was found, especially in suburban and urban areas. Among addresses with a distance of greater than 100 m between the geocodes assigned by the two packages, the point assigned by ArcGIS was closer to the associated parcel centroid ("true" location) compared with that assigned by MapMarker. In addition, the composite address locator in ArcGIS allows users to fully utilise available reference data, which consequently results in better geocoding results. However, the positional differences found were minimal, and a large majority of addresses were placed on the same locations by both geocoding packages. Using both methods and combining the results can maximise match rates and save the time needed for manual geocoding.

Arctic Research Mapping Application (ARMAP): 2D Maps and 3D Globes Support Arctic Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, G.; Gaylord, A. G.; Brady, J. J.; Cody, R. P.; Aguilar, J. A.; Dover, M.; Garcia-Lavigne, D.; Manley, W.; Score, R.; Tweedie, C. E.

2007-12-01

The Arctic Research Mapping Application (ARMAP) is a suite of online services to provide support of Arctic science. These services include: a text based online search utility, 2D Internet Map Server (IMS); 3D globes and Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Map Services (WMS). With ARMAP's 2D maps and 3D globes, users can navigate to areas of interest, view a variety of map layers, and explore U.S. Federally funded research projects. Projects can be queried by location, year, funding program, discipline, and keyword. Links take you to specific information and other web sites associated with a particular research project. The Arctic Research Logistics Support Service (ARLSS) database is the foundation of ARMAP including US research funded by the National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the United States Geological Survey. Avoiding a duplication of effort has been a primary objective of the ARMAP project which incorporates best practices (e.g. Spatial Data Infrastructure and OGC standard web services and metadata) and off the shelf technologies where appropriate. The ARMAP suite provides tools for users of various levels of technical ability to interact with the data by importing the web services directly into their own GIS applications and virtual globes; performing advanced GIS queries; simply printing maps from a set of predefined images in the map gallery; browsing the layers in an IMS; or by choosing to "fly to" sites using a 3D globe. With special emphasis on the International Polar Year (IPY), ARMAP has targeted science planners, scientists, educators, and the general public. In sum, ARMAP goes beyond a simple map display to enable analysis, synthesis, and coordination of Arctic research. ARMAP may be accessed via the gateway web site at http://www.armap.org.

The Benefits and Complexities of Operating Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in a High Performance Computing (HPC) Environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shute, J.; Carriere, L.; Duffy, D.; Hoy, E.; Peters, J.; Shen, Y.; Kirschbaum, D.

2017-12-01

The NASA Center for Climate Simulation (NCCS) at the Goddard Space Flight Center is building and maintaining an Enterprise GIS capability for its stakeholders, to include NASA scientists, industry partners, and the public. This platform is powered by three GIS subsystems operating in a highly-available, virtualized environment: 1) the Spatial Analytics Platform is the primary NCCS GIS and provides users discoverability of the vast DigitalGlobe/NGA raster assets within the NCCS environment; 2) the Disaster Mapping Platform provides mapping and analytics services to NASA's Disaster Response Group; and 3) the internal (Advanced Data Analytics Platform/ADAPT) enterprise GIS provides users with the full suite of Esri and open source GIS software applications and services. All systems benefit from NCCS's cutting edge infrastructure, to include an InfiniBand network for high speed data transfers; a mixed/heterogeneous environment featuring seamless sharing of information between Linux and Windows subsystems; and in-depth system monitoring and warning systems. Due to its co-location with the NCCS Discover High Performance Computing (HPC) environment and the Advanced Data Analytics Platform (ADAPT), the GIS platform has direct access to several large NCCS datasets including DigitalGlobe/NGA, Landsat, MERRA, and MERRA2. Additionally, the NCCS ArcGIS Desktop Windows virtual machines utilize existing NetCDF and OPeNDAP assets for visualization, modelling, and analysis - thus eliminating the need for data duplication. With the advent of this platform, Earth scientists have full access to vast data repositories and the industry-leading tools required for successful management and analysis of these multi-petabyte, global datasets. The full system architecture and integration with scientific datasets will be presented. Additionally, key applications and scientific analyses will be explained, to include the NASA Global Landslide Catalog (GLC) Reporter crowdsourcing application, the NASA GLC Viewer discovery and analysis tool, the DigitalGlobe/NGA Data Discovery Tool, the NASA Disaster Response Group Mapping Platform (https://maps.disasters.nasa.gov), and support for NASA's Arctic - Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE).

GIS prospectivity mapping and 3D modeling validation for potential uranium deposit targets in Shangnan district, China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Jiayu; Wang, Gongwen; Sha, Yazhou; Liu, Jiajun; Wen, Botao; Nie, Ming; Zhang, Shuai

2017-04-01

Integrating multi-source geoscience information (such as geology, geophysics, geochemistry, and remote sensing) using GIS mapping is one of the key topics and frontiers in quantitative geosciences for mineral exploration. GIS prospective mapping and three-dimensional (3D) modeling can be used not only to extract exploration criteria and delineate metallogenetic targets but also to provide important information for the quantitative assessment of mineral resources. This paper uses the Shangnan district of Shaanxi province (China) as a case study area. GIS mapping and potential granite-hydrothermal uranium targeting were conducted in the study area combining weights of evidence (WofE) and concentration-area (C-A) fractal methods with multi-source geoscience information. 3D deposit-scale modeling using GOCAD software was performed to validate the shapes and features of the potential targets at the subsurface. The research results show that: (1) the known deposits have potential zones at depth, and the 3D geological models can delineate surface or subsurface ore-forming features, which can be used to analyze the uncertainty of the shape and feature of prospectivity mapping at the subsurface; (2) single geochemistry anomalies or remote sensing anomalies at the surface require combining the depth exploration criteria of geophysics to identify potential targets; and (3) the single or sparse exploration criteria zone with few mineralization spots at the surface has high uncertainty in terms of the exploration target.

Map of assessed tight-gas resources in the United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Biewick, Laura R. H.; ,

2014-01-01

This report presents a digital map of tight-gas resource assessments in the United States as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Assessment of Oil and Gas Project. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS quantitatively estimated potential volumes of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas resources within tight-gas assessment units (AUs). This is the second digital map product in a series of USGS unconventional oil and gas resource maps. The map plate included in this report can be printed in hard-copy form or downloaded in a Geographic Information System (GIS) data package, including an ArcGIS ArcMap document (.mxd), geodatabase (.gdb), and published map file (.pmf). In addition, the publication access table contains hyperlinks to current USGS tight-gas assessment publications and web pages.

Map of assessed coalbed-gas resources in the United States, 2014

USGS Publications Warehouse

,; Biewick, Laura R. H.

2014-01-01

This report presents a digital map of coalbed-gas resource assessments in the United States as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Assessment of Oil and Gas Project. Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the USGS quantitatively estimated potential volumes of undiscovered, technically recoverable natural gas resources within coalbed-gas assessment units (AUs). This is the third digital map product in a series of USGS unconventional oil and gas resource maps. The map plate included in this report can be printed in hardcopy form or downloaded in a Geographic Information System (GIS) data package, including an ArcGIS ArcMap document (.mxd), geodatabase (.gdb), and published map file (.pmf). In addition, the publication access table contains hyperlinks to current USGS coalbed-gas assessment publications and web pages.

Comparison of a new GIS-based technique and a manual method for determining sinkhole density: An example from Illinois' sinkhole plain

USGS Publications Warehouse

Angel, J.C.; Nelson, D.O.; Panno, S.V.

2004-01-01

A new Geographic Information System (GIS) method was developed as an alternative to the hand-counting of sinkholes on topographic maps for density and distribution studies. Sinkhole counts were prepared by hand and compared to those generated from USGS DLG data using ArcView 3.2 and the ArcInfo Workstation component of ArcGIS 8.1 software. The study area for this investigation, chosen for its great density of sinkholes, included the 42 public land survey sections that reside entirely within the Renault Quadrangle in southwestern Illinois. Differences between the sinkhole counts derived from the two methods for the Renault Quadrangle study area were negligible. Although the initial development and refinement of the GIS method required considerably more time than counting sinkholes by hand, the flexibility of the GIS method is expected to provide significant long-term benefits and time savings when mapping larger areas and expanding research efforts. ?? 2004 by The National Speleological Society.

Disseminating near-real-time hazards information and flood maps in the Philippines through Web-GIS.

PubMed

A Lagmay, Alfredo Mahar Francisco; Racoma, Bernard Alan; Aracan, Ken Adrian; Alconis-Ayco, Jenalyn; Saddi, Ivan Lester

2017-09-01

The Philippines being a locus of tropical cyclones, tsunamis, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, is a hotbed of disasters. These natural hazards inflict loss of lives and costly damage to property. Situated in a region where climate and geophysical tempest is common, the Philippines will inevitably suffer from calamities similar to those experienced recently. With continued development and population growth in hazard prone areas, it is expected that damage to infrastructure and human losses would persist and even rise unless appropriate measures are immediately implemented by government. In 2012, the Philippines launched a responsive program for disaster prevention and mitigation called the Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards (Project NOAH), specifically for government warning agencies to be able to provide a 6hr lead-time warning to vulnerable communities against impending floods and to use advanced technology to enhance current geo-hazard vulnerability maps. To disseminate such critical information to as wide an audience as possible, a Web-GIS using mashups of freely available source codes and application program interface (APIs) was developed and can be found in the URLs http://noah.dost.gov.ph and http://noah.up.edu.ph/. This Web-GIS tool is now heavily used by local government units in the Philippines in their disaster prevention and mitigation efforts and can be replicated in countries that have a proactive approach to address the impacts of natural hazards but lack sufficient funds. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Application of remote sensing and geographical information system for generation of runoff curve number

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meshram, S. Gajbhiye; Sharma, S. K.; Tignath, S.

2017-07-01

Watershed is an ideal unit for planning and management of land and water resources (Gajbhiye et al., IEEE international conference on advances in technology and engineering (ICATE), Bombay, vol 1, issue 9, pp 23-25, 2013a; Gajbhiye et al., Appl Water Sci 4(1):51-61, 2014a; Gajbhiye et al., J Geol Soc India (SCI-IF 0.596) 84(2):192-196, 2014b). This study aims to generate the curve number, using remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) and the effect of slope on curve number values. The study was carried out in Kanhaiya Nala watershed located in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh. Soil map, Land Use/Land cover and slope map were generated in GIS Environment. The CN parameter values corresponding to various soil, land cover, and land management conditions were selected from Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) standard table. Curve number (CN) is an index developed by the NRCS, to represent the potential for storm water runoff within a drainage area. The CN for a drainage basin is estimated using a combination of land use, soil, and antecedent soil moisture condition (AMC). In present study effect of slope on CN values were determined. The result showed that the CN unadjusted value are higher in comparison to CN adjusted with slope. Remote sensing and GIS is very reliable technique for the preparation of most of the input data required by the SCS curve number model.

Active Fire Mapping Program

MedlinePlus

Active Fire Mapping Program Current Large Incidents (Home) New Large Incidents Fire Detection Maps MODIS Satellite Imagery VIIRS Satellite Imagery Fire Detection GIS Data Fire Data in Google Earth ...

ArcCN-Runoff: An ArcGIS tool for generating curve number and runoff maps

USGS Publications Warehouse

Zhan, X.; Huang, M.-L.

2004-01-01

The development and the application of ArcCN-Runoff tool, an extension of ESRI@ ArcGIS software, are reported. This tool can be applied to determine curve numbers and to calculate runoff or infiltration for a rainfall event in a watershed. Implementation of GIS techniques such as dissolving, intersecting, and a curve-number reference table improve efficiency. Technical processing time may be reduced from days, if not weeks, to hours for producing spatially varied curve number and runoff maps. An application example for a watershed in Lyon County and Osage County, Kansas, USA, is presented. ?? 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genetic landscapes GIS Toolbox: tools to map patterns of genetic divergence and diversity.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Vandergast, Amy G.; Perry, William M.; Lugo, Roberto V.; Hathaway, Stacie A.

2011-01-01

The Landscape Genetics GIS Toolbox contains tools that run in the Geographic Information System software, ArcGIS, to map genetic landscapes and to summarize multiple genetic landscapes as average and variance surfaces. These tools can be used to visualize the distribution of genetic diversity across geographic space and to study associations between patterns of genetic diversity and geographic features or other geo-referenced environmental data sets. Together, these tools create genetic landscape surfaces directly from tables containing genetic distance or diversity data and sample location coordinates, greatly reducing the complexity of building and analyzing these raster surfaces in a Geographic Information System.

3D subsurface geological modeling using GIS, remote sensing, and boreholes data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kavoura, Katerina; Konstantopoulou, Maria; Kyriou, Aggeliki; Nikolakopoulos, Konstantinos G.; Sabatakakis, Nikolaos; Depountis, Nikolaos

2016-08-01

The current paper presents the combined use of geological-geotechnical insitu data, remote sensing data and GIS techniques for the evaluation of a subsurface geological model. High accuracy Digital Surface Model (DSM), airphotos mosaic and satellite data, with a spatial resolution of 0.5m were used for an othophoto base map compilation of the study area. Geological - geotechnical data obtained from exploratory boreholes and the 1:5000 engineering geological maps were digitized and implemented in a GIS platform for a three - dimensional subsurface model evaluation. The study is located at the North part of Peloponnese along the new national road.

Analysis of Giga-size Earth Observation Data in Open Source GRASS GIS 7 - from Desktop to On-line Solutions.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stepinski, T. F.; Mitasova, H.; Jasiewicz, J.; Neteler, M.; Gebbert, S.

2014-12-01

GRASS GIS is a leading open source GIS for geospatial analysis and modeling. In addition to being utilized as a desktop GIS it also serves as a processing engine for high performance geospatial computing for applications in diverse disciplines. The newly released GRASS GIS 7 supports big data analysis including temporal framework, image segmentation, watershed analysis, synchronized 2D/3D animations and many others. This presentation will focus on new GRASS GIS 7-powered tools for geoprocessing giga-size earth observation (EO) data using spatial pattern analysis. Pattern-based analysis connects to human visual perception of space as well as makes geoprocessing of giga-size EO data possible in an efficient and robust manner. GeoPAT is a collection of GRASS GIS 7 modules that fully integrates procedures for pattern representation of EO data and patterns similarity calculations with standard GIS tasks of mapping, maps overlay, segmentation, classification(Fig 1a), change detections etc. GeoPAT works very well on a desktop but it also underpins several GeoWeb applications (http://sil.uc.edu/ ) which allow users to do analysis on selected EO datasets without the need to download them. The GRASS GIS 7 temporal framework and high resolution visualizations will be illustrated using time series of giga-size, lidar-based digital elevation models representing the dynamics of North Carolina barrier islands over the past 15 years. The temporal framework supports efficient raster and vector data series analysis and simplifies data input for visual analysis of dynamic landscapes (Fig. 1b) allowing users to rapidly identify vulnerable locations, changes in built environment and eroding coastlines. Numerous improvements in GRASS GIS 7 were implemented to support terabyte size data processing for reconstruction of MODIS land surface temperature (LST) at 250m resolution using multiple regressions and PCA (Fig. 1c) . The new MODIS LST series (http://gis.cri.fmach.it/eurolst/) includes 4 maps per day since year 2000, provide improved data for the epidemiological predictions, viticulture, assessment of urban heat islands and numerous other applications. The presentation will conclude with outline of future development for big data interfaces to further enhance the web-based GRASS GIS data analysis.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dobson, J.E.; Durfee, R.C.

Explorers from competing teams race to find a mysterious lost city in the heart of Africa. The American team is continuously in touch with its Houston home base through satellite communications. In flight, team leader Karen Ross displays a map of Africa on her computer screen and notes the multicolored lines suggesting different routes from city to city and into the rain forest. Each pathway is accompanied by a precise estimate of travel time to the final destination. Zooming in on the target area, she switches to satellite images and interprets them in shades of blue, purple, and green. Atmore » each checkpoint, the team reports its progress and gets a revised estimate of arrival time. Beset by difficulties, the explorers ask for a faster route, but the computer says the alternative is too dangerous. A simulation model with data representing geology, terrain, vegetation, weather, and many other geographic factors predicts local hazards, including the impending eruption of a nearby volcano. The Americans take the faster route anyway and beat the odds. This fictional account of emerging geographic information system (GIS) technologies comes from Michael Crichton`s 1980 novel Congo, which was made into a 1995 movie. The same technologies were highlighted in Clive Cussler`s 1988 techno-thriller Treasure. In reality, GIS technology began more than a quarter of a century ago at key universities and government laboratories in the United States and Canada. Since 1969, Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been among the leading institutions in this diverse, now booming field. GIS has been evolving through new forms and applications ever since.« less

Automating the Fireshed Assessment Process with ArcGIS

Treesearch

Alan Ager; Klaus Barber

2006-01-01

A library of macros was developed to automate the Fireshed process within ArcGIS. The macros link a number of vegetation simulation and wildfire behavior models (FVS, SVS, FARSITE, and FlamMap) with ESRI geodatabases, desktop software (Access, Excel), and ArcGIS. The macros provide for (1) an interactive linkage between digital imagery, vegetation data, FVS-FFE, and...

Analysis of tsunami disaster map by Geographic Information System (GIS): Aceh Singkil-Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farhan, A.; Akhyar, H.

2017-02-01

Tsunami risk map is used by stakeholder as a base to decide evacuation plan and evaluates from disaster. Aceh Singkil district of Aceh- Indonesia’s disaster maps have been developed and analyzed by using GIS tool. Overlay methods through algorithms are used to produce hazard map, vulnerability, capacity and finally created disaster risk map. Spatial maps are used topographic maps, administrative map, SRTM. The parameters are social, economic, physical environmental vulnerability, a level of exposed people, parameters of houses, public building, critical facilities, productive land, population density, sex ratio, poor ratio, disability ratio, age group ratio, the protected forest, natural forest, and mangrove forest. The results show high-risk tsunami disaster at nine villages; moderate levels are seventeen villages, and other villages are shown in the low level of tsunami risk disaster.

Spatial distribution and deployment of community-based distributors implementing integrated community case management (iCCM): Geographic information system (GIS) mapping study in three South Sudan states.

PubMed

Pratt, Abigail; Dale, Martin; Olivi, Elena; Miller, Jane

2014-12-01

In late 2012 and in conjunction with South Sudan's Ministry of Health - National Malaria Control Program, PSI (Population Services International) conducted a comprehensive mapping exercise to assess geographical coverage of its integrated community case management (iCCM) program and consider scope for expansion. The operational research was designed to provide evidence and support for low-cost mapping and monitoring systems, demonstrating the use of technology to enhance the quality of programming and to allow for the improved allocation of resources through appropriate and need-based deployment of community-based distributors (CBDs). The survey took place over the course of three months and program staff gathered GPS (global positioning system) data, along with demographic data, for over 1200 CBDs and 111 CBD supervisors operating in six counties in South Sudan. Data was collated, cleaned and quality assured, input into an Excel database, and subsequently uploaded to geographic information system (GIS) for spatial analysis and map production. The mapping results showed that over three-quarters of CBDs were deployed within a five kilometer radius of a health facility or another CBD, contrary to program planning and design. Other characteristics of the CBD and CBD supervisor profiles (age, gender, literacy) were more closely matched with other regional programs. The results of this mapping exercise provided a valuable insight into the contradictions found between a program "deployment plan" and the realities observed during field implementation. It also highlighted an important need for program implementers and national-level strategy makers to consider the natural and community-driven diffusion of CBDs, and take into consideration the strength of the local health facilities when developing a deployment plan.

Application of modified VICAR/IBIS GIS to analysis of July 1991 Flevoland AIRSAR data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Norikane, L.; Broek, B.; Freeman, A.

1992-01-01

Three overflights of the Flevoland calibration/agricultural site were made by the JPL Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR) on 3, 12, and 28 July 1991 as part of MAC-Europe '92. A polygon map was generated at TNO-FEL which overlayed the slant range projected July 3 data set. Each polygon was identified by a sequence of points and a crop label. The polygon map was composed of 452 uniquely identified polygons and 15 different crop types. Analysis of the data was done using our modified Video Image Communication and Retrieval/Image Based Information System Geographic Information System (VICAR/IBIS GIS). This GIS is an extension of the VICAR/IBIS GIS first developed by Bryant in the 1970's which is itself an extension of the VICAR image processing system also developed at JPL.

Prediction of villages at risk for filariasis transmission in the Nile Delta using remote sensing and geographic information system technologies.

PubMed

Hassan, A N; Beck, L R; Dister, S

1998-04-01

Remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) technologies were used to discriminate between 130 villages, in the Nile Delta, at high and low risk for filariasis, as defined by microfilarial prevalence. Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data were digitally processed to generate a map of landcover as well as spectral indices such as NDVI and moisture index. A Tasseled Cap transformation was also carried out on the TM data which produced three more indices: brightness, greenness and wetness. GIS functions were used to extract information on landcover and spectral indices within one km buffers around the study villages. The relationship between satellite data and prevalence was investigated using discriminant analysis. The analysis indicated that the most important landscape elements associated with prevalence were water and marginal vegetation, while wetness and moisture index were the most important indices. Discriminant functions generated for these variables were able to correctly predict 80% and 74% of high and low prevalence villages, respectively, with an overall accuracy of 77%. The present approach provides a promising tool for regional filariasis surveillance and helps direct control efforts.

Application of Geographic Information System (GIS) to Model the Hydrocarbon Migration: Case Study from North-East Malay Basin, Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rudini; Nasir Matori, Abd; Talib, Jasmi Ab; Balogun, Abdul-Lateef

2018-03-01

The purpose of this study is to model the migration of hydrocarbon using Geographic Information System (GIS). Understanding hydrocarbon migration is important since it can mean the difference between success and failure in oil and gas exploration project. The hydrocarbon migration modeling using geophysical method is still not accurate due to the limitations of available data. In recent years, GIS has emerged as a powerful tool for subsurface mapping and analysis. Recent studies have been carried out about the abilities of GIS to model hydrocarbon migration. Recent advances in GIS support the establishment and monitoring of prediction hydrocarbon migration. The concept, model, and calculation are based on the current geological situation. The spatial data of hydrocarbon reservoirs is determined by its geometry of lithology and geophysical attributes. Top of Group E horizon of north-east Malay basin was selected as the study area due to the occurrence of hydrocarbon migration. Spatial data and attributes data such as seismic data, wells log data and lithology were acquired and processed. Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was constructed from the selected horizon as a result of seismic interpretation using the Petrel software. Furthermore, DEM was processed in ArcGIS as a base map to shown hydrocarbon migration in north-east Malay Basin. Finally, all the data layers were overlaid to produce a map of hydrocarbon migration. A good data was imported to verify the model is correct.

Real Time Integration of Field Data Into a GIS Platform for the Management of Hydrological Emergencies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mangiameli, M.; Mussumeci, G.

2013-01-01

A wide series of events requires immediate availability of information and field data to be provided to decision-makers. An example is the necessity of quickly transferring the information acquired from monitoring and alerting sensors or the data of the reconnaissance of damage after a disastrous event to an Emergency Operations Center. To this purpose, we developed an integrated GIS and WebGIS system to dynamically create and populate via Web a database with spatial features. In particular, this work concerns the gathering and transmission of spatial data and related information to the desktop GIS so that they can be displayed and analyzed in real time to characterize the operational scenario and to decide the rescue interventions. As basic software, we used only free and open source: QuantumGIS and Grass as Desktop GIS, Map Server with PMapper application for the Web-Gis functionality and PostGreSQL/PostGIS as Data Base Management System (DBMS). The approach has been designed, developed and successfully tested in the management of GIS-based navigation of an autonomous robot, both to map its trajectories and to assign optimal paths. This paper presents the application of our system to a simulated hydrological event that could interest the province of Catania, in Sicily. In particular, assuming that more teams draw up an inventory of the damage, we highlight the benefits of real-time transmission of the information collected from the field to headquarters.

Partnering with Youth to Map Their Neighborhood Environments: A Multi-Layered GIS Approach

PubMed Central

Topmiller, Michael; Jacquez, Farrah; Vissman, Aaron T.; Raleigh, Kevin; Miller-Francis, Jenni

2014-01-01

Mapping approaches offer great potential for community-based participatory researchers interested in displaying youth perceptions and advocating for change. We describe a multi-layered approach for gaining local knowledge of neighborhood environments that engages youth as co-researchers and active knowledge producers. By integrating geographic information systems (GIS) with environmental audits, an interactive focus group, and sketch mapping, the approach provides a place-based understanding of physical activity resources from the situated experience of youth. Youth report safety and a lack of recreational resources as inhibiting physical activity. Maps reflecting youth perceptions aid policy-makers in making place-based improvements for youth neighborhood environments. PMID:25423245

Suitability assessment and mapping of Oyo State, Nigeria, for rice cultivation using GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ayoade, Modupe Alake

2017-08-01

Rice is one of the most preferred food crops in Nigeria. However, local rice production has declined with the oil boom of the 1970s causing demand to outstrip supply. Rice production can be increased through the integration of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and crop-land suitability analysis and mapping. Based on the key predictor variables that determine rice yield mentioned in relevant literature, data on rainfall, temperature, relative humidity, slope, and soil of Oyo state were obtained. To develop rice suitability maps for the state, two MCE-GIS techniques, namely the Overlay approach and weighted linear combination (WLC), using fuzzy AHP were used and compared. A Boolean land use map derived from a landsat imagery was used in masking out areas currently unavailable for rice production. Both suitability maps were classified into four categories of very suitable, suitable, moderate, and fairly moderate. Although the maps differ slightly, the overlay and WLC (AHP) approach found most parts of Oyo state (51.79 and 82.9 % respectively) to be moderately suitable for rice production. However, in areas like Eruwa, Oyo, and Shaki, rainfall amount received needs to be supplemented by irrigation for increased rice yield.

Landslide susceptibility mapping using GIS-based statistical models and Remote sensing data in tropical environment

PubMed Central

Hashim, Mazlan

2015-01-01

This research presents the results of the GIS-based statistical models for generation of landslide susceptibility mapping using geographic information system (GIS) and remote-sensing data for Cameron Highlands area in Malaysia. Ten factors including slope, aspect, soil, lithology, NDVI, land cover, distance to drainage, precipitation, distance to fault, and distance to road were extracted from SAR data, SPOT 5 and WorldView-1 images. The relationships between the detected landslide locations and these ten related factors were identified by using GIS-based statistical models including analytical hierarchy process (AHP), weighted linear combination (WLC) and spatial multi-criteria evaluation (SMCE) models. The landslide inventory map which has a total of 92 landslide locations was created based on numerous resources such as digital aerial photographs, AIRSAR data, WorldView-1 images, and field surveys. Then, 80% of the landslide inventory was used for training the statistical models and the remaining 20% was used for validation purpose. The validation results using the Relative landslide density index (R-index) and Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) demonstrated that the SMCE model (accuracy is 96%) is better in prediction than AHP (accuracy is 91%) and WLC (accuracy is 89%) models. These landslide susceptibility maps would be useful for hazard mitigation purpose and regional planning. PMID:25898919

Landslide susceptibility mapping using GIS-based statistical models and Remote sensing data in tropical environment.

PubMed

Shahabi, Himan; Hashim, Mazlan

2015-04-22

This research presents the results of the GIS-based statistical models for generation of landslide susceptibility mapping using geographic information system (GIS) and remote-sensing data for Cameron Highlands area in Malaysia. Ten factors including slope, aspect, soil, lithology, NDVI, land cover, distance to drainage, precipitation, distance to fault, and distance to road were extracted from SAR data, SPOT 5 and WorldView-1 images. The relationships between the detected landslide locations and these ten related factors were identified by using GIS-based statistical models including analytical hierarchy process (AHP), weighted linear combination (WLC) and spatial multi-criteria evaluation (SMCE) models. The landslide inventory map which has a total of 92 landslide locations was created based on numerous resources such as digital aerial photographs, AIRSAR data, WorldView-1 images, and field surveys. Then, 80% of the landslide inventory was used for training the statistical models and the remaining 20% was used for validation purpose. The validation results using the Relative landslide density index (R-index) and Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) demonstrated that the SMCE model (accuracy is 96%) is better in prediction than AHP (accuracy is 91%) and WLC (accuracy is 89%) models. These landslide susceptibility maps would be useful for hazard mitigation purpose and regional planning.

Demonstration of Hadoop-GIS: A Spatial Data Warehousing System Over MapReduce

PubMed Central

Aji, Ablimit; Sun, Xiling; Vo, Hoang; Liu, Qioaling; Lee, Rubao; Zhang, Xiaodong; Saltz, Joel; Wang, Fusheng

2016-01-01

The proliferation of GPS-enabled devices, and the rapid improvement of scientific instruments have resulted in massive amounts of spatial data in the last decade. Support of high performance spatial queries on large volumes data has become increasingly important in numerous fields, which requires a scalable and efficient spatial data warehousing solution as existing approaches exhibit scalability limitations and efficiency bottlenecks for large scale spatial applications. In this demonstration, we present Hadoop-GIS – a scalable and high performance spatial query system over MapReduce. Hadoop-GIS provides an efficient spatial query engine to process spatial queries, data and space based partitioning, and query pipelines that parallelize queries implicitly on MapReduce. Hadoop-GIS also provides an expressive, SQL-like spatial query language for workload specification. We will demonstrate how spatial queries are expressed in spatially extended SQL queries, and submitted through a command line/web interface for execution. Parallel to our system demonstration, we explain the system architecture and details on how queries are translated to MapReduce operators, optimized, and executed on Hadoop. In addition, we will showcase how the system can be used to support two representative real world use cases: large scale pathology analytical imaging, and geo-spatial data warehousing. PMID:27617325

The integrated analyses of digital field mapping techniques and traditional field methods: implications from the Burdur-Fethiye Shear Zone, SW Turkey as a case-study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elitez, İrem; Yaltırak, Cenk; Zabcı, Cengiz; Şahin, Murat

2015-04-01

The precise geological mapping is one of the most important issues in geological studies. Documenting the spatial distribution of geological bodies and their contacts play a crucial role on interpreting the tectonic evolution of any region. Although the traditional field techniques are still accepted to be the most fundamental tools in construction of geological maps, we suggest that the integration of digital technologies to the classical methods significantly increases the resolution and the quality of such products. We simply follow the following steps in integration of the digital data with the traditional field observations. First, we create the digital elevation model (DEM) of the region of interest by interpolating the digital contours of 1:25000 scale topographic maps to 10 m of ground pixel resolution. The non-commercial Google Earth satellite imagery and geological maps of previous studies are draped over the interpolated DEMs in the second stage. The integration of all spatial data is done by using the market leading GIS software, ESRI ArcGIS. We make the preliminary interpretation of major structures as tectonic lineaments and stratigraphic contacts. These preliminary maps are controlled and precisely coordinated during the field studies by using mobile tablets and/or phablets with GPS receivers. The same devices are also used in measuring and recording the geologic structures of the study region. Finally, all digitally collected measurements and observations are added to the GIS database and we finalise our geological map with all available information. We applied this integrated method to map the Burdur-Fethiye Shear Zone (BFSZ) in the southwest Turkey. The BFSZ is an active sinistral 60-to-90 km-wide shear zone, which prolongs about 300 km-long between Suhut-Cay in the northeast and Köyceğiz Lake-Kalkan in the southwest on land. The numerous studies suggest contradictory models not only about the evolution but also about the fault geometry of this wide deformation zone. In our study, we have mapped this complicated region since 2008 by using the data and the steps, which are described briefly above. After our joint-analyses, we show that there is no continuous single and narrow fault, the Burdur-Fethiye Fault, as it was previously suggested by many researches. Instead, the whole region is deformed under the oblique-sinistral shearing with considerable amount of extension, which causes a counterclockwise rotation within the zone.

Developing a WebGIS for Geo-Visualization of Cancer.

PubMed

Khoshabi, Mostafa; Taleai, Mohammad; Motlagh, Ali; Hosseini Kamal, Farnaz

2016-04-01

Considering the hygiene facilities and sharing the data of diseases, considerable attempts to promote the public awareness have been made by various media; however, most of the provided information is based on numerical and verbal statistics, and may not provide suitable understanding for people in regard with the situation of diseases. The main aim of this study is to design an interactive WebGIS system in which people could simply produce and observe their favorite maps of different cancers and environmental parameters. They can use this tools to produce their personalized maps and explore various aspects of the cancer. A system has been developed by using WebGIS for convenience of ordinary users without any knowledge about geospatial information system (GIS) to observe the situation of the diseases and environmental conditions in terms of static and user-produced interactive maps. It has also provided the possibility of spatial comparison of the arbitrary parameters in the framework of bar and pie diagrams. This system has been designed and launched on cancer database of Iran where information of meteorological stations has been embedded as environmental parameters. The innovative idea in this study has received less attention in previous works including possibility of producing web-based Choropleth map so that users could easily select the parameters and algorithms for classification and interactive coloring in the system to produce their personalized maps. Development of WebGIS tools and increased cooperation of people in terms of inserting the spatial labels on the map to report a disease or using their views about reasons of occurring a specific cancer in a specific region may cause turning the process of mono-direction flow of information to users to a bi-directional flow of information. As a result, cancer specialists could use the knowledge of local people and residents of different regions of the country to better analyze the situation of various kinds of cancers.

Surficial Geologic Map of the Clinton-Concord-Grafton-Medfield 12-Quadrangle Area in East Central Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, Janet R.; Stone, Byron D.

2006-01-01

The surficial geologic map shows the distribution of nonlithified earth materials at land surface in an area of twelve 7.5-minute quadrangles (total 660 square miles) in east-central Massachusetts. The geologic map differentiates surficial materials of Quaternary age on the basis of their lithologic characteristics (grain size, sedimentary structures, mineral and rock-particle composition), constructional geomorphic features, stratigraphic relationships, and age. Surficial earth materials significantly affect human use of the land, and an accurate description of their distribution is particularly important for water resources, construction aggregate resources, earth-surface hazards assessments, and land-use decisions. This compilation of surficial geologic materials is an interim product that defines the areas of exposed bedrock, and the boundaries between glacial till, glacial stratified deposits, and overlying postglacial deposits. This work is part of a comprehensive study to produce a statewide digital map of the surficial geology at a 1:24,000-scale level of accuracy. This report includes explanatory text (PDF), a regional map at 1:50,000 scale (PDF), quadrangle maps at 1:24,000 scale (12 PDF files), GIS data layers (ArcGIS shapefiles), scanned topographic base maps (TIF), metadata for the GIS layers, and a readme.txt file.

An Assessment of GIS Use for Teaching in Rwandan Secondary Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akinyemi, Felicia O.

2015-01-01

Technology has transformed how teachers and students search, access, use, analyze, and present information in and outside the classroom. Among the numerous technologies creating opportunities and changes in education is Geographic Information Systems (GIS; Kerski et al. 2013). Over the years, GIS in secondary school programs has been introduced…

A new multi-scale geomorphological landscape GIS for the Netherlands

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weerts, Henk; Kosian, Menne; Baas, Henk; Smit, Bjorn

2013-04-01

At present, the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands is developing a nationwide landscape Geographical Information System (GIS). In this new conceptual approach, the Agency puts together several multi-scale landscape classifications in a GIS. The natural physical landscapes lie at the basis of this GIS, because these landscapes provide the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic. At the local scale a nationwide digital geomorphological GIS is available in the Netherlands. This map, that was originally mapped at 1:50,000 from the late 1970's to the 1990's, is based on geomorphometrical (observable and measurable in the field), geomorphological and, lithological and geochronological criteria. When used at a national scale, the legend of this comprehensive geomorphological map is very complex which hampers use in e.g. planning practice or predictive archaeology. At the national scale several landscape classifications have been in use in the Netherlands since the early 1950's, typically ranging in the order of 10 -15 landscape units for the entire country. A widely used regional predictive archaeological classification has 13 archaeo-landscapes. All these classifications have been defined "top-down" and their actual content and boundaries have only been broadly defined. Thus, these classifications have little or no meaning at a local scale. We have tried to combine the local scale with the national scale. To do so, we first defined national physical geographical regions based on the new 2010 national geological map 1:500,000. We also made sure there was a reference with the European LANMAP2 classification. We arrived at 20 landscape units at the national scale, based on (1) genesis, (2) large-scale geomorphology, (3) lithology of the shallow sub-surface and (4) age. These criteria that were chosen because the genesis of the landscape largely determines its (scale of) morphology and lithology that in turn determine hydrological conditions. All together, they define the natural boundary conditions for anthropogenic use. All units have been defined, mapped and described based on these criteria. This enables the link with the European LANMAP2 GIS. The unit "Till-plateau sand region" for instance runs deep into Germany and even Poland. At the local scale, the boundaries of the national units can be defined and precisely mapped by linking them to the 1:50,000 geomorphological map polygons. Each national unit consists of a typical assemblage of local geomorphological units. So, the newly developed natural physical landscape map layer can be used from the local to the European scale.

Using GIS in an Earth Sciences Field Course for Quantitative Exploration, Data Management and Digital Mapping

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marra, Wouter A.; van de Grint, Liesbeth; Alberti, Koko; Karssenberg, Derek

2017-01-01

Field courses are essential for subjects like Earth Sciences, Geography and Ecology. In these topics, GIS is used to manage and analyse spatial data, and offers quantitative methods that are beneficial for fieldwork. This paper presents changes made to a first-year Earth Sciences field course in the French Alps, where new GIS methods were…

Using multiple logistic regression and GIS technology to predict landslide hazard in northeast Kansas, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ohlmacher, G.C.; Davis, J.C.

2003-01-01

Landslides in the hilly terrain along the Kansas and Missouri rivers in northeastern Kansas have caused millions of dollars in property damage during the last decade. To address this problem, a statistical method called multiple logistic regression has been used to create a landslide-hazard map for Atchison, Kansas, and surrounding areas. Data included digitized geology, slopes, and landslides, manipulated using ArcView GIS. Logistic regression relates predictor variables to the occurrence or nonoccurrence of landslides within geographic cells and uses the relationship to produce a map showing the probability of future landslides, given local slopes and geologic units. Results indicated that slope is the most important variable for estimating landslide hazard in the study area. Geologic units consisting mostly of shale, siltstone, and sandstone were most susceptible to landslides. Soil type and aspect ratio were considered but excluded from the final analysis because these variables did not significantly add to the predictive power of the logistic regression. Soil types were highly correlated with the geologic units, and no significant relationships existed between landslides and slope aspect. ?? 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

GIS plays key role in NYC Rescue and Relief Operation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Showstack, Randy

New York City, Sept. 17—The posters of missing loved ones are pasted onto New York City walls and street signs six days after 2 hijacked commercial airlines destroyed the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan on September 11. Several miles uptown from “ground zero,” heightened security hovers around the city's Office of Emergency Management rescue and relief command center, an around-the-clock operation. Police, firefighters, military, officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, communications technicians, and a beehive of others work in controlled chaos in this cavernous, convention center-sized hall, lined with computers and adorned with several American flags.After the original command center at 7 World Trade Center collapsed to rubble as an after-effect of the plane strikes, city officials scrambled to recreate it. Alan Leidner, director of New York's citywide geographic information systems (GIS), and who is with the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications, knew that maps would be an integral component of the rescue and relief efforts. Maps provide emergency workers and others with accurate and detailed scientific data in the form of visual aids upon which they can make informed decisions.

Multivariate model of female black bear habitat use for a Geographic Information System

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clark, Joseph D.; Dunn, James E.; Smith, Kimberly G.

1993-01-01

Simple univariate statistical techniques may not adequately assess the multidimensional nature of habitats used by wildlife. Thus, we developed a multivariate method to model habitat-use potential using a set of female black bear (Ursus americanus) radio locations and habitat data consisting of forest cover type, elevation, slope, aspect, distance to roads, distance to streams, and forest cover type diversity score in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas. The model is based on the Mahalanobis distance statistic coupled with Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. That statistic is a measure of dissimilarity and represents a standardized squared distance between a set of sample variates and an ideal based on the mean of variates associated with animal observations. Calculations were made with the GIS to produce a map containing Mahalanobis distance values within each cell on a 60- × 60-m grid. The model identified areas of high habitat use potential that could not otherwise be identified by independent perusal of any single map layer. This technique avoids many pitfalls that commonly affect typical multivariate analyses of habitat use and is a useful tool for habitat manipulation or mitigation to favor terrestrial vertebrates that use habitats on a landscape scale.

The use of Web-based GIS data technologies in the construction of geoscience instructional materials: examples from the MARGINS Data in the Classroom project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ryan, J. G.; McIlrath, J. A.

2008-12-01

Web-accessible geospatial information system (GIS) technologies have advanced in concert with an expansion of data resources that can be accessed and used by researchers, educators and students. These resources facilitate the development of data-rich instructional resources and activities that can be used to transition seamlessly into undergraduate research projects. MARGINS Data in the Classroom (http://serc.carleton.edu/ margins/index.html) seeks to engage MARGINS researchers and educators in using the images, datasets, and visualizations produced by NSF-MARGINS Program-funded research and related efforts to create Web-deliverable instructional materials for use in undergraduate-level geoscience courses (MARGINS Mini-Lessons). MARGINS science data is managed by the Marine Geosciences Data System (MGDS), and these and all other MGDS-hosted data can be accessed, manipulated and visualized using GeoMapApp (www.geomapapp.org; Carbotte et al, 2004), a freely available geographic information system focused on the marine environment. Both "packaged" MGDS datasets (i.e., global earthquake foci, volcanoes, bathymetry) and "raw" data (seismic surveys, magnetics, gravity) are accessible via GeoMapApp, with WFS linkages to other resources (geodesy from UNAVCO; seismic profiles from IRIS; geochemical and drillsite data from EarthChem, IODP, and others), permitting the comprehensive characterization of many regions of the ocean basins. Geospatially controlled datasets can be imported into GeoMapApp visualizations, and these visualizations can be exported into Google Earth as .kmz image files. Many of the MARGINS Mini-Lessons thus far produced use (or have studentss use the varied capabilities of GeoMapApp (i.e., constructing topographic profiles, overlaying varied geophysical and bathymetric datasets, characterizing geochemical data). These materials are available for use and testing from the project webpage (http://serc.carleton.edu/margins/). Classroom testing and assessment of the Mini- Lessons begins this Fall.

The GIS portal based on JSR168 portlet technology and WSRP

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Defu; Chen, Nengcheng; Zhu, Xinyan; Gong, Jianya

2005-10-01

A portal is a powerful Web site that gives users a single point of access to applications and information in a unified interface. A portal lets users view each application or web page in its own window, called a portlet, and a single browser window can contain multiple portlets. The portlet based on JSP168&WSRP is a new technology for interactive, user-facing web services that plug and play with portals. Thanks to the development of Portal&Web GIS, the GIS Poratl is focused on more and more by the researcheres. This paper studies the GIS Portal defined by ESRI and analyzes the development's status, compares with the commercial Portal and points out the great shortage of the ESRI GIS Portal: lack in Personal content and UI. Therefor this paper goes into depth on the discussion of design and implementation scheme of real GIS Portal, and proposes the new idea of developing customized, plug and play GIS Portal Module based on JSP168 Portlet technology and WSRP standard. This way can resolve the difficult problem of the GIS Portal on lacking of content and customization function. According to this idea, this paper plans to use the JaveBeans provided by GeoSurf to develop visual portlet which have basic operating fuction of GIS. Finally deploys the GIS Portal uing the WebLogic Portal.

[Implementation of Oncomelania hupensis monitoring system based on Baidu Map].

PubMed

Zhi-Hua, Chen; Yi-Sheng, Zhu; Zhi-Qiang, Xue; Xue-Bing, Li; Yi-Min, Ding; Li-Jun, Bi; Kai-Min, Gao; You, Zhang

2017-10-25

To construct the Oncomelania hupensis snail monitoring system based on the Baidu Map. The environmental basic information about historical snail environment and existing snail environment, etc. was collected with the monitoring data about different kinds of O. hupensis snails, and then the O. hupensis snail monitoring system was built. Geographic Information System (GIS) and the electronic fence technology and Application Program Interface (API) were applied to set up the electronic fence of the snail surveillance environments, and the electronic fence was connected to the database of the snail surveillance. The O. hupensis snail monitoring system based on the Baidu Map were built up, including three modules of O. hupensis Snail Monitoring Environmental Database, Dynamic Monitoring Platform and Electronic Map. The information about monitoring O. hupensis snails could be obtained through the computer and smartphone simultaneously. The O. hupensis snail monitoring system, which is based on Baidu Map, is a visible platform to follow the process of snailsearching and molluscaciding.

A GIS and statistical approach to identify variables that control water quality in hydrothermally altered and mineralized watersheds, Silverton, Colorado, USA

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yager, Douglas B.; Johnson, Raymond H.; Rockwell, Barnaby W.; Caine, Jonathan S.; Smith, Kathleen S.

2013-01-01

Hydrothermally altered bedrock in the Silverton mining area, southwest Colorado, USA, contains sulfide minerals that weather to produce acidic and metal-rich leachate that is toxic to aquatic life. This study utilized a geographic information system (GIS) and statistical approach to identify watershed-scale geologic variables in the Silverton area that influence water quality. GIS analysis of mineral maps produced using remote sensing datasets including Landsat Thematic Mapper, advanced spaceborne thermal emission and reflection radiometer, and a hybrid airborne visible infrared imaging spectrometer and field-based product enabled areas of alteration to be quantified. Correlations between water quality signatures determined at watershed outlets, and alteration types intersecting both total watershed areas and GIS-buffered areas along streams were tested using linear regression analysis. Despite remote sensing datasets having varying watershed area coverage due to vegetation cover and differing mineral mapping capabilities, each dataset was useful for delineating acid-generating bedrock. Areas of quartz–sericite–pyrite mapped by AVIRIS have the highest correlations with acidic surface water and elevated iron and aluminum concentrations. Alkalinity was only correlated with area of acid neutralizing, propylitically altered bedrock containing calcite and chlorite mapped by AVIRIS. Total watershed area of acid-generating bedrock is more significantly correlated with acidic and metal-rich surface water when compared with acid-generating bedrock intersected by GIS-buffered areas along streams. This methodology could be useful in assessing the possible effects that alteration type area has in either generating or neutralizing acidity in unmined watersheds and in areas where new mining is planned.

A Boundary Delineation System for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vandegraft, Douglas L.

2018-05-01

Federal government mapping of the offshore areas of the United States in support of the development of oil and gas resources began in 1954. The first mapping system utilized a network of rectangular blocks defined by State Plane coordinates which was later revised to utilize the Universal Transverse Mercator grid. Creation of offshore boundaries directed by the Submerged Lands Act and Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act were mathematically determined using early computer programs that performed the required computations, but required many steps. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has revised these antiquated methods using GIS technology which provide the required accuracy and produce the mapping products needed for leasing of energy resources, including renewable energy projects, on the outer continental shelf. (Note: this is an updated version of a paper of the same title written and published in 2015).

WebGIS Platform Adressed to Forest Fire Management Methodologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

André Ramos-Simões, Nuno; Neto Paixão, Helena Maria; Granja Martins, Fernando Miguel; Pedras, Celestina; Lança, Rui; Silva, Elisa; Jordán, António; Zavala, Lorena; Soares, Cristina

2015-04-01

Forest fires are one of the natural disasters that causes more damages in nature, as well as high material costs, and sometimes, a significant losses in human lives. In summer season, when high temperatures are attained, fire may rapidly progress and destroy vast areas of forest and also rural and urban areas. The forest fires have effect on forest species, forest composition and structure, soil properties and soil capacity for nutrient retention. In order to minimize the negative impact of the forest fires in the environment, many studies have been developed, e.g. Jordán et al (2009), Cerdà & Jordán (2010), and Gonçalves & Vieira (2013). Nowadays, Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies are used as support tools in fire management decisions, namely during the fire, but also before and after. This study presents the development of a user-friendly WebGIS dedicated to share data, maps and provide updated information on forest fire management for stakeholders in Iberia Peninsula. The WebGIS platform was developed with ArcGIS Online, ArcGIS for Desktop; HyperText Markup Language (HTML) and Javascript. This platform has a database that includes spatial and alphanumeric information, such as: origin, burned areas, vegetation change over time, terrain natural slope, land use, soil erosion and fire related hazards. The same database contains also the following relevant information: water sources, forest tracks and traffic ways, lookout posts and urban areas. The aim of this study is to provide the authorities with a tool to assess risk areas and manage more efficiently forest fire hazards, giving more support to their decisions and helping the populations when facing this kind of phenomena.

Genetic interaction networks: better understand to better predict

PubMed Central

Boucher, Benjamin; Jenna, Sarah

2013-01-01

A genetic interaction (GI) between two genes generally indicates that the phenotype of a double mutant differs from what is expected from each individual mutant. In the last decade, genome scale studies of quantitative GIs were completed using mainly synthetic genetic array technology and RNA interference in yeast and Caenorhabditis elegans. These studies raised questions regarding the functional interpretation of GIs, the relationship of genetic and molecular interaction networks, the usefulness of GI networks to infer gene function and co-functionality, the evolutionary conservation of GI, etc. While GIs have been used for decades to dissect signaling pathways in genetic models, their functional interpretations are still not trivial. The existence of a GI between two genes does not necessarily imply that these two genes code for interacting proteins or that the two genes are even expressed in the same cell. In fact, a GI only implies that the two genes share a functional relationship. These two genes may be involved in the same biological process or pathway; or they may also be involved in compensatory pathways with unrelated apparent function. Considering the powerful opportunity to better understand gene function, genetic relationship, robustness and evolution, provided by a genome-wide mapping of GIs, several in silico approaches have been employed to predict GIs in unicellular and multicellular organisms. Most of these methods used weighted data integration. In this article, we will review the later knowledge acquired on GI networks in metazoans by looking more closely into their relationship with pathways, biological processes and molecular complexes but also into their modularity and organization. We will also review the different in silico methods developed to predict GIs and will discuss how the knowledge acquired on GI networks can be used to design predictive tools with higher performances. PMID:24381582

Estimating and mapping the incidence of dengue and chikungunya in Honduras during 2015 using Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

PubMed

Zambrano, Lysien I; Sierra, Manuel; Lara, Bredy; Rodríguez-Núñez, Iván; Medina, Marco T; Lozada-Riascos, Carlos O; Rodríguez-Morales, Alfonso J

Geographical information systems (GIS) use for development of epidemiological maps in dengue has been extensively used, however not in other emerging arboviral diseases, nor in Central America. Surveillance cases data (2015) were used to estimate annual incidence rates of dengue and chikungunya (cases/100,000 pop) to develop the first maps in the departments and municipalities of Honduras. The GIS software used was Kosmo Desktop 3.0RC1 ® . Four thematic maps were developed according departments, municipalities, diseases incidence rates. A total of 19,289 cases of dengue and 85,386 of chikungunya were reported (median, 726 cases/week for dengue and 1460 for chikungunya). Highest peaks were observed at weeks 25th and 27th, respectively. There was association between progression by weeks (p<0.0001). The cumulated crude national rate was estimated in 224.9 cases/100,000 pop for dengue and 995.6 for chikungunya. The incidence rates ratio between chikungunya and dengue is 4.42 (ranging in municipalities from 0.0 up to 893.0 [San Vicente Centenario]). Burden of both arboviral diseases is concentrated in capital Central District (>37%, both). Use of GIS-based epidemiological maps allow to guide decisions-taking for prevention and control of diseases that still represents significant issues in the region and the country, but also in emerging conditions. Copyright © 2016 King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mapping America in 1880: The Urban Transition Historical GIS Project

PubMed Central

Logan, John R.; Jindrich, Jason; Shin, Hyoungjin; Zhang, Weiwei

2011-01-01

The Urban Transition Historical GIS Project is a new data resource for United States counties and cities that takes advantage of NAPP’s 100% digital transcription of records from the 1880 Census. It has developed several additional resources to make possible analysis of social patterns at the level of individuals and households while also taking into account information about their communities. One key contribution is the creation of historically accurate GIS maps showing the boundaries of enumeration districts in 39 major cities. These materials are now publicly available through a web-based mapping system. Addresses of all households in these cities are also being geocoded, a step that will enable spatial analyses of residential patterns at any geographic scale. Preliminary analyses demonstrate the utility of multiple scales and the ability to combine information about individuals with data about their neighborhoods. PMID:21475614

303(d) Listed Impaired Waters

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Geospatial data for 303(d) Impaired Waters are available as prepackaged national downloads or as GIS web and and data services. EPA provides geospatial data in the formats: GIS compatible shapefiles and geodatabases and ESRI and OGC web mapping.

Determination of climatic potential of Qom province for rain fed wheat using RS and GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yazdan Panah, H.; Soleimani Tabar, M.

2010-09-01

This investigation was done to determine climatic potential of Qom province for wheat culture using RS and GIS. After collecting meteorological and wheat phonological data of available stations in Qom and its adjacent provinces we analyzed the data to obtain agrometeorological indices which affects on growth and yield of wheat. In the next step for these indices (the maximum and minimum temperature, sunshine hours, relative humidity, slope, elevation, GDD,rainfall,wind.land use and thermal stresses) we prepared separate maps using GIS and RS. Finally the above mentioned layers were overlaid to obtain agroclimatic map of wheat in Qom province. Results showed that about 30.2 percent of province is very suitable,53.5 percent is suitable,15.2 percent is moderate and 1.1 percent is not suitable for wheat culturing. Key words: Agrometeorology, GIS, RS, Wheat

Geographic Information System Incorporated into Earth Science Classrooms to Enhance Individual Learning Development with Interconnected Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garifo, Mary Anna

2017-04-01

Geographic Information System, GIS, is a powerful tool and when incorporated into Earth Science classrooms, can enhance and empower students' engagement in their learning. Through utilization of GIS, students can process what they are learning in a spatially orientated method, which allows them to make connections among different related concepts. For example, if students are given a map in a GIS software with multiple layers of data on earthquakes, plate technics, and volcanoes then they can manipulate this information to come up with their own patterns. Through allowing students to develop their spatial recognition of where the Earth's plate boundaries are and where earthquakes have occurred, students can see how these two concepts are connected. In a guided but exploratory activity, students would be given multiple different websites that they could explore to research what different type of plates there are while they are working simultaneously with the GIS software. Using a plate technics layer, including data on type of boundary, students can explore and estimate which direction the plates are moving. When they look up convergent boundaries and see that the oceanic plates submerge under continental plates they can see where volcanic chains might be. Once they understand this in a spatial way, students can predict where they think volcanoes could be, based on where convergent boundaries are. When they manipulate the volcanic layer and see abnormalities to what they just learned, it will cause them to have cognitive dissonance, which will force them into seeking further understanding. The concept of a hot spot can then be introduced to resolve the cognitive dissonance and emphasis the idea that plates we live on are moving. Concepts can further be developed through GIS by showing how the strength and frequency of earthquakes are related to the level of activity at the plate boundary. This can be done by manipulating the map layer that represents earthquakes so that students can visualize each earthquake based on depth, size, or just location. If it is more active, then students should predict which direction it is moving based on the different boundary types. Rather than a traditional lecture approach, GIS software enables students to explore and manipulate relevant variables in an interactive and stimulating environment. It can harness their sense of wonder and exploration by giving them the opportunity to be hands on with the technology. In addition, using GIS in an Earth Science classroom can foster empathy in students. When the students look at the dots on the map, the hope is that they can visualize what type of destruction that could happen, especially when they change the variable function based on location to magnitude. As a teacher in Virginia, U.S.A., most students here have not experienced an earthquake. Although their perspective is limited, by allowing them to explore different locations with GIS, they create connections with places where earthquakes occur. The data and information they use allows them to learn about how the earth's systems are not isolated events but are the reality people live in.

Continental shelf GIS for the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wong, Florence L.; Eittreim, Stephen L.

2001-01-01

A marine sanctuary is an environment where the interests of science and society meet. Sanctuary managers need access to the best scientific data available that describe the environment and environmental processes in sanctuaries. Seafloor mapping and sampling in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary have revealed new details about the geology, morphology, and active geologic processes of this region. Data from sidescan sonar, multibeam sonar bathymetry, physical samples, and instrument moorings, are consolidated with new and existing maps in a geographic information system (GIS). The GIS provides researchers and policymakers a view of the relationship among data sets to assist science studies and to help with economic and social policy-making decisions regarding this protected environment.

The influence of urban development and social mobility on socioeconomic level: The application of GIS on urban ecosystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suhaili Mansor, Nur; Zulhaidi Mohd Shafri, Helmi; Mansor, Shattri; Paradhan, Biswajeet

2014-06-01

Specifically, the integration between social sciences and natural science are fundamental in our understanding of the economic, social and technological transformations that have drastically changed the society. This study will be based on the municipality of Sungai Petani, Kedah as it has been most influenced by urbanization and urban development. Urban development in Sungai Petani is closely associated with a tremendous increase in demand for land, which is highly related to population growth, human movement and their social mobility. The qualitative case study taken will rely on the visual interpretation technique that would allow the researcher to develop a map of urban changes detection. The potential application of GIS information to estimate socioeconomic indicators and the modelling of socio-economic activities that are explored in this study is hoped to increase further our understanding of the impacts of development and urbanization on social life.

GIS Technology and E-Learning for Exposing College Graduates to Transcultural Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kalra, Rajrani; Gupta, Vipin

2014-01-01

In recent years, one form of technology that has become quite popular in schools and higher education is the Geographical Information Systems (GIS). GIS is one kind of management information system. It includes both the hardware and software components and includes programming of real world problems. It provides support to managers in day-to-day…

Mapping analysis and planning system for the John F. Kennedy Space Center

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hall, C. R.; Barkaszi, M. J.; Provancha, M. J.; Reddick, N. A.; Hinkle, C. R.; Engel, B. A.; Summerfield, B. R.

1994-01-01

Environmental management, impact assessment, research and monitoring are multidisciplinary activities which are ideally suited to incorporate a multi-media approach to environmental problem solving. Geographic information systems (GIS), simulation models, neural networks and expert-system software are some of the advancing technologies being used for data management, query, analysis and display. At the 140,000 acre John F. Kennedy Space Center, the Advanced Software Technology group has been supporting development and implementation of a program that integrates these and other rapidly evolving hardware and software capabilities into a comprehensive Mapping, Analysis and Planning System (MAPS) based in a workstation/local are network environment. An expert-system shell is being developed to link the various databases to guide users through the numerous stages of a facility siting and environmental assessment. The expert-system shell approach is appealing for its ease of data access by management-level decision makers while maintaining the involvement of the data specialists. This, as well as increased efficiency and accuracy in data analysis and report preparation, can benefit any organization involved in natural resources management.

Smart caching based on mobile agent of power WebGIS platform.

PubMed

Wang, Xiaohui; Wu, Kehe; Chen, Fei

2013-01-01

Power information construction is developing towards intensive, platform, distributed direction with the expansion of power grid and improvement of information technology. In order to meet the trend, power WebGIS was designed and developed. In this paper, we first discuss the architecture and functionality of power WebGIS, and then we study caching technology in detail, which contains dynamic display cache model, caching structure based on mobile agent, and cache data model. We have designed experiments of different data capacity to contrast performance between WebGIS with the proposed caching model and traditional WebGIS. The experimental results showed that, with the same hardware environment, the response time of WebGIS with and without caching model increased as data capacity growing, while the larger the data was, the higher the performance of WebGIS with proposed caching model improved.

Geomorphological map of glaciated gorges in a granitic massif (Gredos range, Central Spain).

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Campos, Néstor; Tanarro, Luis Miguel; Palacios, David

2017-04-01

A detailed geomorphological map on a 1:10,000 scale is presented for a high mountain area in Gredos range (Iberian Central System), this area is located in a granitic massif 160 km West of Madrid and comprises three gorges : La Vega, Taheña-Honda and La Nava. Only few detailed geomorphological maps of the Gredos range are available despite the wide diversity of landforms, in order to improve the understanding of this zone, this geomorphological map of the area has been produced, showing in detail the geomorphologic diversity of these gorges. The map was created with the aid of 25 cm resolution aerial photographs, 25 cm resolution satellite images, Iberpix 3D images provided by the Spanish National Geographic Institute and verified with field work. The landforms were delimitated with a stereoscope and satellite image pairs and digitized using GIS and CAD software, in some areas 3D glasses has been used with 3D images and the software Esri ArcScene. The landforms resulting from interpretation of aerial photographs and satellite images were classified using the IGUL (Institute of Geography, University of Lausanne) legend system (developed at the end of the 1980s) combined with the legend proposed by Peña et al. (1997) and some personal adaptations. The map legend includes 45 landforms divided into seven sections: structural, hydrography, fluvial, gravitative, glacial, nival and anthropic landforms. The use of both legend systems allows us to represent the landform types distributed over an area of 40 km2 and to identify the geomorphic processes involved in their morphogenesis, this variety of processes and landforms identified demonstrated that geomorphological cartography obtained by combining traditional image interpretation and GIS technology facilitates the production of geomorphological maps and the obtaining of valuable data for identify and understand surface processes and landforms. References: Maillard, B., Lambiel, C., Martin, S., Pellitero, R., Reynard, E., & Schoeneich, P. (2011). The ArcGIS version of the geomorphological mapping legend of the University of Lausanne. Technical report, Université de Lausanne. Peña, J., Pellicer, F., Chueca, J., & Julián, A. (1997). Leyenda para mapas geomorfológicos a escalas 1:25.000/1:50.000. In J. L. Peña (Ed.), Cartografía Geomorfológica Básica y Aplicada. Geoforma Ed. Logroño. Research funded by Deglaciation project (CGL2015-65813-R), Government of Spain

An overview of a GIS method for mapping landslides and assessing landslide hazards at Río El Estado watershed, on the SW flank of Pico de Orizaba Volcano, Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Legorreta Paulin, G.; Bursik, M. I.; Contreras, T.; Polenz, M.; Ramírez Herrera, M.; Paredes Mejía, L.; Arana Salinas, L.

2012-12-01

This poster provides an overview of the on-going research project (Grant SEP-CONACYT no 167495) from the Institute of Geography at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) that seeks to conduct a multi-temporal landslide inventory, produce a landslide susceptibility map, and estimate sediment production by using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The Río El Estado watershed on the southwestern flank of Pico de Orizaba volcano, the highest mountain in Mexico, is selected as a study area. The catchment covers 5.2 km2 with elevations ranging from 2676.79 to 4248.2 m a.s.l. and hillslopes between 0° and 56°. The stream system of Río El Estado catchment erodes Tertiary and Quaternary lavas, pyroclastic flows, and fall deposits. The geologic and geomorphologic factors in combination with high seasonal precipitation, high degree of weathering, and steep slopes predispose the study area to landslides. The methodology encompasses three main stages of analysis to assess landslide hazards: Stage 1 builds a historic landslide inventory. In the study area, an inventory of more than 170 landslides is created from multi-temporal aerial-photo-interpretation and local field surveys to assess landslide distribution. All landslides were digitized into a geographic information system (GIS), and a spatial geo-database of landslides was constructed from standardized GIS datasets. Stage 2 Calculates the susceptibility for the watershed. During this stage, Multiple Logistic Regression and SINMAP) will be evaluated to select the one that provides scientific accuracy, technical accessibility, and applicability. Stage 3 Estimate the potential total material delivered to the main stream drainage channel by all landslides in the catchment. Detailed geometric measurements of individual landslides visited during the field work will be carried out to obtain the landslide area and volume. These measurements revealed an empirical relationship between area and volume that took the form of a power law. This relationship will be used to estimate the potential volume of material delivered to the catchment. The technique and its implementation of each stage in a GIS-based technology is presented and discussed.

An overview of a GIS method for mapping landslides and assessing landslide susceptibility in the Río La Carbonera watershed, on the SE flank of Pico de Orizaba Volcano, Mexico.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Legorreta Paulin, G.; Bursik, M. I.; Contreras, T.

2015-12-01

This poster provides an overview of the on-going research project (Grant PAPIIT # IN102115) from the Institute of Geography at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) that seeks to conduct a multi-temporal landslide inventory, produce a landslide susceptibility map, and estimate sediment production by using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The Río La Carbonera watershed on the southeastern flank of Pico de Orizaba volcano, the highest mountain in Mexico, is selected as a study area. The catchment covers 71.9 km2 with elevations ranging from 1224 to 3643 m a.s.l. and hillslopes between <5° and 68°. The stream system of Río La Carbonera catchment erodes Tertiary and Quaternary lavas, pyroclastic flows, and fall deposits. The geologic and geomorphologic factors in combination with high seasonal precipitation, high degree of weathering, and steep slopes predispose the study area to landslides. The methodology encompasses three main stages of analysis to assess landslide hazards: Stage 1 builds a historic landslide inventory. In the study area, an inventory of more than 200 landslides is created from multi-temporal aerial-photo-interpretation and local field surveys to assess landslide distribution. All landslides were digitized into a geographic information system (GIS), and a spatial geo-database of landslides was constructed from standardized GIS datasets. Stage 2 calculates the susceptibility for the watershed. During this stage, (SINMAP using default values) is evaluated. Stage 3 Estimate the potential total material delivered to the main stream drainage channel by all landslides in the catchment. Detailed geometric measurements of individual landslides visited during the field work will be carried out to obtain the landslide area and volume. These measurements revealed an empirical relationship between area and volume that took the form of a power law. This relationship will be used to estimate the potential volume of material delivered to the catchment. The technique and its implementation of each stage in a GIS-based technology is presented and discussed.

Discovering the Ancient Maya from Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sever, T. L.

2008-01-01

The Pet6n region of northern Guatemala contains some of the most significant Mayan archeological sites in Latin America. It was in this region that the Maya civilization began, flourished, and abruptly disappeared. Remote sensing technology is helping to locate and map ancient Maya sites that are threatened today by accelerating deforestation and looting. Thematic Mapper, IKONOS, and QuickBird satellite, and airborne STAR-3i and AIRSAR radar data, combined with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, are successfully detecting ancient Maya features such as sites, roadways, canals, and water reservoirs. Satellite imagery is also being used to map the bajos, which are seasonally flooded swamps that cover over 40% of the land surface. Through the use of various airborne and satellite sensor systems we have been able to detect and map ancient causeways, temples, reservoirs, and land forms, and locate these features on the ground through GPS technology. Recently, we have discovered that there is a strong relationship between a tropical forest vegetation signature in satellite imagery and the location of archeological sites. We believe that the use of limestone and lime plasters in ancient Maya construction affects the moisture, nutrition, and plant species of the surface vegetation. We have mapped these vegetation signatures in the imagery and verified through field survey that they are indicative of archeological sites. Through the use of remote sensing and GIS technology it is possible to identify unrecorded archeological features in a dense tropical forest environment and monitor these cultural features for their protection.

Discovering the Ancient Maya From Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sever, T. L.

2007-01-01

The Peten region of northern Guatemala contains some of the most significant Mayan archeological sites in Latin America. It was in this region that the Maya civilization began, flourished, and abruptly disappeared. Remote sensing technology is helping to locate and map ancient Maya sites that are threatened today by accelerating deforestation and looting. Thematic Mapper, IKONOS, and QuickBird satellite, and airborne STAR-3i and AIRSAR radar data, combined with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, are successfully detecting ancient Maya features such as sites, roadways, canals, and water reservoirs. Satellite imagery is also being used to map the bajos, which are seasonally flooded swamps that cover over 40% of the land surface. Through the use of various airborne and satellite sensor systems we have been able to detect and map ancient causeways, temples, reservoirs, and land forms, and locate these features on the ground through GPS technology. Recently, we have discovered that there is a strong relationship between a tropical forest vegetation signature in satellite imagery and the location of archeological sites. We believe that the use o f limestone and lime plasters in ancient Maya construction affects the moisture, nutrition, and plant species of the surface vegetation. We have mapped these vegetation signatures in the imagery and verified through field survey that they are indicative of archeological sites. Through the use of remote sensing and GIS technology it is possible to identify unrecorded archeological features in a dense tropical forest environment and monitor these cultural features for their protection.

Exploring the Characteristics of an Optimal Design for Inquiry-Based Geography Education with Geographic Information Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Favier, Tim T.; van der Schee, Joop A.

2012-01-01

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a kind of computer software that allows people to work with digital maps in a fast and flexible way. In the past decade, more and more geography teachers have become interested in the possibilities of using GIS in secondary education. However, teaching with GIS is complex, and little is known about how to do…

The Impact of Geographic Information Systems on Emergency Management Decision Making at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Steven Gray

2012-01-01

Geographic information systems (GIS) reveal relationships and patterns from large quantities of diverse data in the form of maps and reports. The United States spends billions of dollars to use GIS to improve decisions made during responses to natural disasters and terrorist attacks, but precisely how GIS improves or impairs decision making is not…

Remodeling census population with spatial information from Landsat TM imagery

USGS Publications Warehouse

Yuan, Y.; Smith, R.M.; Limp, W.F.

1997-01-01

In geographic information systems (GIS) studies there has been some difficulty integrating socioeconomic and physiogeographic data. One important type of socioeconomic data, census data, offers a wide range of socioeconomic information, but is aggregated within arbitrary enumeration districts (EDs). Values reflect either raw counts or, when standardized, the mean densities in the EDs. On the other hand, remote sensing imagery, an important type of physiogeographic data, provides large quantities of information with more spatial details than census data. Based on the dasymetric mapping principle, this study applies multivariable regression to examine the correlation between population counts from census and land cover types. The land cover map is classified from LandSat TM imagery. The correlation is high. Census population counts are remodeled to a GIS raster layer based on the discovered correlations coupled with scaling techniques, which offset influences from other than land cover types. The GIS raster layer depicts the population distribution with much more spatial detail than census data offer. The resulting GIS raster layer is ready to be analyzed or integrated with other GIS data. ?? 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Web-based GIS for spatial pattern detection: application to malaria incidence in Vietnam.

PubMed

Bui, Thanh Quang; Pham, Hai Minh

2016-01-01

There is a great concern on how to build up an interoperable health information system of public health and health information technology within the development of public information and health surveillance programme. Technically, some major issues remain regarding to health data visualization, spatial processing of health data, health information dissemination, data sharing and the access of local communities to health information. In combination with GIS, we propose a technical framework for web-based health data visualization and spatial analysis. Data was collected from open map-servers and geocoded by open data kit package and data geocoding tools. The Web-based system is designed based on Open-source frameworks and libraries. The system provides Web-based analyst tool for pattern detection through three spatial tests: Nearest neighbour, K function, and Spatial Autocorrelation. The result is a web-based GIS, through which end users can detect disease patterns via selecting area, spatial test parameters and contribute to managers and decision makers. The end users can be health practitioners, educators, local communities, health sector authorities and decision makers. This web-based system allows for the improvement of health related services to public sector users as well as citizens in a secure manner. The combination of spatial statistics and web-based GIS can be a solution that helps empower health practitioners in direct and specific intersectional actions, thus provide for better analysis, control and decision-making.

Bedrock and structural geologic maps of eastern Candor Sulci, western Ceti Mensa, and southeastern Ceti Mensa, Candor Chasma, Valles Marineris region of Mars

USGS Publications Warehouse

Okubo, Chris H.; Gaither, Tenielle A.

2017-05-12

This map product contains a set of three 1:18,000-scale maps showing the geology and structure of study areas in the western Candor Chasma region of Valles Marineris, Mars. These maps are part of an informal series of large-scale maps and map-based topical studies aimed at refining current understanding of the geologic history of western Candor Chasma. The map bases consist of digital elevation models and orthorectified images derived from High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) data. These maps are accompanied by geologic cross sections, colorized elevation maps, and cutouts of HiRISE images showing key superposition relations. Also included in this product is a Correlation of Map Units that integrates units across all three map areas, as well as an integrated Description of Map Units and an integrated Explanation of Map Symbols. The maps were assembled using ArcGIS software produced by Environmental Systems Research Institute (http://www.esri.com). The ArcGIS projects and databases associated with each map are included online as supplemental data.

The use of a GIS Red-Amber-Green (RAG) system to define search priorities for burials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Somma, Roberta; Silvestro, Massimiliano; Cascio, Maria; Dawson, Lorna; Donnelly, Laurance; Harrison, Mark; McKinley, Jennifer; Ruffell, Alastair

2016-04-01

The aim of this research is to promote among the Italian police, magistrates, and geologists, the applications of a Geographical Information System (GIS)-based RAG system for use in ground searches for burials. To date the RAG system has not been used and documented in Italy and would potentially be useful for searches related to clandestine burial sites. This technique, was originally documented by the British Army in the 1st World War. The RAG method is based on the construction of theme maps. RAG maps can facilitate the deployment of appropriate search assets (such as geophysics, probe or search dogs) and therefore applied to ground searches for the potential location of homicide graves or other buried objects (including weapons, explosives, etc.). RAG maps also may assist in the management of resources such as the deployment of search personnel, search teams and dogs. A GIS RAG (Red-Amber-Green) system related to a search for a homicide grave was applied to a test site in Italy, simulating the concealment of a victim in the area of Alì. This is an area of hill in Sicily, characterized by Palaeozoic phyllites. It was assumed during this test that information was provided by an observer who saw a suspect carrying tools on his land during daylight hours. A desktop study of the rural area was first implemented. Data was collated from previous geological, geomorphological, hydrogeological, geophysical and land use surveys. All these data were stored and independently analysed in a GIS using ArcGIS software. For the development of the GIS-based RAG map a digital elevation model (DEM) including a digital surface model (DTS) and digital terrain model (DTM) types were used. These were integrated with data from soil surveys to provide a preliminary assessment of "diggability" - including the possible thickness of loose superficial deposits and soils. Data were stored in different layers within the GIS. These included the delineation of the search area with consideration of access/exit points, diggability (easy: red, difficult: green), ground slope (<27°: red, >27°: green), vegetation type (easy access: red, difficult access: green), geomorphology (stable area: red, unstable area: green), anthropogenic structures (not present: red, present: green), visibility of the site from a potential eyewitnesses perspective (not visible: red, visible: green). Overlaying these layers, using the ArcGIS tools, enabled the RAG map to be composed with red showing the high priority search areas, amber the intermediate priority search areas and green the low priority search areas. The GIS-based RAG map of the simulated test-site allowed the original extent of the search area of 39.315m2, to be significantly reduced to 7.45% (2.930m2: extension red area) by desktop study and to 2.93% (1.152m2) with a further reconnaissance site visit. During subsequent field training conducted by forensic geology students at Messina University, the grave was found after 2 hours of searching, both using the RAG map and a soil probe and observing topographic disturbances. A subsidence of some centimeters and an anomalous growth of vegetation was found on the superficial surface of the grave (75cm deep).

A GIS-based extended fuzzy multi-criteria evaluation for landslide susceptibility mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Shadman Roodposhti, Majid; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-12-01

Landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) is making increasing use of GIS-based spatial analysis in combination with multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) methods. We have developed a new multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method for LSM and applied it to the Izeh River basin in south-western Iran. Our method is based on fuzzy membership functions (FMFs) derived from GIS analysis. It makes use of nine causal landslide factors identified by local landslide experts. Fuzzy set theory was first integrated with an analytical hierarchy process (AHP) in order to use pairwise comparisons to compare LSM criteria for ranking purposes. FMFs were then applied in order to determine the criteria weights to be used in the development of a landslide susceptibility map. Finally, a landslide inventory database was used to validate the LSM map by comparing it with known landslides within the study area. Results indicated that the integration of fuzzy set theory with AHP produced significantly improved accuracies and a high level of reliability in the resulting landslide susceptibility map. Approximately 53% of known landslides within our study area fell within zones classified as having "very high susceptibility", with the further 31% falling into zones classified as having "high susceptibility".

A GIS-based extended fuzzy multi-criteria evaluation for landslide susceptibility mapping

PubMed Central

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Shadman Roodposhti, Majid; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-01-01

Landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) is making increasing use of GIS-based spatial analysis in combination with multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) methods. We have developed a new multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method for LSM and applied it to the Izeh River basin in south-western Iran. Our method is based on fuzzy membership functions (FMFs) derived from GIS analysis. It makes use of nine causal landslide factors identified by local landslide experts. Fuzzy set theory was first integrated with an analytical hierarchy process (AHP) in order to use pairwise comparisons to compare LSM criteria for ranking purposes. FMFs were then applied in order to determine the criteria weights to be used in the development of a landslide susceptibility map. Finally, a landslide inventory database was used to validate the LSM map by comparing it with known landslides within the study area. Results indicated that the integration of fuzzy set theory with AHP produced significantly improved accuracies and a high level of reliability in the resulting landslide susceptibility map. Approximately 53% of known landslides within our study area fell within zones classified as having “very high susceptibility”, with the further 31% falling into zones classified as having “high susceptibility”. PMID:26089577

A GIS-based extended fuzzy multi-criteria evaluation for landslide susceptibility mapping.

PubMed

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Shadman Roodposhti, Majid; Jankowski, Piotr; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-12-01

Landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) is making increasing use of GIS-based spatial analysis in combination with multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) methods. We have developed a new multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method for LSM and applied it to the Izeh River basin in south-western Iran. Our method is based on fuzzy membership functions (FMFs) derived from GIS analysis. It makes use of nine causal landslide factors identified by local landslide experts. Fuzzy set theory was first integrated with an analytical hierarchy process (AHP) in order to use pairwise comparisons to compare LSM criteria for ranking purposes. FMFs were then applied in order to determine the criteria weights to be used in the development of a landslide susceptibility map. Finally, a landslide inventory database was used to validate the LSM map by comparing it with known landslides within the study area. Results indicated that the integration of fuzzy set theory with AHP produced significantly improved accuracies and a high level of reliability in the resulting landslide susceptibility map. Approximately 53% of known landslides within our study area fell within zones classified as having "very high susceptibility", with the further 31% falling into zones classified as having "high susceptibility".

RadMap

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadMap is an interactive desktop tool featuring a nationwide geographic information systems (GIS) map of long-term radiation monitoring locations across the United States with access to key information about the monitor and the area surrounding it.

Quantitative genetic-interaction mapping in mammalian cells

PubMed Central

Roguev, Assen; Talbot, Dale; Negri, Gian Luca; Shales, Michael; Cagney, Gerard; Bandyopadhyay, Sourav; Panning, Barbara; Krogan, Nevan J

2013-01-01

Mapping genetic interactions (GIs) by simultaneously perturbing pairs of genes is a powerful tool for understanding complex biological phenomena. Here we describe an experimental platform for generating quantitative GI maps in mammalian cells using a combinatorial RNA interference strategy. We performed ~11,000 pairwise knockdowns in mouse fibroblasts, focusing on 130 factors involved in chromatin regulation to create a GI map. Comparison of the GI and protein-protein interaction (PPI) data revealed that pairs of genes exhibiting positive GIs and/or similar genetic profiles were predictive of the corresponding proteins being physically associated. The mammalian GI map identified pathways and complexes but also resolved functionally distinct submodules within larger protein complexes. By integrating GI and PPI data, we created a functional map of chromatin complexes in mouse fibroblasts, revealing that the PAF complex is a central player in the mammalian chromatin landscape. PMID:23407553

Spatial digital database of the geologic map of Catalina Core Complex and San Pedro Trough, Pima, Pinal, Gila, Graham, and Cochise counties, Arizona

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dickinson, William R.; digital database by Hirschberg, Douglas M.; Pitts, G. Stephen; Bolm, Karen S.

2002-01-01

The geologic map of Catalina Core Complex and San Pedro Trough by Dickinson (1992) was digitized for input into a geographic information system (GIS) by the U.S. Geological Survey staff and contractors in 2000-2001. This digital geospatial database is one of many being created by the U.S. Geological Survey as an ongoing effort to provide geologic information in a geographic information system (GIS) for use in spatial analysis. The resulting digital geologic map database data can be queried in many ways to produce a variety of geologic maps and derivative products. Digital base map data (topography, roads, towns, rivers, lakes, and so forth) are not included; they may be obtained from a variety of commercial and government sources. This database is not meant to be used or displayed at any scale larger than 1:125,000 (for example, 1:100,000 or 1:24,000). The digital geologic map plot files that are provided herein are representations of the database. The map area is located in southern Arizona. This report lists the geologic map units, the methods used to convert the geologic map data into a digital format, the ArcInfo GIS file structures and relationships, and explains how to download the digital files from the U.S. Geological Survey public access World Wide Web site on the Internet. The manuscript and digital data review by Lorre Moyer (USGS) is greatly appreciated.

WOCAT mapping, GIS and the Góis municipality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esteves, T. C. J.; Soares, J. A. A.; Ferreira, A. J. D.; Coelho, C. O. A.; Carreiras, M. A.; Lynden, G. V.

2012-04-01

In the scope of the goals of the association "The World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies" (WOCAT), the established methodology intends to support the sustainable development of new techniques and the process of decision making in Sustainable Soil Management (SSM). Its main goal is to promote the co-existence with nature, in order to assure the wellbeing of upcoming generations. SSM is defined as the use of terrestrial resources, including soil, water, fauna, flora, for the production of goods that fulfill human needs, guaranteeing simultaneously a long-term productive potential for these resources, as well as the maintenance of their environmental functions. The EU-funded DESIRE (Desertification Mitigation & Remediation of Land: a global approach for local solutions) project is centered on SSM, having as a main goal the development and study of promising conservation, soil use and management strategies, therefore contributing for the protection of arid and semi-arid vulnerable areas. In Portugal, one of the main soil degradation and desertification agents are wildfires. There is consequently an urgent need to establish integrated conservation measures to reduce or prevent these occurrences. To do so, and for the DESIRE project, the WOCAT methodology was implemented, where it could be foreseen as 3 major questionnaires for: technologies (WOCAT Technologies), approaches (WOCAT Approaches) and mapping (WOCAT Mapping). The established methodology for WOCAT Mapping was created in order to attend the questions associated to the soil and water degradation, emphasizing the direct and socio-economic causes of this degradation. It evaluates what type of soil degradation is occurring, where, why and what actions are in practice in what respects to SSM. The association of this questionnaire to Geographical Information Systems (GIS) allows not only to produce maps, but also to calculate areas, taking into account several aspects of soil degradation and conservation. The map database and their outputs give a comprehensive and powerful tool to obtain a global vision of the degradation state of a given territory, at the desired local or regional scale. However for the selected study area, the Portuguese Góis Municipality, there was no base information prepared to be readily inserted in the geographical database. It was necessary to create the requested mapping units, so that the WOCAT Mapping questionnaire could be used.As a result, municipal cartography with 39 mapping units was obtained, and for each one, an exhaustive field work was made, allowing to characterize them in detail and answer the required information by WOCAT Mapping. These answers allowed creating a clearer image of what is happening in the territory in what respects to the used techniques, degradation degree and conservation measures applied. The all-important contact with the municipalities main stakeholders is an important aspect to refer, once they are the ones to help validate the obtained results for the WOCAT Mapping methodology, due to their extensive knowledge of the territory.

NOAA/NOS coastal and ocean assessment GIS: Initial application to environmental sensitivity index data

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Monaco, M.E.; Battista, T.A.; Gill, T.A.

1997-06-01

NOAA`s National Ocean Service (NOS) is developing a suite of desktop geographic information system (GIS) tools to define, assess, and solve coastal resource management issues. This paper describes one component of the emerging NOS Coastal and Ocean Assessment GIS: Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) data with emphasis on living marine resource information. This work is underway through a unique federal, state, and private-sector partnership. The desktop GIS is a versatile, user-friendly system designed to provide coastal managers with mapping and analysis capabilities. These functions are under development using the recently generated North Carolina ESI data, with emphasis on accessing, analyzing, andmore » mapping estuarine species distributions. Example system features include: a user-friendly front end, generation of ESI maps and tables, and custom spatial and temporal analyses. Partners in the development of the desktop system include: NOAA`s Office of Ocean Resources Conservation and Assessment (ORCA) and Coastal Services Center, the Minerals Management Service (MMS), Florida Marine Research Institute, Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc., and Research Planning, Inc. This work complements and supports MMS`s Gulf-wide Information System designed to support oil-spill contingency planning.« less

Surficial Geologic Map of the Pocasset-Provincetown-Cuttyhunk-Nantucket 24-Quadrangle Area of Cape Cod and Islands, Southeast Massachusetts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Stone, Byron D.; DiGiacomo-Cohen, Mary L.

2006-01-01

The surficial geologic map layer shows the distribution of nonlithified earth materials at land surface in an area of 24 7.5-minute quadrangles (555 mi2 total) in southeast Massachusetts. Across Massachusetts, these materials range from a few feet to more than 500 ft in thickness. They overlie bedrock, which crops out in upland hills and as resistant ledges in valley areas. On Cape Cod and adjacent islands, these materials completely cover the bedrock surface. The geologic map differentiates surficial materials of Quaternary age on the basis of their lithologic characteristics (such as grain size and sedimentary structures), constructional geomorphic features, stratigraphic relations, and age. Surficial earth materials significantly affect human use of the land, and an accurate description of their distribution is particularly important for assessing water resources, construction aggregate resources, and earth-surface hazards, and for making land-use decisions. This work is part of a comprehensive study to produce a statewide digital map of the surficial geology at a 1:24,000-scale level of accuracy. This report includes explanatory text (PDF), quadrangle maps at 1:24,000 scale (PDF files), GIS data layers (ArcGIS shapefiles), metadata for the GIS layers, scanned topographic base maps (TIF), and a readme.txt file.

A geographic information system approach to evaluating the effects of the endangered species protection program on mosquito control.

PubMed

Spradling, S L; Olson, J K; Coulson, R N; Lovelady, C N

1998-06-01

The purpose of this study was to assess what impacts on organized mosquito control the implementation of an Endangered Species Protection Program for the Houston toad might have in Chambers and Harris counties, Texas. The study was also intended to demonstrate the value of using geographic information system (GIS) techniques and methodologies in making such assessments to those in mosquito control who are unfamiliar with GIS and its applications. Using the GIS, Geographical Analysis Support System (GRASS), databases were developed on the habitats and patterns of mosquito control insecticide usage occurring in Chambers and Harris counties. These databases were then employed by means of various utilities associated with GRASS and computer-supported, rule-based reasoning processes to create maps depicting the amount and locations of toad habitat and the areas treated annually with insecticides by districts in Chambers and Harris counties. This map information was then used via other GRASS utilities to identify and depict zones of overlap or coincidence between toad habitat and areas treated with insecticides for mosquito control in the 2 counties. As compared to existing maps for toad habitat, our resulting GIS-generated maps gave more precise, easy-to-use information that could be used to make decisions as to how to protect the toad in the zones of coincidence in each county without causing undue disruption to mosquito control activities in these zones.

Development of a national geodatabase (Greece) for soil surveys and land evaluation using space technology and GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilas, George; Dionysiou, Nina; Karapetsas, Nikolaos; Silleos, Nikolaos; Kosmas, Konstantinos; Misopollinos, Nikolaos

2016-04-01

This project was funded by OPEKEPE, Ministry of Agricultural Development and Food, Greece and involves development of a national geodatabase and a WebGIS that encompass soil data of all the agricultural areas of Greece in order to supply the country with a multi-purpose master plan for agricultural land management. The area mapped covered more than 385,000 ha divided in more than 9.000 Soil Mapping Units (SMUs) based on physiographic analysis, field work and photo interpretation of satellite images. The field work included description and sampling in three depths (0-30, 30-60 and >60 cm) of 2,000 soil profiles and 8,000 augers (sampling 0-30 and >30 cm). In total more than 22,000 soil samples were collected and analyzed for determining main soil properties associated with soil classification and soil evaluation. Additionally the project included (1) integration of all data in the Soil Geodatabase, (2) finalization of SMUs, (3) development of a Master Plan for Agricultural Land Management and (4) development and operational testing of the Web Portal for e-information and e-services. The integrated system is expected, after being fully operational, to provide important electronic services and benefits to farmers, private sector and governmental organizations. An e-book with the soil maps of Greece was also provided including 570 sheets with data description and legends. The Master Plan for Agricultural Land Management includes soil quality maps for 30 agricultural crops, together with maps showing soil degradation risks, such as erosion, desertification, salinity and nitrates, thus providing the tools for soil conservation and sustainable land management.

A remote sensing and GIS-enabled highway asset management system : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-04-01

The objective of this project is to validate the use of commercial remote sensing and spatial information : (CRS&SI) technologies, including emerging 3D line laser imaging technology, mobile LiDAR, image : processing algorithms, and GPS/GIS technolog...

Land-use planning of Volyn region (Ukraine) using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strielko, Irina; Pereira, Paulo

2014-05-01

Land-use development planning is carried out in order to create a favourable environment for human life, sustainable socioeconomic and spatial development. Landscape planning is an important part of land-use development that aims to meet the fundamental principles of sustainable development. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a fundamental tool to make a better landscape planning at different territorial levels, providing data and maps to support decision making. The objective of this work is to create spatio-temporal, territorial and ecological model of development of Volyn region (Ukraine). It is based on existing spatial raster and vector data and includes the analysis of territory dynamics as the aspects responsible for it. A spatial analyst tool was used to zone the areas according to their environmental components and economic activity. This analysis is fundamental to define the basic parameters of sustainability of Volyn region. To carry out this analysis, we determined the demographic capacity of districts and the analysis of spatial parameters of land use. On the basis of the existing natural resources, we observed that there is a need of landscape protection and integration of more are natural areas in the Pan-European Ecological Network. Using GIS technologies to landscape planning in Volyn region, allowed us to identify, natural areas of interest, contribute to a better resource management and conflict resolution. Geographic Information Systems will help to formulate and implement landscape policies, reform the existing administrative system of Volyn region and contribute to a better sustainable development.

Precision Farming and Precision Pest Management: The Power of New Crop Production Technologies

PubMed Central

Strickland, R. Mack; Ess, Daniel R.; Parsons, Samuel D.

1998-01-01

The use of new technologies including Geographic Information Systems (GIS), the Global Positioning System (GPS), Variable Rate Technology (VRT), and Remote Sensing (RS) is gaining acceptance in the present high-technology, precision agricultural industry. GIS provides the ability to link multiple data values for the same geo-referenced location, and provides the user with a graphical visualization of such data. When GIS is coupled with GPS and RS, management decisions can be applied in a more precise "micro-managed" manner by using VRT techniques. Such technology holds the potential to reduce agricultural crop production costs as well as crop and environmental damage. PMID:19274236

Planetary Geologic Mapping Python Toolbox: A Suite of Tools to Support Mapping Workflows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hunter, M. A.; Skinner, J. A.; Hare, T. M.; Fortezzo, C. M.

2017-06-01

The collective focus of the Planetary Geologic Mapping Python Toolbox is to provide researchers with additional means to migrate legacy GIS data, assess the quality of data and analysis results, and simplify common mapping tasks.

Development of efficient and cost-effective distributed hydrological modeling tool MWEasyDHM based on open-source MapWindow GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lei, Xiaohui; Wang, Yuhui; Liao, Weihong; Jiang, Yunzhong; Tian, Yu; Wang, Hao

2011-09-01

Many regions are still threatened with frequent floods and water resource shortage problems in China. Consequently, the task of reproducing and predicting the hydrological process in watersheds is hard and unavoidable for reducing the risks of damage and loss. Thus, it is necessary to develop an efficient and cost-effective hydrological tool in China as many areas should be modeled. Currently, developed hydrological tools such as Mike SHE and ArcSWAT (soil and water assessment tool based on ArcGIS) show significant power in improving the precision of hydrological modeling in China by considering spatial variability both in land cover and in soil type. However, adopting developed commercial tools in such a large developing country comes at a high cost. Commercial modeling tools usually contain large numbers of formulas, complicated data formats, and many preprocessing or postprocessing steps that may make it difficult for the user to carry out simulation, thus lowering the efficiency of the modeling process. Besides, commercial hydrological models usually cannot be modified or improved to be suitable for some special hydrological conditions in China. Some other hydrological models are open source, but integrated into commercial GIS systems. Therefore, by integrating hydrological simulation code EasyDHM, a hydrological simulation tool named MWEasyDHM was developed based on open-source MapWindow GIS, the purpose of which is to establish the first open-source GIS-based distributed hydrological model tool in China by integrating modules of preprocessing, model computation, parameter estimation, result display, and analysis. MWEasyDHM provides users with a friendly manipulating MapWindow GIS interface, selectable multifunctional hydrological processing modules, and, more importantly, an efficient and cost-effective hydrological simulation tool. The general construction of MWEasyDHM consists of four major parts: (1) a general GIS module for hydrological analysis, (2) a preprocessing module for modeling inputs, (3) a model calibration module, and (4) a postprocessing module. The general GIS module for hydrological analysis is developed on the basis of totally open-source GIS software, MapWindow, which contains basic GIS functions. The preprocessing module is made up of three submodules including a DEM-based submodule for hydrological analysis, a submodule for default parameter calculation, and a submodule for the spatial interpolation of meteorological data. The calibration module contains parallel computation, real-time computation, and visualization. The postprocessing module includes model calibration and model results spatial visualization using tabular form and spatial grids. MWEasyDHM makes it possible for efficient modeling and calibration of EasyDHM, and promises further development of cost-effective applications in various watersheds.

Integrated Sustainable Planning for Industrial Region Using Geospatial Technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tiwari, Manish K.; Saxena, Aruna; Katare, Vivek

2012-07-01

The Geospatial techniques and its scope of applications have undergone an order of magnitude change since its advent and now it has been universally accepted as a most important and modern tool for mapping and monitoring of various natural resources as well as amenities and infrastructure. The huge and voluminous spatial database generated from various Remote Sensing platforms needs proper management like storage, retrieval, manipulation and analysis to extract desired information, which is beyond the capability of human brain. This is where the computer aided GIS technology came into existence. A GIS with major input from Remote Sensing satellites for the natural resource management applications must be able to handle the spatiotemporal data, supporting spatiotemporal quarries and other spatial operations. Software and the computer-based tools are designed to make things easier to the user and to improve the efficiency and quality of information processing tasks. The natural resources are a common heritage, which we have shared with the past generations, and our future generation will be inheriting these resources from us. Our greed for resource and our tremendous technological capacity to exploit them at a much larger scale has created a situation where we have started withdrawing from the future stocks. Bhopal capital region had attracted the attention of the planners from the beginning of the five-year plan strategy for Industrial development. However, a number of projects were carried out in the individual Districts (Bhopal, Rajgarh, Shajapur, Raisen, Sehore) which also gave fruitful results, but no serious efforts have been made to involve the entire region. No use of latest Geospatial technique (Remote Sensing, GIS, GPS) to prepare a well structured computerized data base without which it is very different to retrieve, analyze and compare the data for monitoring as well as for planning the developmental activities in future.

Remote Sensing as a Landscape Epidemiologic Tool to Identify Villages at High Risk for Malaria Transmission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Beck, Louisa R.; Rodriquez, Mario H.; Dister, Sheri W.; Rodriquez, Americo D.; Rejmankova, Eliska; Ulloa, Armando; Meza, Rosa A.; Roberts, Donald R.; Paris, Jack F.; Spanner, Michael A.;

Geologic characterization of shelf areas using usSEABED for GIS mapping, modeling processes and assessing marine sand and gravel resources

USGS Publications Warehouse

Williams, S.J.; Bliss, J.D.; Arsenault, M.A.; Jenkins, C.J.; Goff, J.A.

2007-01-01

Geologic maps depicting offshore sedimentary features serve many scientific and applied purposes. Such maps have been lacking, but recent computer technology and software offer promise in the capture and display of diverse marine data. Continental margins contain landforms which provide a variety of important functions and contain important sedimentary records. Some shelf areas also contain deposits regarded as potential aggregate resources. Because proper management of coastal and offshore areas is increasingly important, knowledge of the framework geology and marine processes is critical. Especially valuable are comprehensive and integrated digital databases based on high-quality information from original sources. Products of interest are GIS maps containing thematic information, such as sediment character and texture. These products are useful to scientists modeling nearshore and shelf processes as well as planners and managers. The U.S. Geological Survey is leading a national program to gather a variety of extant marine geologic data into the usSEABED database system. This provides centralized, integrated marine geologic data collected over the past 50 years. To date, over 340,000 sediment data points from the U.S. reside in usSEABED, which combines an array of physical data and analytical and descriptive information about the sea floor and are available to the marine community through three USGS data reports for the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, and Pacific published in 2006, and the project web sites: (http://woodshole.er.usg s.gov/project-pages/aggregates/ and http://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/usseabed/)

Three dimensional display of underground water-supplying network by combining VTK with SiCAD/open GIS system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Shaobin; Zhang, Xubo; Wang, Wenyuan; Zhou, Chengping; Ding, Mingyue

2007-11-01

Nowadays many Geographic Information System (GIS) have been widely used in many municipal corporations. Water-supplying corporations in many cities developed GIS application system based on SiCAD/Open GIS platform several years ago for their daily management and engineering construction. With the increasing of commercial business, many corporations now need to add the functionality of three dimensional to display to their GIS System without too much financial cost. Because of the expensiveness of updating SiCAD/Open GIS system to the up-to-date version, the introduction of a third-part 3D display technology is considered. In our solution, Visualization Toolkit (VTK) is used to achieve three dimensional display of underground water-supplying network on the basis of an existing SiCAD/Open GIS system. This paper addresses on the system architecture and key implementation technologies of this solution.

Smart Caching Based on Mobile Agent of Power WebGIS Platform

PubMed Central

Wang, Xiaohui; Wu, Kehe; Chen, Fei

2013-01-01

Power information construction is developing towards intensive, platform, distributed direction with the expansion of power grid and improvement of information technology. In order to meet the trend, power WebGIS was designed and developed. In this paper, we first discuss the architecture and functionality of power WebGIS, and then we study caching technology in detail, which contains dynamic display cache model, caching structure based on mobile agent, and cache data model. We have designed experiments of different data capacity to contrast performance between WebGIS with the proposed caching model and traditional WebGIS. The experimental results showed that, with the same hardware environment, the response time of WebGIS with and without caching model increased as data capacity growing, while the larger the data was, the higher the performance of WebGIS with proposed caching model improved. PMID:24288504

Map of Nasca Geoglyphs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hanzalová, K.; Pavelka, K.

2013-07-01

The Czech Technical University in Prague in the cooperation with the University of Applied Sciences in Dresden (Germany) work on the Nasca Project. The cooperation started in 2004 and much work has been done since then. All work is connected with Nasca lines in southern Peru. The Nasca project started in 1995 and its main target is documentation and conservation of the Nasca lines. Most of the project results are presented as WebGIS application via Internet. In the face of the impending destruction of the soil drawings, it is possible to preserve this world cultural heritage for the posterity at least in a digital form. Creating of Nasca lines map is very useful. The map is in a digital form and it is also available as a paper map. The map contains planimetric component of the map, map lettering and altimetry. Thematic folder in this map is a vector layer of the geoglyphs in Nasca/Peru. Basis for planimetry are georeferenced satellite images, altimetry is created from digital elevation model. This map was created in ArcGis software.

An uncertainty and sensitivity analysis approach for GIS-based multicriteria landslide susceptibility mapping.

PubMed

Feizizadeh, Bakhtiar; Blaschke, Thomas

2014-03-04

GIS-based multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods are increasingly being used in landslide susceptibility mapping. However, the uncertainties that are associated with MCDA techniques may significantly impact the results. This may sometimes lead to inaccurate outcomes and undesirable consequences. This article introduces a new GIS-based MCDA approach. We illustrate the consequences of applying different MCDA methods within a decision-making process through uncertainty analysis. Three GIS-MCDA methods in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) and Dempster-Shafer theory are analyzed for landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM) in the Urmia lake basin in Iran, which is highly susceptible to landslide hazards. The methodology comprises three stages. First, the LSM criteria are ranked and a sensitivity analysis is implemented to simulate error propagation based on the MCS. The resulting weights are expressed through probability density functions. Accordingly, within the second stage, three MCDA methods, namely analytical hierarchy process (AHP), weighted linear combination (WLC) and ordered weighted average (OWA), are used to produce the landslide susceptibility maps. In the third stage, accuracy assessments are carried out and the uncertainties of the different results are measured. We compare the accuracies of the three MCDA methods based on (1) the Dempster-Shafer theory and (2) a validation of the results using an inventory of known landslides and their respective coverage based on object-based image analysis of IRS-ID satellite images. The results of this study reveal that through the integration of GIS and MCDA models, it is possible to identify strategies for choosing an appropriate method for LSM. Furthermore, our findings indicate that the integration of MCDA and MCS can significantly improve the accuracy of the results. In LSM, the AHP method performed best, while the OWA reveals better performance in the reliability assessment. The WLC operation yielded poor results.

RadMap Installation Instructions

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

RadMap is an interactive desktop tool featuring a nationwide geographic information systems (GIS) map of long-term radiation monitoring locations across the United States with access to key information about the monitor and the area surrounding it.

Clinical engineering department strategic graphical dashboard to enhance maintenance planning and asset management.

PubMed

Sloane, Elliot; Rosow, Eric; Adam, Joe; Shine, Dave

2005-01-01

The Clinical Engineering (a.k.a. Biomedical Engineering) Department has heretofore lagged in adoption of some of the leading-edge information system tools used in other industries. This present application is part of a DOD-funded SBIR grant to improve the overall management of medical technology, and describes the capabilities that Strategic Graphical Dashboards (SGDs) can afford. This SGD is built on top of an Oracle database, and uses custom-written graphic objects like gauges, fuel tanks, and Geographic Information System (GIS) maps to improve and accelerate decision making.

Study on generation and sharing of on-demand global seamless data—Taking MODIS NDVI as an example

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shen, Dayong; Deng, Meixia; Di, Liping; Han, Weiguo; Peng, Chunming; Yagci, Ali Levent; Yu, Genong; Chen, Zeqiang

2013-04-01

By applying advanced Geospatial Data Abstraction Library (GDAL) and BigTIFF technology in a Geographical Information System (GIS) with Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), this study has derived global datasets using tile-based input data and implemented Virtual Web Map Service (VWMS) and Virtual Web Coverage Service (VWCS) to provide software tools for visualization and acquisition of global data. Taking MODIS Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) as an example, this study proves the feasibility, efficiency and features of the proposed approach.

Suitable Site Selection of Small Dams Using Geo-Spatial Technique: a Case Study of Dadu Tehsil, Sindh

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khalil, Zahid

2016-07-01

Decision making about identifying suitable sites for any project by considering different parameters, is difficult. Using GIS and Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) can make it easy for those projects. This technology has proved to be an efficient and adequate in acquiring the desired information. In this study, GIS and MCA were employed to identify the suitable sites for small dams in Dadu Tehsil, Sindh. The GIS software is used to create all the spatial parameters for the analysis. The parameters that derived are slope, drainage density, rainfall, land use / land cover, soil groups, Curve Number (CN) and runoff index with a spatial resolution of 30m. The data used for deriving above layers include 30 meter resolution SRTM DEM, Landsat 8 imagery, and rainfall from National Centre of Environment Prediction (NCEP) and soil data from World Harmonized Soil Data (WHSD). Land use/Land cover map is derived from Landsat 8 using supervised classification. Slope, drainage network and watershed are delineated by terrain processing of DEM. The Soil Conservation Services (SCS) method is implemented to estimate the surface runoff from the rainfall. Prior to this, SCS-CN grid is developed by integrating the soil and land use/land cover raster. These layers with some technical and ecological constraints are assigned weights on the basis of suitability criteria. The pair wise comparison method, also known as Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) is took into account as MCA for assigning weights on each decision element. All the parameters and group of parameters are integrated using weighted overlay in GIS environment to produce suitable sites for the Dams. The resultant layer is then classified into four classes namely, best suitable, suitable, moderate and less suitable. This study reveals a contribution to decision making about suitable sites analysis for small dams using geo-spatial data with minimal amount of ground data. This suitability maps can be helpful for water resource management organizations in determination of feasible rainwater harvesting structures (RWH).

Segregation and Neighborhood Change in Northern Cities: New Historical GIS Data from 1900-1930.

PubMed

Shertzer, Allison; Walsh, Randall P; Logan, John R

2016-01-01

Most quantitative research on segregation and neighborhood change in American cities prior to 1940 has utilized data published by the Census Bureau at the ward level. The transcription of census manuscripts has made it possible to aggregate individual records to a finer level, the enumeration district (ED). Advances in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have facilitated mapping these data, opening new possibilities for historical GIS research. We report here the creation of a mapped public use data set for EDs in ten northern cities for each decade from 1900 to 1930. We illustrate a range of research topics that can now be pursued: recruitment into ethnic neighborhoods, the effects of comprehensive zoning on neighborhood change, and white flight from black neighbors.

GIS walking maps to promote physical activity in low-income public housing communities: a qualitative examination.

PubMed

McNeill, Lorna H; Emmons, Karen

2012-01-01

Walking is the most commonly reported leisure-time activity. Members of racial/ethnic minority groups and people of low socioeconomic status disproportionately live in urban environments that are perceived to be unsafe, thereby reducing opportunities for engaging in walking. We examined the use of walking maps for increasing physical activity (PA) among low-income residents of public housing sites in Boston, Massachusetts. PA facilities, local businesses, and destinations in a walkable half-mile radius of the housing community were identified and plotted on maps by using geographic information systems technology. Four focus groups (n = 24) were conducted to learn how the walking maps were used by the residents and to understand map features that promoted use. Maps were used by participants to increase their PA, and use of the maps increased participants' awareness of community resources. Maps changed participants' perception of distances and were discussed as a means of fostering a sense of community. Use of the maps also increased participants' awareness of neighborhood incivilities. Barriers to map use were difficulty in interpreting the maps and lack of access to the maps. Walking maps that display PA opportunities and resources may be useful in increasing walking among residents of public housing sites.

Rapid Offline-Online Post-Disaster Landslide Mapping Tool: A case study from Nepal

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olyazadeh, Roya; Jaboyedoff, Michel; Sudmeier-Rieux, Karen; Derron, Marc-Henri; Devkota, Sanjaya

2016-04-01

One of the crucial components of post disaster management is the efficient mapping of impacted areas. Here we present a tool designed to map landslides and affected objects after the earthquakes of 2015 in Nepal as well as for intense rainfall impact. Because internet is not available in many rural areas of Nepal, we developed an offline-online prototype based on Open-Source WebGIS technologies to make data on hazard impacts, including damaged infrastructure, landslides or flooding events available to authorities and the general public. This mobile application was designed as a low-cost, rapid and participatory method for recording impacts from hazard events. It is possible to record such events offline and upload them through a server, where internet connection is available. This application allows user authentication, image capturing, and information collation such as geolocation, event description, interactive mapping and finally storing all the data in the server for further analysis and visualisation. This application can be accessed by a mobile phone (Android) or a tablet as a hybrid version for both offline and online versions. The offline version has an interactive-offline map function which allows users to upload satellites image in order to improve ground truthing interpretation. After geolocation, the user can start mapping and then save recorded data into Geojson-TXT files that can be easily uploaded to the server whenever internet is available. This prototype was tested specifically for a rapid assessment of landslides and relevant land use characteristics such as roads, forest area, rivers in the Phewa Lake watershed near Pokhara, Nepal where a large number landslides were activated or reactivated after the 2015 monsoon season. More than 60 landslides were recorded during two days of field trip. Besides, it is possible to use this application for any other kind of hazard event like flood, avalanche, etc. Keywords: Offline, Online, Open source, WebGIS, Android, Post-Disaster, Landslide mapping

Inland area contingency plan and maps for Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, District of Columbia (on CD-ROM). Data file

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1996-12-01

EPA Region III has assembled on this CD a multitude of environmental data, in both visual and textual formats. While targeted for Facility Response Planning under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, this information will prove helpful to anyone in the environmental arena. Specifically, the CD will aid contingency planning and emergency response personnel. Combining innovative GIS technology with EPA`s state-specific data allows you to display maps, find and identify map features, look at tabular information about map features, and print out maps. The CD was designed to be easy to use and incorporates example maps as well as helpmore » sections describing the use of the environmental data on the CD, and introduces you to the IACP Viewer and its capabilities. These help features will make it easy for you to conduct analysis, produce maps, and browse the IACP Plan. The IACP data are included in two formats: shapefiles, which can be viewed with the IACP Viewer or ESRI`s ArcView software (Version 2.1 or higher), and ARC/INFO export files, which can be imported into ARC/INFO or converted to other GIS data formats. Point Data Sources: Sensitive Areas, Surface Drinking Water Intakes, Groundwater Intakes, Groundwater Supply Facilities, NPL (National Priority List) Sites, FRP (Facility Response Plan) Facilities, NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Facilities, Hospitals, RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) Sites, TRI (Toxic Release Inventory) Sites, CERCLA (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act) Sites Line Data Sources: TIGER Roads, TIGER Railroads, TIGER Hydrography, Pipelines Polygon Data Sources: State Boundaries, County Boundaries, Watershed Boundaries (8-digit HUC), TIGER Hydrography, Public Lands, Populated Places, IACP Boundaries, Coast Guard Boundaries, Forest Types, US Congressional Districts, One-half Mile Buffer of Surface Drinking Water Intakes.« less

Geospatial Technology and Geosciences - Defining the skills and competencies in the geosciences needed to effectively use the technology (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, A.

2010-12-01

Maps, spatial and temporal data and their use in analysis and visualization are integral components for studies in the geosciences. With the emergence of geospatial technology (Geographic Information Systems (GIS), remote sensing and imagery, Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and mobile technologies) scientists and the geosciences user community are now able to more easily accessed and share data, analyze their data and present their results. Educators are also incorporating geospatial technology into their geosciences programs by including an awareness of the technology in introductory courses to advanced courses exploring the capabilities to help answer complex questions in the geosciences. This paper will look how the new Geospatial Technology Competency Model from the Department of Labor can help ensure that geosciences programs address the skills and competencies identified by the workforce for geospatial technology as well as look at new tools created by the GeoTech Center to help do self and program assessments.

Contribution to understanding the post-mining landscape - Application of airborn LiDAR and historical maps at the example from Silesian Upland (Poland)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gawior, D.; Rutkiewicz, P.; Malik, I.; Wistuba, M.

2017-11-01

LiDAR data provide new insights into the historical development of mining industry recorded in the topography and landscape. In the study on the lead ore mining in the 13th-17th century we identified remnants of mining activity in relief that are normally obscured by dense vegetation. The industry in Tarnowice Plateau was based on exploitation of galena from the bedrock. New technologies, including DEM from airborne LiDAR provide show that present landscape and relief of post-mining area under study developed during several, subsequent phases of exploitation when different techniques of exploitation were used and probably different types of ores were exploited. Study conducted on the Tarnowice Plateau proved that combining GIS visualization techniques with historical maps, among all geological maps, is a promising approach in reconstructing development of anthropogenic relief and landscape..

The Project-Approach to GIS as an Integrative Classroom Technology: An Environmental Case Study.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gatrell, Jay D.; Oshiro, Kenji K.

2001-01-01

Explains how Geographic Information Systems (GIS) influences geography curricula and how project-based learning can be applied to GIS experiences. Introduces a project investigating non-geography college students' design and implementation of a environmental GIS application. (Contains 16 references.) (YDS)

1994 ASPRS/ACSM annual convention exposition. Volume 2

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1994-01-01

This report is Volume II of presented papers at the joint 1994 convention of the American Society for Photgrammetry and Remote Sensing and American Congress on Surveying and Mapping. Topic areas covered include the following: Data Base/GPS Issues; Survey Management Issues; Surveying computations; Surveying education; Digital mapping; global change, EOS and NALC issues; GPS issues; Battelle Research in Remote Sensing and in GIS; Advanced Image Processing;GIS Issues; Surveying and Geodesy Issues; water resource issues; Advanced applications of remote sensing; Landsat Pathfinder I.

Turning Data into Information: Assessing and Reporting GIS Metadata Integrity Using Integrated Computing Technologies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mulrooney, Timothy J.

2009-01-01

A Geographic Information System (GIS) serves as the tangible and intangible means by which spatially related phenomena can be created, analyzed and rendered. GIS metadata serves as the formal framework to catalog information about a GIS data set. Metadata is independent of the encoded spatial and attribute information. GIS metadata is a subset of…

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Deshmukh, Ranjit; Wu, Grace

The MapRE (Multi-criteria Analysis for Planning Renewable Energy) GIS (Geographic Information Systems) Tools are a set of ArcGIS tools to a) conduct site suitability analysis for wind and solar resources using inclusion and exclusion criteria, and create resource maps, b) create project opportunity areas and compute various attributes such as cost, distances to existing and planned infrastructure. and environmental impact factors; and c) calculate and update various attributes for already processed renewable energy zones. In addition, MapRE data sets are geospatial data of renewable energy project opportunity areas and zones with pre-calculated attributes for several countries. These tools and datamore » are available at mapre.lbl.gov.« less

Using geographic information systems (GIS) to identify communities in need of health insurance outreach: An OCHIN practice-based research network (PBRN) report.

PubMed

Angier, Heather; Likumahuwa, Sonja; Finnegan, Sean; Vakarcs, Trisha; Nelson, Christine; Bazemore, Andrew; Carrozza, Mark; DeVoe, Jennifer E

2014-01-01

Our practice-based research network (PBRN) is conducting an outreach intervention to increase health insurance coverage for patients seen in the network. To assist with outreach site selection, we sought an understandable way to use electronic health record (EHR) data to locate uninsured patients. Health insurance information was displayed within a web-based mapping platform to demonstrate the feasibility of using geographic information systems (GIS) to visualize EHR data. This study used EHR data from 52 clinics in the OCHIN PBRN. We included cross-sectional coverage data for patients aged 0 to 64 years with at least 1 visit to a study clinic during 2011 (n = 228,284). Our PBRN was successful in using GIS to identify intervention sites. Through use of the maps, we found geographic variation in insurance rates of patients seeking care in OCHIN PBRN clinics. Insurance rates also varied by age: The percentage of adults without insurance ranged from 13.2% to 86.8%; rates of children lacking insurance ranged from 1.1% to 71.7%. GIS also showed some areas of households with median incomes that had low insurance rates. EHR data can be imported into a web-based GIS mapping tool to visualize patient information. Using EHR data, we were able to observe smaller areas than could be seen using only publicly available data. Using this information, we identified appropriate OCHIN PBRN clinics for dissemination of an EHR-based insurance outreach intervention. GIS could also be used by clinics to visualize other patient-level characteristics to target clinic outreach efforts or interventions. © Copyright 2014 by the American Board of Family Medicine.

GIS -- Is it a money pit or a profit generator?

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Sutton, R.H.

1997-02-01

Today, new technologies including smart pigs and GPS technology can be used to expedite data collection and improve the accuracy of the GIS applications. Eventually, such applications as pipe information for a taxing district, corrosion testing history, and many other applications can be accommodated in a GIS system. The accompanying figure shows the potential relationship of various technologies in today`s world along with other automated data input sources such as very smart pigs and the Global Positioning System (GPS). The paper discusses implementation barriers, assuring success, and recommendations.

Geographic Information Systems using CODES linked data (Crash outcome data evaluation system)

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-04-01

This report presents information about geographic information systems (GIS) and CODES linked data. Section one provides an overview of a GIS and the benefits of linking to CODES. Section two outlines the basic issues relative to the types of map data...

Identification of potential wetlands in training areas on Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant, Ohio, and guidelines for their management

USGS Publications Warehouse

Schalk, C.W.; Tertuliani, J.S.; Darner, R.A.

1999-01-01

Potential wetlands in training areas on Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant, Ohio, were mapped by use of geographic information system (GIS) data layers and field inspection. The GIS data layers were compiled from existing sources and interpretation of aerial photography. Data layers used in the GIS analysis were wetland-plant communities, hydric soils, National Wetlands Inventory designated areas, and wet areas based on photogrammetry. According to review of these data layers, potential wetlands constitute almost one-third of the land in the training areas. A composite map of these four data layers was compiled for use during inspection of the training areas. Field inspection focused on the presence of hydrophytic vegetation and macroscopic evidences of wetland hydrology. Results of the field inspection were in general agreement with those predicted by the GIS analysis, except that some wet areas were more extensive than predicted because of high amounts of precipitation during critical periods of 1995 and 1996. Guidelines for managing wetlands in the training areas are presented.

Summaries of Minnehaha Creek Watershed District Plans/Studies/Reports

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-01-30

34+ Management of all wetland functional assessment data in a Microsoft Access© database "+ Development of a GIS wetland data management system "+ Recommendations...General Task B Design GIS -Based Decision Making Model: Scenario-Based $125,000 $125,000 Model of Landuse Hydro Data Monitoring Task C Water Quality...Landuse and Land cover data + Watershed GIS data layers + Flood Insurance Rate Maps + Proposed project locations + Stream miles, reaches and conditions

GIS applications for military operations in coastal zones

USGS Publications Warehouse

Fleming, S.; Jordan, T.; Madden, M.; Usery, E.L.; Welch, R.

2009-01-01

In order to successfully support current and future US military operations in coastal zones, geospatial information must be rapidly integrated and analyzed to meet ongoing force structure evolution and new mission directives. Coastal zones in a military-operational environment are complex regions that include sea, land and air features that demand high-volume databases of extreme detail within relatively narrow geographic corridors. Static products in the form of analog maps at varying scales traditionally have been used by military commanders and their operational planners. The rapidly changing battlefield of 21st Century warfare, however, demands dynamic mapping solutions. Commercial geographic information system (GIS) software for military-specific applications is now being developed and employed with digital databases to provide customized digital maps of variable scale, content and symbolization tailored to unique demands of military units. Research conducted by the Center for Remote Sensing and Mapping Science at the University of Georgia demonstrated the utility of GIS-based analysis and digital map creation when developing large-scale (1:10,000) products from littoral warfare databases. The methodology employed-selection of data sources (including high resolution commercial images and Lidar), establishment of analysis/modeling parameters, conduct of vehicle mobility analysis, development of models and generation of products (such as a continuous sea-land DEM and geo-visualization of changing shorelines with tidal levels)-is discussed. Based on observations and identified needs from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, formerly the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, and the Department of Defense, prototype GIS models for military operations in sea, land and air environments were created from multiple data sets of a study area at US Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Results of these models, along with methodologies for developing large-scale littoral warfare databases, aid the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in meeting littoral warfare analysis, modeling and map generation requirements for US military organizations. ?? 2008 International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Inc. (ISPRS).

GIS-based interactive tool to map the advent of world conquerors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lakkaraju, Mahesh

The objective of this thesis is to show the scale and extent of some of the greatest empires the world has ever seen. This is a hybrid project between the GIS based interactive tool and the web-based JavaScript tool. This approach lets the students learn effectively about the emperors themselves while understanding how long and far their empires spread. In the GIS based tool, a map is displayed with various points on it, and when a user clicks on one point, the relevant information of what happened at that particular place is displayed. Apart from this information, users can also select the interactive animation button and can walk through a set of battles in chronological order. As mentioned, this uses Java as the main programming language, and MOJO (Map Objects Java Objects) provided by ESRI. MOJO is very effective as its GIS related features can be included in the application itself. This app. is a simple tool and has been developed for university or high school level students. D3.js is an interactive animation and visualization platform built on the Javascript framework. Though HTML5, CSS3, Javascript and SVG animations can be used to derive custom animations, this tool can help bring out results with less effort and more ease of use. Hence, it has become the most sought after visualization tool for multiple applications. D3.js has provided a map-based visualization feature so that we can easily display text-based data in a map-based interface. To draw the map and the points on it, D3.js uses data rendered in TOPO JSON format. The latitudes and longitudes can be provided, which are interpolated into the Map svg. One of the main advantages of doing it this way is that more information is retained when we use a visual medium.

Planetary mapping—The datamodel's perspective and GIS framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Gasselt, S.; Nass, A.

2011-09-01

Demands for a broad range of integrated geospatial data-analysis tools and methods for planetary data organization have been growing considerably since the late 1990s when a plethora of missions equipped with new instruments entered planetary orbits or landed on the surface. They sent back terabytes of new data which soon became accessible for the scientific community and public and which needed to be organized. On the terrestrial side, issues of data access, organization and utilization for scientific and economic analyses are handled by using a range of well-established geographic information systems (GIS) that also found their way into the field of planetary sciences in the late 1990s. We here address key issues concerning the field of planetary mapping by making use of established GIS environments and discuss methods of addressing data organization and mapping requirements by using an easily integrable datamodel that is - for the time being - designed as file-geodatabase (FileGDB) environment in ESRI's ArcGIS. A major design-driving requirement for this datamodel is its extensibility and scalability for growing scientific as well as technical needs, e.g., the utilization of such a datamodel for surface mapping of different planetary objects as defined by their respective reference system and by using different instrument data. Furthermore, it is a major goal to construct a generic model which allows to perform combined geologic as well as geomorphologic mapping tasks making use of international standards without loss of information and by maintaining topologic integrity. An integration of such a datamodel within a geospatial DBMS context can practically be performed by individuals as well as groups without having to deal with the details of administrative tasks and data ingestion issues. Besides the actual mapping, key components of such a mapping datamodel deal with the organization and search for image-sensor data and previous mapping efforts, as well as the proper organization of cartographic representations and assignments of geologic/geomorphologic units within their stratigraphic context.

GIS applications for military operations in coastal zones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fleming, S.; Jordan, T.; Madden, M.; Usery, E. L.; Welch, R.

In order to successfully support current and future US military operations in coastal zones, geospatial information must be rapidly integrated and analyzed to meet ongoing force structure evolution and new mission directives. Coastal zones in a military-operational environment are complex regions that include sea, land and air features that demand high-volume databases of extreme detail within relatively narrow geographic corridors. Static products in the form of analog maps at varying scales traditionally have been used by military commanders and their operational planners. The rapidly changing battlefield of 21st Century warfare, however, demands dynamic mapping solutions. Commercial geographic information system (GIS) software for military-specific applications is now being developed and employed with digital databases to provide customized digital maps of variable scale, content and symbolization tailored to unique demands of military units. Research conducted by the Center for Remote Sensing and Mapping Science at the University of Georgia demonstrated the utility of GIS-based analysis and digital map creation when developing large-scale (1:10,000) products from littoral warfare databases. The methodology employed-selection of data sources (including high resolution commercial images and Lidar), establishment of analysis/modeling parameters, conduct of vehicle mobility analysis, development of models and generation of products (such as a continuous sea-land DEM and geo-visualization of changing shorelines with tidal levels)-is discussed. Based on observations and identified needs from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, formerly the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, and the Department of Defense, prototype GIS models for military operations in sea, land and air environments were created from multiple data sets of a study area at US Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Results of these models, along with methodologies for developing large-scale littoral warfare databases, aid the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in meeting littoral warfare analysis, modeling and map generation requirements for US military organizations.

Drainpipe network management information system design based on GIS and SCADA technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Ze-Yu; Zhao, De-An

2011-02-01

Achieving urban drainpipe network integration of geographical information system (GIS) and supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) technology is described in this paper. The system design's plans are put forward, which have realized GIS and SCADA system supplementary in the technology and strengthened the model visible analysis ability. It is verified by practical cases that the system has more practical values and a good prospect.

Engaging Local Communities in Arctic Observing Networks: A Collaborative Shoreline Change Risk WebGIS for Alaska's Arctic Slope Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brady, M.

2017-12-01

This study engaged local community stakeholders in Alaska's Arctic Slope Region to develop a web-based shoreline change risk geographic information system (WebGIS) in collaboration with the North Slope Borough and its residents. The value of the effort includes rich spatial documentation of local risks across the vast, remote, and rapidly changing shoreline, and identification of local manager information needs to direct WebGIS development. The study advances our understanding of shoreline change problems from the perspective of local Arctic communities beyond municipal impacts while building decision support. Over fifty local residents in three communities with collective coastal knowledge that extends across the National Petroleum Reserve - Alaska and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge shared their perspectives on hard copy maps. Sixteen managers provided usability perceptions of a beta WebGIS with shoreline change susceptibility information summarized at relevant asset locations such as subsistence camps. The hard copy maps with 300 "problem places" were digitized for analysis, which revealed problems across the coastline, especially challenges to boating for subsistence hunting such as shoaling cutting off access and creating hazards. The usability workshop revealed specific information needs including the need to monitor impacts at decommissioned national defense radar sites repurposed by locals to centralize oil and gas activity. These results were analyzed using an Instructional Systems Design (ISD) framework consisting of front-end and formative WebGIS evaluation phases. The front-end evaluation is the local input on hard copy maps, which provided local verification of coastal risks. The formative evaluation is the usability workshop with managers, which informed WebGIS development while promoting user buy-in. In terms of product and process, the local knowledge and information needs collected are significant because they establish local engagement with the WebGIS. The engagement is significant because the WebGIS can link local communities with Arctic Observing Networks (AON) that monitor the environmental factors used in the system. This engagement is important for advancing the dual role of AONs for providing both environmental understanding and stakeholder decision support.

Ice-dammed lakes reconstruction in the southeastern Scandinavian ice sheet periphery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anisimov, Nikolai

2017-04-01

The study of glacier erosion processes, paleolake dynamics and topographical changes, together give us insight into both localized and broader landscape evolution patterns while also assisting human exploration. After carrying number of paleographic discoveries of North-West of Russia, we've gathered the data requiring generalizing, systemizing, visualizing. Objective: reconstruction of proglacial lakes based on lithostratigraphic and geomorphic analysis using GIS technology. GIS modeling of ice-dammed lakes was done via the ArcGIS Desktop 10 software package. The GIS was used as a means to categorize published, time mapped data and thereby fuse and unify the changes into a single, integrated prototype. Publications on limnologo-glaciological and geomorphological reconstructions of paleotopography and paleolakes north of the Russian plain, along with additional copyrighted and grant-funded GIS studies, together served as resources to authenticate the paleolake contour modeling. A quaternary sediments map and an updated topography map that was designed via semiautomatic vectorization of a topographical map, served as foundations for the electronic shape modeling paleoreconstructions. Based upon preliminary results from publication summaries, and initial data collected when analyzing the maps (quaternary sediments, geomorphological, topographical), the contours and maximum glacial lake rise levels in the southeastern Scandinavian ice sheet periphery, including the levels and contours of their coastline, have been duly identified. Boundary reconstruction of Late Pleistocene lake boundaries have been completed for five sections of the Scandinavian ice sheet: the Molovo-Sheksninskoy, the Belozersko-Kubensky, the Vozhe-Lachsko-Kubensky, the Vazhskoy, and the Severodvinskoy. The territories studied revealed 13 major paleobasins covering an area of more than 1,000 km2, which based upon their position most closely resemble periglacial, intraglacial and postglacial lakes. Of those proglacial paleolakes that have been reconstructed, currently the majority of them are located in the White Sea (Northern Dvina and Onega) basin. The largest of these proglacial lakein terms of area, the Molovo-Sheksninskoy, belongs to the Volga basin. The model reflects drain reconstruction and primary watershed migration within the territory in question. Paleobasins undergoing deglaciation processes repeatedly cooperated with one-another other to form lake systems, and then eventually collapsed or broke up into separate lakes. Paleolake altitude level dispersion particularities have also been identified. Most distinguished among these are the modern regional terrain's paleobasin raised beach terrace levels at a height of 110-130 m. The highest raised beach level terrace formations were recorded at the Molovo-Sheksninskoy (150 m), at the Vozhe-Lachensk (150 m), and at the Belozersk (145 m) lakes. The lowest levels (below 70 m) but with the greatest number of raised beach terrace formations (6-7) were found at the Onega and Nizhnesuhonskovo lakes. Of the larger proglacial lakestudied, two have completely disappeared (Nizhnesuhonskoy, Vazhskoy), four have been preserved as primordial (Vozhe, Beloye, Kubenskoe, Onega). The Molovo-Sheksninskoy and Srednesheksninskoy paleolakes also have an interesting history where back in the 20th century, after the Volga-Baltic Waterway reconstruction project took place, their levels were elevated by 18 m; and thus, the Late Pleistocene paleobasins were reengineered through human intervention to become what became known as the Sheksna and Rybinsk freshwater reservoirs.

GIS Methodology for Planning Planetary-Rover Operations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Powell, Mark; Norris, Jeffrey; Fox, Jason; Rabe, Kenneth; Shu, I-Hsiang

2007-01-01

A document describes a methodology for utilizing image data downlinked from cameras aboard a robotic ground vehicle (rover) on a remote planet for analyzing and planning operations of the vehicle and of any associated spacecraft. Traditionally, the cataloging and presentation of large numbers of downlinked planetary-exploration images have been done by use of two organizational methods: temporal organization and correlation between activity plans and images. In contrast, the present methodology involves spatial indexing of image data by use of the computational discipline of geographic information systems (GIS), which has been maturing in terrestrial applications for decades, but, until now, has not been widely used in support of exploration of remote planets. The use of GIS to catalog data products for analysis is intended to increase efficiency and effectiveness in planning rover operations, just as GIS has proven to be a source of powerful computational tools in such terrestrial endeavors as law enforcement, military strategic planning, surveying, political science, and epidemiology. The use of GIS also satisfies the need for a map-based user interface that is intuitive to rover-activity planners, many of whom are deeply familiar with maps and know how to use them effectively in field geology.

Real-time Geographic Information System (GIS) for Monitoring the Area of Potential Water Level Using Rule Based System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anugrah, Wirdah; Suryono; Suseno, Jatmiko Endro

2018-02-01

Management of water resources based on Geographic Information System can provide substantial benefits to water availability settings. Monitoring the potential water level is needed in the development sector, agriculture, energy and others. In this research is developed water resource information system using real-time Geographic Information System concept for monitoring the potential water level of web based area by applying rule based system method. GIS consists of hardware, software, and database. Based on the web-based GIS architecture, this study uses a set of computer that are connected to the network, run on the Apache web server and PHP programming language using MySQL database. The Ultrasound Wireless Sensor System is used as a water level data input. It also includes time and geographic location information. This GIS maps the five sensor locations. GIS is processed through a rule based system to determine the level of potential water level of the area. Water level monitoring information result can be displayed on thematic maps by overlaying more than one layer, and also generating information in the form of tables from the database, as well as graphs are based on the timing of events and the water level values.

Seismic Line Location Map Hot Pot Project, Humboldt County, Nevada 2010

DOE Data Explorer

Lane, Michael

2010-01-01

Seismic Line Location Map Hot Pot Project, Humboldt County, Nevada 2010. ArcGIS map package containing topographic base map, Township and Range layer, Oski BLM and private leases at time of survey, and locations, with selected shot points, of the five seismic lines.

Use of Satellite Remote Sensing Data in the Mapping of Global Landslide Susceptibility

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hong, Yang; Adler, Robert F.; Huffman, George J.

2007-01-01

Satellite remote sensing data has significant potential use in analysis of natural hazards such as landslides. Relying on the recent advances in satellite remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) techniques, this paper aims to map landslide susceptibility over most of the globe using a GIs-based weighted linear combination method. First , six relevant landslide-controlling factors are derived from geospatial remote sensing data and coded into a GIS system. Next, continuous susceptibility values from low to high are assigned to each of the six factors. Second, a continuous scale of a global landslide susceptibility index is derived using GIS weighted linear combination based on each factor's relative significance to the process of landslide occurrence (e.g., slope is the most important factor, soil types and soil texture are also primary-level parameters, while elevation, land cover types, and drainage density are secondary in importance). Finally, the continuous index map is further classified into six susceptibility categories. Results show the hot spots of landslide-prone regions include the Pacific Rim, the Himalayas and South Asia, Rocky Mountains, Appalachian Mountains, Alps, and parts of the Middle East and Africa. India, China, Nepal, Japan, the USA, and Peru are shown to have landslide-prone areas. This first-cut global landslide susceptibility map forms a starting point to provide a global view of landslide risks and may be used in conjunction with satellite-based precipitation information to potentially detect areas with significant landslide potential due to heavy rainfall. 1

Monitoring Environment with GIS for Part of Thiruvallur Town Using Cartosat 1 Stereo, Pan & Resourcesat Liss 4 MSS Merged Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohamed, G. S.; Venkatchalam, R. V.; Ramamurthhy, M.; Gummidipoondi, R. J.; Ramillah, M.

2012-07-01

Thiruvallur town is about 44 km from Chennai in Tamil nadu state of India with a population of 130000 , covering 10.75 sq km area. It is about 2km from Sri Venkateswara College of Engineering and Technology. It was Taluk (Sub Division'.s) head quarters and from 1991 it was upgraded as District head quarters after the formation of Thiruvallur District. With rapid growth of town the Population density of Thiruvallur has increased in the past three decades from 300 persons/sq.km in 1951, to 6000 persons/sq.km in 1981 and now it is 12925 persons/sq.km in 2011. The creation of District administrative collector office, headquarters offices for police, judicial courts and Tamil Nadu and Federal Government development department's offices, establishment of multinationals major industries like Caterpillar, Kingfishers,Hindustan Motors, Mahendra Automobiles, Coco cola, Japanese Glass industry, Korean LOTO etc apart from mushrooming growth of about 41 Engineering, Nursing, Education, Medical, Naval, Arts and Science colleges, International Public schools,Governmentt, Private schools and Polytechnics added to the population of this Town. It is well connected by National Highways and Railways and upgraded as District Municipality. This resulted in urban drainage problem and conversion of Agriculture land and lakes for housing, establishment of major Govt and Private Hospitals including special units for Eye care, Cardiology, and Health Clinics, pharmacies etc. The effect of urbanization on environment of this once silent rural temple town which was supporting intensive agriculture activities , green with paddy fields is studied with high resolution satellite data is know the impact on health and environment changes from 2008 to 2011, using 2.5m resolution PAN stereo data of Cartosat 1 merged with 5.8 m resolution Multi Spectral data of LISS 4 of Resourcesat 1 of Indian Remote sensing satellites and Geo Eye satellite image of 2011 from Google Earth web site for the western part of Thiruvallur Municipality Area between North Western Thiruvallur town from the Temple Tank of Sri Veeraragavasamy temple to junction of National Highways connecting Thiruvallur to Tirupathi and Thiruvallur- Poondi- Uthukottai at the West. These data are used to create environment monitoring GIS to understand the use of High resolution Indian satellite data for local urban environmental planning to manage the health and environmental issues. ARC GIS 10 and Lieca photogrammetry software are used with satellite data to create different layer for creating GIS on urban infrastructure like houses, public buildings, roads, municipal surface drainage net work, underground sewerage drainage net work, drinking water pipe lines net work, landfills, solid waste disposal yards, pumping stations, degraded areas, heath services infrastructure, wet lands , low lying areas with bushes, abandoned lakes which are the breeding grounds for mosquito's in rainy season, etc These layers are correlated with the municipal ward map of this segment of the town. The stereo data of Cartosat 1 is useful for mapping the households, roads, agricultural fields, bushy areas, slopes to map the natural drainage of the area and for delineation of micro watersheds. When the layer of municipal ward maps are integrated with the GIS the drainage, drinking water lines, street names and house numbers etc can be added to the attribute data to make this as a complete Environment management GIS. The use of PAN merged data of Cartosat 1 with LISS 4, MSS Resourcesat 1 in natural colour and it's cost effectiveness is studied to explain the usefulness of creation of Environment Health GIS. The non stereo Geo Eye latest data from Google Earth web site or Cartosat 2 can be used for upgrading the land use changes and identify current environmental as on 2011.The study will provide GIS to monitor environmental issues with multi date large scale data for Thiruvallur Town.

When Informationists Get Involved: the CHICA-GIS Project.

PubMed

Whipple, Elizabeth C; Odell, Jere D; Ralston, Rick K; Liu, Gilbert C

2013-01-01

Child Health Improvement through Computer Automation (CHICA) is a computer decision support system (CDSS) that interfaces with existing electronic medical record systems (EMRS) and delivers "just-in-time" patient-relevant guidelines to physicians during the clinical encounter and accurately captures structured data from all who interact with the system. "Delivering Geospatial Intelligence to Health Care Professionals (CHICA-GIS)" (1R01LM010923-01) expands the medical application of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) by integrating a geographic information system with CHICA. To provide knowledge management support for CHICA-GIS, three informationists at the Indiana University School of Medicine were awarded a supplement from the National Library Medicine. The informationists will enhance CHICA-GIS by: improving the accuracy and accessibility of information, managing and mapping the knowledge which undergirds the CHICA-GIS decision support tool, supporting community engagement and consumer health information outreach, and facilitating the dissemination of new CHICA-GIS research results and services.

Presenting Digital Archives with Historical GIS: Mapping Joseph Needham's Trips in WWII China

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, H.

2017-12-01

Since 2016, select groups of students (aged 14-17) from the Independent School Foundation Academy (ISF), Hong Kong, have been constructing a Historical GIS system for the Needham Research Institute (NRI), Cambridge, UK, during their annual summer school in Cambridge. Students read the diaries and reports of Joseph Needham, the Cambridge scientist who worked in China from 1943 to 1946 as the head of the Sino-British Science Cooperation Office, and mapped out both Needham's itineraries and the location of Chinese scientific institutions he visited. By taking part in this project, students learnt two sets of skills: the historian's skills of reading and analyzing primary sources, and the geographer's skills of creating datasets and maps with a GIS software. This project will be carried on in future years, to gradually include other trips Joseph Needham undertook in China in the second half of the 20th century, thus making an essential contribution to the digitalization and the diffusion of the NRI's archives. As a historical researcher in NRI and an educator, the presenter will offer some reflections on the benefit of historical GIS projects as a venue par excellence for research institutions and schools to join force, enhancing both academic research and teaching with an enlarged social impact.

3D modelling of the Austroalpine-Penninic collisional wedge of the NW Alps: dataset management and preliminary results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monopoli, Bruno; Bistacchi, Andrea; Bertolo, Davide; Dal Piaz, Giovanni; Gouffon, Yves; Massironi, Matteo; Sartori, Mario; Vittorio Dal Piaz, Giorgio

2016-04-01

We know since the beginning of the 20th century, thanks to mapping and structural studies by the Italian Regio Servizio Geologico (Franchi et al., 1908) and Argand's work (1909; 1911; 1916), that the Austroalpine-Penninic collisional wedge of the NW Alps is spectacularly exposed across the Aosta Valley and Valais ranges (Italy and Switzerland). In the 150th anniversary of the first ascent to Ruskin's "most noble cliff in Europe" - the Cervino/Matterhorn (Whymper, July 14th 1865), first described in a geological profile by Giordano (1869) and in a detailed map by Gerlach (1869; 1871), we have seen the conclusion of very detailed mapping projects carried out in the last years over the two regions, with collaborative efforts across the Italy-Switzerland border, constellated by 4000 m-high peaks. These projects have pictured with an unprecedented detail (up to 1:10.000 scale) the geology of this complex region, resulting from pre-Alpine events, Alpine subduction- and collision-related ductile deformations, and finally late-Alpine brittle deformations from the Oligocene to the Present. Based on this dataset, we use up-to-date technology and software to undertake a 3D modelling study aimed at: i) reconstructing the 3D geometry of the principal tectonic units, ii) detecting and unravelling problems and incongruences in the 2D geometrical models, iii) modelling the kinematics of the Oligocene and Miocene brittle fault network using 2D and 3D balancing and palinspastic restoration techniques. In this contribution we mainly discuss the prerequisites of the project. Common geomodelling paradigms (mainly developed for the hydrocarbon industry) cannot be applied in this project due to (i) the little scale, (ii) the source of the data - fieldwork, and (iii) the polyphase ductile and brittle deformations in the metamorphic nappe stack. Our goals at the moment are to model the post-metamorphic fault network and the boundaries of the principal tectonic units, which will be considered as a sort of pseudo-stratigraphy, since they are the oldest feature that can be traced continuously at the map scale. For this reason we have developed a set of attributes identifying the tectonic and lithological units (a "legend"), implemented both in the GIS database and in the 3D models, which at the same time is compatible with the data structure of 3D modelling packages like Move and Skua/Gocad, and allows tracing the complex hierarchic classification of the units mapped in the GIS. This allows for the almost automatic and consistent two-way transfer of data between the GIS and geomodelling environments. E.g. results of 3D modelling, which is based on input data originally stored in the GIS, will eventually be transferred back to the GIS. The results of this study, which are preliminarily presented here, will open new opportunities to study the collision- and subduction-related nappe architecture and kinematics with younger deformations removed, and will eventually lead (with additional studies) to a step-by-step retrodeformation supported by modern technologies, following the path traced by Argand at the beginning of the 20th century. Argand E. 1909. L'exploration géologique des Alpes pennines centrales. Bull. Soc. Vaudoise Sci. Nat., 45, 217-276. Argand A. 1911. Les nappes de recouvrement des Alpes pennines et leurs prolongements structuraux. Mat. Carte Géol. Suisse, 31, 25. Argand A. 1916. Sur l'arc des Alpes occidentales. Eclogae Geol. Helv., 14, 145-191. Franchi S., Mattirolo E., Novarese V., Stella A. & Zaccagna D. 1908. Carta geologica delle Alpi Occidentali alla scala 1:400.000. Regio Ufficio Geologico, Roma. Gerlach H. 1869. Die Penninischen Alpen. N. Denkschr. Schweiz. Natf. Ges., 23, 132. Gerlach H. 1871. Das Suedwestliche Wallis. Beitraege Geol. Karte Schweiz, 9, 175. Giordano F. 1869. Sulla orografia e sulla geologica costituzione del Gran Cervino. Atti R. Acc. Sci. Torino, 4, 304-321.

Geologic map of the Nepenthes Planum Region, Mars

USGS Publications Warehouse

Skinner, James A.; Tanaka, Kenneth L.

2018-03-26

This map product contains a map sheet at 1:1,506,000 scale that shows the geology of the Nepenthes Planum region of Mars, which is located between the cratered highlands that dominate the southern hemisphere and the less-cratered sedimentary plains that dominate the northern hemisphere.  The map region contains cone- and mound-shaped landforms as well as lobate materials that are morphologically similar to terrestrial igneous or mud vents and flows. This map is part of an informal series of small-scale (large-area) maps aimed at refining current understanding of the geologic units and structures that make up the highland-to-lowland transition zone. The map base consists of a controlled Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) daytime infrared image mosaic (100 meters per pixel resolution) supplemented by a Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) digital elevation model (463 meters per pixel resolution). The map includes a Description of Map Units and a Correlation of Map Units that describes and correlates units identified across the entire map region. The geologic map was assembled using ArcGIS software by Environmental Systems Research Institute (http://www.esri.com). The ArcGIS project, geodatabase, base map, and all map components are included online as supplemental data.

GIS for livable communities : examination of community perceptions of assets, liabilities and transportation improvements

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2001-09-01

This report examines the role that the built environment plays in the shaping of an individual's sense of community. New tools such as GIS, which can generate detailed spatial maps, can provide information to decision makers and stakeholders about th...

The Pedagogical Benefits of Participatory GIS for Geographic Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sinha, Gaurav; Smucker, Thomas A.; Lovell, Eric J.; Velempini, Kgosietsile; Miller, Samuel A.; Weiner, Daniel; Wangui, Elizabeth Edna

2017-01-01

In this article, participatory geographic information systems GIS (PGIS) is explored and established as a powerful platform for geographic education. PGIS pedagogy can help educators meet diverse learning objectives pertaining to: (1) local knowledge and place-based thinking; (2) community engagement; (3) field mapping with geospatial…

Design and Implementation of Surrounding Transaction Plotting and Management System Based on Google Map API

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Y. B.; Hua, Y. X.; Zhao, J. X.; Guo, S. M.

2013-11-01

With China's rapid economic development and comprehensive national strength growing, Border work has become a long-term and important task in China's diplomatic work. How to implement rapid plotting, real-time sharing and mapping surrounding affairs has taken great significance for government policy makers and diplomatic staff. However, at present the already exists Boundary information system are mainly have problems of Geospatial data update is heavily workload, plotting tools are in a state of serious lack of, Geographic events are difficult to share, this phenomenon has seriously hampered the smooth development of the border task. The development and progress of Geographic information system technology especially the development of Web GIS offers the possibility to solve the above problems, this paper adopts four layers of B/S architecture, with the support of Google maps service, uses the free API which is offered by Google maps and its features of openness, ease of use, sharing characteristics, highresolution images to design and implement the surrounding transaction plotting and management system based on the web development technology of ASP.NET, C#, Ajax. The system can provide decision support for government policy makers as well as diplomatic staff's real-time plotting and sharing of surrounding information. The practice has proved that the system has good usability and strong real-time.

Integrating Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Applications into Business Courses Using Online Business Geographics Modules

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Miller, Fred; Mangold, W. Glynn; Holmes, Terry

2006-01-01

Although the value of geographic information systems (GIS) technologies is recognized by practitioners and educators alike, GIS instruction has yet to make significant inroads into business curricula. In this article, the authors discuss the constraints of integrating GIS tools into business education. They develop a prototype module for…

Using Geo-Spatial Technologies for Field Applications in Higher Geography Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karatepe, Akif

2012-01-01

Today's important geo-spatial technologies, GIS (Geographic Information Systems), GPS (Global Positioning Systems) and Google Earth have been widely used in geography education. Transferring spatially oriented data taken by GPS to the GIS and Google Earth has provided great benefits in terms of showing the usage of spatial technologies for field…

Creating Hybrid Learning Experiences in Robotics: Implications for Supporting Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frerichs, Saundra Wever; Barker, Bradley; Morgan, Kathy; Patent-Nygren, Megan; Rezac, Micaela

2012-01-01

Geospatial and Robotics Technologies for the 21st Century (GEAR-Tech-21), teaches science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through robotics, global positioning systems (GPS), and geographic information systems (GIS) activities for youth in grades 5-8. Participants use a robotics kit, handheld GPS devices, and GIS technology to…

Old maps in the GIS and Internet environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Křováková, K.; Brůna, V.; Pacina, J.

2009-04-01

Old maps are moreover used as data layers in GIS environment, both in raster or vector form. By comparing data from several time periods we can identify the main trends in landscape development and its spatial structure. The Laboratory of geoinformatics at Jan Evangelista Purkyně University, Czech republic is working on several projects concerned about analysis and visualization of old maps. On the poster are presented results of some of the projects solved at the laboratory. One of the most successful project is the web-application http://oldmaps.geolab.cz - where are online presented old maps from the region of Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia. On this server are accessible maps of the 1st, 2nd and partially 3rd military mapping, Müller's map of Bohemia and a part of survey operator of Stabile cadastre. On the poster are as well presented results from the Historical atlas of Czech towns and results from project solved for the National Park of Šumava in the area of Chlum.

Spatial Relation Predicates in Topographic Feature Semantics

USGS Publications Warehouse

Varanka, Dalia E.; Caro, Holly K.

2013-01-01

Topographic data are designed and widely used for base maps of diverse applications, yet the power of these information sources largely relies on the interpretive skills of map readers and relational database expert users once the data are in map or geographic information system (GIS) form. Advances in geospatial semantic technology offer data model alternatives for explicating concepts and articulating complex data queries and statements. To understand and enrich the vocabulary of topographic feature properties for semantic technology, English language spatial relation predicates were analyzed in three standard topographic feature glossaries. The analytical approach drew from disciplinary concepts in geography, linguistics, and information science. Five major classes of spatial relation predicates were identified from the analysis; representations for most of these are not widely available. The classes are: part-whole (which are commonly modeled throughout semantic and linked-data networks), geometric, processes, human intention, and spatial prepositions. These are commonly found in the ‘real world’ and support the environmental science basis for digital topographical mapping. The spatial relation concepts are based on sets of relation terms presented in this chapter, though these lists are not prescriptive or exhaustive. The results of this study make explicit the concepts forming a broad set of spatial relation expressions, which in turn form the basis for expanding the range of possible queries for topographical data analysis and mapping.

Exchanging the Context between OGC Geospatial Web clients and GIS applications using Atom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maso, Joan; Díaz, Paula; Riverola, Anna; Pons, Xavier

2013-04-01

Currently, the discovery and sharing of geospatial information over the web still presents difficulties. News distribution through website content was simplified by the use of Really Simple Syndication (RSS) and Atom syndication formats. This communication exposes an extension of Atom to redistribute references to geospatial information in a Spatial Data Infrastructure distributed environment. A geospatial client can save the status of an application that involves several OGC services of different kind and direct data and share this status with other users that need the same information and use different client vendor products in an interoperable way. The extensibility of the Atom format was essential to define a format that could be used in RSS enabled web browser, Mass Market map viewers and emerging geospatial enable integrated clients that support Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) services. Since OWS Context has been designed as an Atom extension, it is possible to see the document in common places where Atom documents are valid. Internet web browsers are able to present the document as a list of items with title, abstract, time, description and downloading features. OWS Context uses GeoRSS so that, the document can be to be interpreted by both Google maps and Bing Maps as items that have the extent represented in a dynamic map. Another way to explode a OWS Context is to develop an XSLT to transform the Atom feed into an HTML5 document that shows the exact status of the client view window that saved the context document. To accomplish so, we use the width and height of the client window, and the extent of the view in world (geographic) coordinates in order to calculate the scale of the map. Then, we can mix elements in world coordinates (such as CF-NetCDF files or GML) with elements in pixel coordinates (such as WMS maps, WMTS tiles and direct SVG content). A smarter map browser application called MiraMon Map Browser is able to write a context document and read it again to recover the context of the previous view or load a context generated by another application. The possibility to store direct links to direct files in OWS Context is particularly interesting for GIS desktop solutions. This communication also presents the development made in the MiraMon desktop GIS solution to include OWS Context. MiraMon software is able to deal either with local files, web services and database connections. As in any other GIS solution, MiraMon team designed its own file (MiraMon Map MMM) for storing and sharing the status of a GIS session. The new OWS Context format is now adopted as an interoperable substitution of the MMM. The extensibility of the format makes it possible to map concepts in the MMM to current OWS Context elements (such as titles, data links, extent, etc) and to generate new elements that are able to include all extra metadata not currently covered by OWS Context. These developments were done in the nine edition of the OpenGIS Web Services Interoperability Experiment (OWS-9) and are demonstrated in this communication.

GIS data for the Seaside, Oregon, Tsunami Pilot Study to modernize FEMA flood hazard maps

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wong, Florence L.; Venturato, Angie J.; Geist, Eric L.

2007-01-01

A Tsunami Pilot Study was conducted for the area surrounding the coastal town of Seaside, Oregon, as part of the Federal Emergency Management's (FEMA) Flood Insurance Rate Map Modernization Program (Tsunami Pilot Study Working Group, 2006). The Cascadia subduction zone extends from Cape Mendocino, California, to Vancouver Island, Canada. The Seaside area was chosen because it is typical of many coastal communities subject to tsunamis generated by far- and near-field (Cascadia) earthquakes. Two goals of the pilot study were to develop probabilistic 100-year and 500-year tsunami inundation maps using Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Analysis (PTHA) and to provide recommendations for improving tsunami hazard assessment guidelines for FEMA and state and local agencies. The study was an interagency effort by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Geological Survey, and FEMA, in collaboration with the University of Southern California, Middle East Technical University, Portland State University, Horning Geoscience, Northwest Hydraulics Consultants, and the Oregon Department of Geological and Mineral Industries. The pilot study model data and results are published separately as a geographic information systems (GIS) data report (Wong and others, 2006). The flood maps and GIS data are briefly described here.

Studying of Forests Potentials for Introducing of Mediterranean Industrial Woody Species to Desertification Combating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mahdavi Najafabadi, R.; Khajeddin, S. J.; Sofyanian, A. R.; Karimzadeh, H. R.; Rezaei, M.

2009-04-01

Most of arid and semiarid parts of the world suffer from great lack of forest land. Therefore taking a good care of these forest lands quantity and quality and control of renewable natural resources is very important. Zagroass forests are located in semiarid parts of Iran. The main purpose of this research is to determine the potential habitat of forest olive for Chaharmahal va Bakhtiary using GIS. This province has a total area of 1653300 hectars. The main steps of this project are as follows: collecting data and maps, digitizing topographic maps with scale of 1:25000, and developing maps of slope, elevation levels, aspect, climatic classification. Regretion analysis was performed on the climatic data and the gradian equations were developed with a high R2 value. Using these equations the following maps were developed. For the whole province: isothermal, isoheytal, abs. max isothermal, relative humidity relative humidity of dry months. Soil maps were also digitized and the information system suitable for this study was developed. Using this bank the following layers were made: land units, soil depth, two soil textures, EC, pH, CaCo3. The following layers were made using digitized data, land use hydraulic network, lake and marsh land. Considering ecological needs of olive and extracting them from all diferent layers using boolean method. The layers showing suitable locations for planting olive(olea europea) was made. One of these maps includes all types of soils suitable for planting olive and the other excludes silty clay loam soils which are not so suitable. The total area achived was 9500 hectars in the whole province and the area excluding silty clay loam soils was determined to be 900 hectars. Using RS information and GIS technology in these types of projects can increase accuracy specialy including some more layers is recommended.

Using GIS for spatial analysis of rectal lesions in the human body.

PubMed

Garb, Jane L; Ganai, Sabha; Skinner, Ric; Boyd, Christopher S; Wait, Richard B

2007-03-15

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been used in a wide variety of applications to integrate data and explore the spatial relationship of geographic features. Traditionally this has referred to features on the surface of the earth. However, it is possible to apply GIS in medicine, at the scale of the human body, to visualize and analyze anatomic and clinical features. In the present study we used GIS to examine the findings of transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM), a minimally-invasive procedure to locate and remove both benign and cancerous lesions of the rectum. Our purpose was to determine whether anatomic features of the human rectum and clinical findings at the time of surgery could be rendered in a GIS and spatially analyzed for their relationship to clinical outcomes. Maps of rectal topology were developed in two and three dimensions. These maps highlight anatomic features of the rectum and the location of lesions found on TEM. Spatial analysis demonstrated a significant relationship between anatomic location of the lesion and procedural failure. This study demonstrates the feasibility of rendering anatomical locations and clinical events in a GIS and its value in clinical research. This allows the visualization and spatial analysis of clinical and pathologic features, increasing our awareness of the relationship between anatomic features and clinical outcomes as well as enhancing our understanding and management of this disease process.

Using GIS for spatial analysis of rectal lesions in the human body

PubMed Central

Garb, Jane L; Ganai, Sabha; Skinner, Ric; Boyd, Christopher S; Wait, Richard B

2007-01-01

Background Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been used in a wide variety of applications to integrate data and explore the spatial relationship of geographic features. Traditionally this has referred to features on the surface of the earth. However, it is possible to apply GIS in medicine, at the scale of the human body, to visualize and analyze anatomic and clinical features. In the present study we used GIS to examine the findings of transanal endoscopic microsurgery (TEM), a minimally-invasive procedure to locate and remove both benign and cancerous lesions of the rectum. Our purpose was to determine whether anatomic features of the human rectum and clinical findings at the time of surgery could be rendered in a GIS and spatially analyzed for their relationship to clinical outcomes. Results Maps of rectal topology were developed in two and three dimensions. These maps highlight anatomic features of the rectum and the location of lesions found on TEM. Spatial analysis demonstrated a significant relationship between anatomic location of the lesion and procedural failure. Conclusion This study demonstrates the feasibility of rendering anatomical locations and clinical events in a GIS and its value in clinical research. This allows the visualization and spatial analysis of clinical and pathologic features, increasing our awareness of the relationship between anatomic features and clinical outcomes as well as enhancing our understanding and management of this disease process. PMID:17362510

Proceedings of the U.S. Geological Survey Fourth Biennial Geographic Information Science Workshop: Denver, Colorado, April 23-27, 2001

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sieverling, Jennifer B.; Char, Stephen J.; San Juan, Carma A.

2005-01-01

Introduction: The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Fourth Biennial Geographic Information Science (GIS) Workshop (USGS-GIS 2001) was held April 23-27, 2001, at the Denver Federal Center in Denver, Colorado. The workshop provided an environment for participants to improve their knowledge about GIS and GIS-related applications that are used within the USGS. Two major topics of USGS-GIS 2001 were the application of GIS technology to interdisciplinary science and the distribution and sharing of USGS GIS products. Additionally, several presentations included GIS technology and tools, project applications of GIS, and GIS data management. USGS-GIS 2001 included user and vendor presentations, demonstrations, and hands-on technical workshops. Presentation abstracts that were submitted for publication are included in these proceedings. The keynote speaker was Karen Siderelis, the USGS Associate Director for Information (Geographic Information Officer). In addition to the USGS, other Federal agencies, GIS-related companies, and university researchers presented lectures or demonstrations or conducted hands-on sessions. USGS employees and contractors from every discipline and region attended the workshop. To facilitate the interaction between the Federal agencies, each of the presenting Federal agencies was invited to send a representative to the workshop. One of the most beneficial activities of USGS-GIS 2001, as identified by an informal poll of attendees, was the Monday evening poster session in which more than 75 poster presentations gave attendees a chance to learn of work being performed throughout the USGS. A feature new to USGS-GIS 2001 was internet participation of USGS personnel through cyber seminars of the morning plenary sessions.

Haudenosaunee Territory for Consultation Purposes (EPA.TRIBCONSULTBND_R2)

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Layer for displaying areas in New York State that are of interest to Region 2 Haudenosaunee tribes for consultation on environmental issues. The boundaries are based on a hard copy map provided by Janice Whitney of R2/DEPP. See the following URLs for scans of source maps: http://r2quickplace1.r02.epa.gov/QuickPlace/r2gis/Main.nsf/$defaultview/50AA19DAB434F06685257154004F8180/$File/morgan-map.gif?OpenElementhttp://r2quickplace1.r02.epa.gov/QuickPlace/r2gis/Main.nsf/$defaultview/50AA19DAB434F06685257154004F8180/$File/indiannation_land_claim_areas_time_life.jpg?OpenElement

USING GIS AND AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY TO DETERMINE A HISTORICAL IMPERVIOUS SURFACE/STREAMFLOW RELATIONSHIP

EPA Science Inventory

Impervious surfaces are a leading contributor to non-point-source water pollution in urban watersheds. These surfaces include such features as roads, parking lots, rooftops and driveways. Arcview GIS and the Image Analysis extension have been utilized to geo-register and map imp...

Representing Historical Knowledge in Geographic Information Systems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grossner, Karl Eric

2010-01-01

A growing number of historical scholars in social science and humanities fields are using geographic information systems (GIS) to help investigate spatial questions and map their findings. The nature of historical data and historiographic practices present several challenges in using GIS that have been addressed only partially to date. For…

Using Web GIS for Public Health Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reed, Rajika E.; Bodzin, Alec M.

2016-01-01

An interdisciplinary curriculum unit that used Web GIS mapping to investigate malaria disease patterns and spread in relation to the environment for a high school Advanced Placement Environmental Science course was developed. A feasibility study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of the unit to promote geospatial thinking and reasoning…

Development of ground-water vulnerability database for the U.S. Environmental protection agency's hazard ranking system using a geographic information system

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clarke, John S.; Sorensen, Jerry W.; Strickland, Henry G.; Collins, George

1992-01-01

Geographic information system (GIS) methods were applied to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) hazard ranking system (HRS) to evaluate the vulnerability of ground water to contamination from actual or potential releases of hazardous materials from waste-disposal sites. Computerized maps of four factors influencing ground-water vulnerability - hydraulic conductivity, sorptive capacity, depth to water, and net precipitation - were derived for the Southeastern United States from digitized copies of published maps and from computerized databases, including the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) national water information system. To test the accuracy of the derived data coverages used to assess ground-water vulnerability, GIS-derived values for hydraulic conductivity, depth to water, and net precipitation were compared to corresponding values assigned by EPA's field investigation teams (FIT) at 28 hazardous waste sites. For each factor, site data were divided into three physiographic groupings: (1) Coastal Plain, (2) Valley and Ridge-Interior Low Plateaus, and (3) Piedmont-Blue Ridge. The best correlation between the paired data sets was for the net precipitation factor, where most GIS-derived values were within 0 to 40% of the FIT data, and 79% were within the same HRS scoring range. For the hydraulic conductivity factor, the best correlation between GIS and FIT data was for values derived from a published surficial deposits map, where most of the values were within one order of magnitude of the FIT data, and on the average were within 1.24 orders of magnitude of the FIT data. For this map, the best match between data sets was in the Coastal Plain province, where the difference in order to magnitude averaged 0.92. For the depth-to-water factor, most of the GIS derived values were within 51 to 100% of the FIT data, and only 44 to 50% of the sites were within a common scoring range. The best correlation for depth to water was in the Coastal Plain where GIS derived values were within 8 to 100% of the FIT data.

Data in the Classroom: New Tools for Engaging Students with Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dean, A.; Pisut, D.

2017-12-01

The ability to understand and analyze data effectively can increase students ability to understand current and historical global change. Since 2009, NOAA Data in the Classroom Project has been offering formal education resources and tools aimed at helping teachers to build data and environmental literacy in their classrooms. Currently, NOAA is modernizing its Data in the Classroom resources using a web application within Esri's web-based GIS platform, Story Maps. Story Maps have been used for a wide variety of purposes, including teaching and instruction, for more than a decade. This technology can help to engage students in a story, like El Niño, while harnessing the power of data - using maps, data visualizations and data query tools. The aim is to create an effective education tool that allows students access to user-friendly, relevant data sets from NOAA, ultimately providing the opportunity to explore dynamic Earth processes and understand the impact of environmental events on a regional or global scale. This presentation will include demonstrations of the recently launched web-based curricular modules, highlighting the Esri web technology used to build and distribute each module and the interactive data tools that are unique to this project.

7th IGRSM International Remote Sensing & GIS Conference and Exhibition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shariff, Abdul Rashid Mohamed

2014-06-01

IGRSM This proceedings consists of the peer-reviewed papers from the 7th IGRSM International Conference and Exhibition on Remote Sensing & GIS (IGRSM 2014), which was held on 21-22 April 2014 at Berjaya Times Square Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The conference, with the theme Geospatial Innovation for Nation Building was aimed at disseminating knowledge, and sharing expertise and experiences in geospatial sciences in all aspects of applications. It also aimed to build linkages between local and international professionals in this field with industries. Highlights of the conference included: Officiation by Y B Datuk Dr Abu Bakar bin Mohamad Diah, Deputy Minister of Minister of Science, Technology & Innovation Keynote presentations by: Associate Professor Dr Francis Harvey, Chair of the Geographic Information Science Commission at the International Geographical Union (IGU) and Director of U-Spatial, University of Minnesota, US: The Next Age of Discovery and a Future in a Post-GIS World. Professor Dr Naoshi Kondo, Bio-Sensing Engineering, University of Kyoto, Japan: Mobile Fruit Grading Machine for Precision Agriculture. Datuk Ir Hj Ahmad Jamalluddin bin Shaaban, Director-General, National Hydraulic Research Institute of Malaysia (NAHRIM), Malaysia: Remote Sensing & GIS in Climate Change Analyses. Oral and poster presentations from 69 speakers, from both Malaysia (35) and abroad (34), covering areas of water resources management, urban sprawl & social mobility, agriculture, land use/cover mapping, infrastructure planning, disaster management, technology trends, environmental monitoring, atmospheric/temperature monitoring, and space applications for the environment. Post-conference workshops on: Space Applications for Environment (SAFE), which was be organised by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Global Positioning System (GPS) Receiver Evaluation Using GPS Simulation, which was be organised by the Science & Technology Research Institute for Defence (STRIDE), and sponsored by RFI Technologies Sdn. Bhd. and Aeroflex Inc. Two awards were presented by Dr Noordin Ahmad, Director-General of the National Space Agency during the conference's closing ceremony: Best Paper Award: Dr Rizatus Shofiyati, Indonesian Center for Agricultural Land Resources Research and Development (ICALRD), Indonesia: Indonesian Drought Monitoring from Space. A Report of SAFE Activity: Assessment of Drought Impact on Rice Production in Indonesia by Satellite Remote Sensing and Dissemination with Web-GIS Best Student Paper Award: Rosnani Rahman, Space Science Centre (ANGKASA), Institute of Climate Change, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Malaysia: Monitoring the Variability of Precipitable Water Vapor Over the Klang Valley, Malaysia During Flash Flood The success of the IGRSM 2014 was due to commitments of many: authors, keynote speakers, session chairpersons, the organising and technical programme committees, student volunteers from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), and many others of various roles. We acknowledge the sponsors of IGRSM 2014, namely Antaragrafik Systems Sdn. Bhd. and Geospatial Media and Communications Sdn. Bhd. We also thank all exhibitors and contributors: E J Motiwalla, Fajar Saintifik Sdn. Bhd., Bandwork GPS Solutions Sdn. Bhd., Tenaga Nasional Bhd., TSKAY Technology Sdn. Bhd., Geo Spatial Solutions Sdn. Bhd. and Accutac Sdn. Bhd. Associate Professor Sr Dr Abdul Rashid Mohamed Shariff Chairman 7th IGRSM International Remote Sensing & GIS Conference and Exhibition (IGRSM2014) President Institution of Geospatial and Remote Sensing Malaysia (IGRSM), 2012-2014

Combining global positioning system and accelerometer data to determine the locations of physical activity in children.

PubMed

Oreskovic, Nicolas M; Blossom, Jeff; Field, Alison E; Chiang, Sylvia R; Winickoff, Jonathan P; Kleinman, Ronald E

2012-05-01

National trends indicate that children and adolescents are not achieving sufficient levels of physical activity. Combining global positioning system (GPS) technology with accelerometers has the potential to provide an objective determination in locations where youth engage in physical activity. The aim of this study was to identify the optimal methods for collecting combined accelerometer and GPS data in youth, to best locate where children spend time and are physically active. A convenience sample of 24 mid-school children in Massachusetts was included. Accelerometers and GPS units were used to quantify and locate childhood physical activity over 5 weekdays and 2 weekend days. Accelerometer and GPS data were joined by time and mapped with a geographical information system (GIS) using ArcGIS software. Data were collected in winter, spring, summer in 2009-2010, collecting a total of 26,406 matched datapoints overall. Matched data yield was low (19.1% total), regardless of season (winter, 12.8%; spring, 30.1%; summer, 14.3%). Teacher-provided, pre-charged equipment yielded the most matched (30.1%; range: 10.1-52.3%) and greatest average days (6.1 days) of data. Across all seasons, children spent most of their time at home. Outdoor use patterns appeared to vary by season, with street use increasing in spring, and park and playground use increasing in summer. Children spent equal amounts of physical activity time at home and walking in the streets. Overall, the various methods for combining GPS and accelerometer data provided similarly low amounts of combined data. No combined GPS and accelerometer data collection method proved superior in every data return category, but use of GIS to map joined accelerometer and GPS data can demarcate childhood physical activity locations.

Applications of geographic information systems (GIS) for transportation and climate change

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2011-08-31

This report describes the current practice and application of GIS technologies for integrating climate change into the transportation decision-making process. It examines how select state, regional, and local agencies are using GIS to analyze, mitiga...

GIS for environmental stewardship and streamlining: an overview of state DOT practices

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2005-01-31

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) supports the adoption and development of Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies to promote environmental streamlining and stewardship (referred to as GIS4EST). While several States have already appl...

Small Core, Big Network: A Comprehensive Approach to GIS Teaching Practice Based on Digital Three-Dimensional Campus Reconstruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheng, Liang; Zhang, Wen; Wang, Jiechen; Li, Manchun; Zhong, Lishan

2014-01-01

Geographic information science (GIS) features a wide range of disciplines and has broad applicability. Challenges associated with rapidly developing GIS technology and the currently limited teaching and practice materials hinder universities from cultivating highly skilled GIS graduates. Based on the idea of "small core, big network," a…

Designing a Structured and Interactive Learning Environment Based on GIS for Secondary Geography Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Suxia; Zhu, Xuan

2008-01-01

Geographic information systems (GIS) are computer-based tools for geographic data analysis and spatial visualization. They have become one of the information and communications technologies for education at all levels. This article reviews the current status of GIS in schools, analyzes the requirements of a GIS-based learning environment from…

Applications and issues of GIS as tool for civil engineering modeling

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miles, S.B.; Ho, C.L.

1999-01-01

A tool that has proliferated within civil engineering in recent years is geographic information systems (GIS). The goal of a tool is to supplement ability and knowledge that already exists, not to serve as a replacement for that which is lacking. To secure the benefits and avoid misuse of a burgeoning tool, engineers must understand the limitations, alternatives, and context of the tool. The common benefits of using GIS as a supplement to engineering modeling are summarized. Several brief case studies of GIS modeling applications are taken from popular civil engineering literature to demonstrate the wide use and varied implementation of GIS across the discipline. Drawing from the case studies, limitations regarding traditional GIS data models find the implementation of civil engineering models within current GIS are identified and countered by discussing the direction of the next generation of GIS. The paper concludes by highlighting the potential for the misuse of GIS in the context of engineering modeling and suggests that this potential can be reduced through education and awareness. The goal of this paper is to promote awareness of the issues related to GIS-based modeling and to assist in the formulation of questions regarding the application of current GIS. The technology has experienced much publicity of late, with many engineers being perhaps too excited about the usefulness of current GIS. An undoubtedly beneficial side effect of this, however, is that engineers are becoming more aware of GIS and, hopefully, the associated subtleties. Civil engineers must stay informed of GIS issues and progress, but more importantly, civil engineers must inform the GIS community to direct the technology development optimally.

Earth observation in support of malaria control and epidemiology: MALAREO monitoring approaches.

PubMed

Franke, Jonas; Gebreslasie, Michael; Bauwens, Ides; Deleu, Julie; Siegert, Florian

2015-06-03

Malaria affects about half of the world's population, with the vast majority of cases occuring in Africa. National malaria control programmes aim to reduce the burden of malaria and its negative, socioeconomic effects by using various control strategies (e.g. vector control, environmental management and case tracking). Vector control is the most effective transmission prevention strategy, while environmental factors are the key parameters affecting transmission. Geographic information systems (GIS), earth observation (EO) and spatial modelling are increasingly being recognised as valuable tools for effective management and malaria vector control. Issues previously inhibiting the use of EO in epidemiology and malaria control such as poor satellite sensor performance, high costs and long turnaround times, have since been resolved through modern technology. The core goal of this study was to develop and implement the capabilities of EO data for national malaria control programmes in South Africa, Swaziland and Mozambique. High- and very high resolution (HR and VHR) land cover and wetland maps were generated for the identification of potential vector habitats and human activities, as well as geoinformation on distance to wetlands for malaria risk modelling, population density maps, habitat foci maps and VHR household maps. These products were further used for modelling malaria incidence and the analysis of environmental factors that favour vector breeding. Geoproducts were also transferred to the staff of national malaria control programmes in seven African countries to demonstrate how EO data and GIS can support vector control strategy planning and monitoring. The transferred EO products support better epidemiological understanding of environmental factors related to malaria transmission, and allow for spatio-temporal targeting of malaria control interventions, thereby improving the cost-effectiveness of interventions.

Delineation of ground water potential zones using GIS and remote sensing - A case study from midland region of Vamanapuram river basin, Kerala, India

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Prasad, Geena; Vinod P., G.; John, Shaleena Elizabeth

2018-04-01

In a highly rugged terrain, shielded by hard crystalline rocks like that of Kerala, locating potential zones of groundwater is found to be an unenviable task. Remote sensing and Geographical information system technologies have been attempted widely to delineate the potential regions in such terrain. Geographical information system tool has been used for delineation of groundwater prospect zones in midland physiographic zone (30-200m) of Vamanapuram river basin. The terrain variables are generated using satellite imageries, SRTM DEM data of 30m resolution and SOI toposheets. The groundwater prospect zones were delineated through the integration of the reclassified raster map layers of geomorphology, slope percent, geology, land use / land cover and soil texture using the weighted overlay analysis in the GIS platform. The groundwater prospects in the study area were grouped into five classes and their distribution are; `very high/high' (8.79%), `moderate' (39.08%), and `very low / low' (52.01%). The study result of the area has been validated with water level data of dug wells and bore wells of the area. The spatial distribution map of the water level of the region is overlaid on groundwater prospect map and shows a positive correlation i.e., the water level at shallow depth in higher prospect zones and at deeper depth in poor to very poor zones. The Groundwater prospect map of midland region of Vamanapuram river basin can be used as base level information which can be further investigated with geophysical methods to locate potential well sites for the execution of water supply schemes.

Remote sensing and GIS for land use/cover mapping and integrated land management: case from the middle Ganga plain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, R. B.; Kumar, Dilip

2012-06-01

In India, land resources have reached a critical stage due to the rapidly growing population. This challenge requires an integrated approach toward harnessing land resources, while taking into account the vulnerable environmental conditions. Remote sensing and Geographical Information System (GIS) based technologies may be applied to an area in order to generate a sustainable development plan that is optimally suited to the terrain and to the productive potential of the local resources. The present study area is a part of the middle Ganga plain, known as Son-Karamnasa interfluve, in India. Alternative land use systems and the integration of livestock enterprises with the agricultural system have been suggested for land resources management. The objective of this paper is to prepare a land resource development plan in order to increase the productivity of land for sustainable development. The present study will contribute necessary input for policy makers to improve the socio-economic and environmental conditions of the region.

A remote sensing and geographic information system approach to sampling malaria vector habitats in Chiapas, Mexico

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beck, L.; Wood, B.; Whitney, S.; Rossi, R.; Spanner, M.; Rodriguez, M.; Rodriguez-Ramirez, A.; Salute, J.; Legters, L.; Roberts, D.; Rejmankova, E.; Washino, R.

1993-08-01

This paper describes a procedure whereby remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) technologies are used in a sample design to study the habitat of Anopheles albimanus, one of the principle vectors of malaria in Central America. This procedure incorporates Landsat-derived land cover maps with digital elevation and road network data to identify a random selection of larval habitats accessible for field sampling. At the conclusion of the sampling season, the larval counts will be used to determine habitat productivity, and then integrated with information on human settlement to assess where people are at high risk of malaria. This aproach would be appropriate in areas where land cover information is lacking and problems of access constrain field sampling. The use of a GIS also permits other data (such as insecticide spraying data) to the incorporated in the sample design as they arise. This approach would also be pertinent for other tropical vector-borne diseases, particularly where human activities impact disease vector habitat.

Evolving Technology, Shifting Expectations: Cultivating Pedagogy for a Rapidly Changing GIS Landscape

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ricker, Britta; Thatcher, Jim

2017-01-01

As humans and natural processes continuously reshape the surface of the Earth, there is an unceasing need to document and analyze them through the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The public is gaining more access to spatial technologies that were once only available to highly trained professionals. With technological evolution comes a…

Technology Used for Realization of the Reform in Informal Areas.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qirko, K.

2008-12-01

ORGANIZATION OF STRUCTURE AND ADMINISTRATION OF ALUIZNI Law no. 9482, date 03.03.2006 " On legalization, urban planning and integration of unauthorized buildings", entered into force on May 15, 2006. The Council of Ministers, with its decision no.289, date 17.05.2006, established the Agency for the Legalization, Urbanization, and Integration of the Informal Zones/Buildings (ALUIZNI), with its twelve local bodies. ALUIZNI began its activity in reliance to Law no. 9482, date 03.03.2006 " On legalization, urban planning and integration of unauthorized buildings", in July 2006. The administration of this agency was completed during this period and it is composed of; General Directory and twelve regional directories. As of today, this institution has 300 employees. The administrative structure of ALUIZNI is organized to achieve the objectives of the reform and to solve the problems arising during its completion. The following sectors have been established to achieve the objectives: Sector of compensation of owners; sector of cartography, sector of geographic system data elaboration (GIS) and Information Technology; sector of urban planning; sector of registration of legalized properties and Human resource sector. Following this vision, digital air photography of the Republic of Albania is in process of realization, from which we will receive, for the first time, orthophoto and digital map, unique for the entire territory of our country. This cartographic product, will serve to all government institutions and private ones. All other systems, such as; system of territory management; system of property registration ; system of population registration; system of addresses; urban planning studies and systems; definition of boundaries of administrative and touristic zones will be established based on this cartographic system. The cartographic product will be of parameters mentioned below, divided in lots:(2.3 MEuro) 1.Lot I: It includes the urban zone, 1200 km2. It will have a resolution of 8cm pixel and it will be produced as a orthophoto and digital vectorized map. 2. Lot II: It includes the rural zone, 12000km2. Orthophoto, with resolution 8cm pixel, will be produced. 3.Lot III: It includes mountainous zone, 15000km2. We will receive orthophoto, with resolution 30cm pixel. All the technical documentation of the process will be produced in a digital manner, based on the digital map and it will be the main databases. We have established the sector of geographic system data elaboration (GIS) and Information Technology, with the purpose to assure transparency, and correctness to the process, and to assure a permanent useful information for various reasons. (1.1MEuro) GIS is a modern technology, which elaborates and makes connections among different information. The main objective of this sector is the establishment of self declaration databases, with 30 characteristics for each of them and a databases for the process, with 40 characteristics for each property, which includes cartographic, geographic and construction data.

Utilizing GIS to evaluate base schedules in paratransit operations

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1999-02-02

With ready access to street file names and inexpensive GIS software, paratransit systems can take advantage of GIS technology to evaluate base schedules on a regular basis in order to maintain system efficiency at consistently high levels. This proje...

Digital Geological Mapping for Earth Science Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

England, Richard; Smith, Sally; Tate, Nick; Jordan, Colm

2010-05-01

This SPLINT (SPatial Literacy IN Teaching) supported project is developing pedagogies for the introduction of teaching of digital geological mapping to Earth Science students. Traditionally students are taught to make geological maps on a paper basemap with a notebook to record their observations. Learning to use a tablet pc with GIS based software for mapping and data recording requires emphasis on training staff and students in specific GIS and IT skills and beneficial adjustments to the way in which geological data is recorded in the field. A set of learning and teaching materials are under development to support this learning process. Following the release of the British Geological Survey's Sigma software we have been developing generic methodologies for the introduction of digital geological mapping to students that already have experience of mapping by traditional means. The teaching materials introduce the software to the students through a series of structured exercises. The students learn the operation of the software in the laboratory by entering existing observations, preferably data that they have collected. Through this the students benefit from being able to reflect on their previous work, consider how it might be improved and plan new work. Following this they begin fieldwork in small groups using both methods simultaneously. They are able to practise what they have learnt in the classroom and review the differences, advantages and disadvantages of the two methods, while adding to the work that has already been completed. Once the field exercises are completed students use the data that they have collected in the production of high quality map products and are introduced to the use of integrated digital databases which they learn to search and extract information from. The relatively recent development of the technologies which underpin digital mapping also means that many academic staff also require training before they are able to deliver the course materials. Consequently, a set of staff training materials are being developed in parallel to those for the students. These focus on the operation of the software and an introduction to the structure of the exercises. The presentation will review the teaching exercises and student and staff responses to their introduction.