Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Geographic Information
Systems
Marc Albrecht
University of Nebraska at Kearney
Department of Biology
Context: Why GIS?
Many of the issues in our world have a
critical spatial component!
Land management
Property lines, easements, right of ways
Data on land values, taxation, assessment
Business site selection, advertising
Proximity of our land to other facilities
(pollution, hunting, municipal, federal, state)
I dont know whats over that hill is a common
problem. What is adjacent to the land we are using?
The Space on Earth
The Earth is finite!
If not now, within our lifetimes there may be
no natural ecosystems.
Land managers, natural resource workers,
and politicians are and will continue to make
decisions about biological systems.
Good information and tools are needed to do
this.
Enter GIS
A computer-based
tool for holding,
displaying, and
manipulating huge
amounts of spatial
data.
Outline of Presentations
What is GIS? Presentation
Part I: Maps and Mapping
Part II: Some GIS Operations
GIS Resources and Projects Presentation
Part III: Where do I get data?
Part IV: Ongoing Programs, other software
Part V: Project Ideas and Examples
Part I: Map Concepts
What is a map?
What are some properties of maps?
Vector vs. raster: two digital mapping
methods
Maps reflect the databases we create
Mapping the third dimension: examples of
3-D maps
Representing the World:
Projections
3-D to 2-D (at first)
Projections change a round
world into a flat one.
What is in a picture?
Example: The Mercator projection
has straight meridians & parallels
that intersect at right angles, as
opposed to the Robinson projection.
Mercator preserves area only at the
equator and at two standard parallels
equidistant from the equator.
The Mercator projection is often used for
marine navigation as all straight lines on
the map are lines of constant azimuth.
Any one projection cannot
simultaneously preserve all these
qualities of the world: shape, area,
direction, and distance.
Projections and Metadata
There are dozens of types of projects, and about six that are
commonly used.
People choose a projection based on which qualities they most
want to preserve in a map. Sites such as Dr. Danas and
National Geographic discuss projections in more detail
The point is that you need to know where your data (maps)
come from and information about it. This is called METADATA
data about the data. Good metadata includes who collected
the data, when, to what accuracy, how the data are projected,
and the collectors contact information.
You should be a responsible GIS user and keep track of your
metadata!
The Projection Problem
When working with GIS systems you have to know about projections
in general and what projection the different data you are using are in.
This is a metadata issue again.
It is possible to transform data from one projection to another, but is easier
especially when starting out to have the different data layers in same
projection when you obtain them! Agencies are generally helpful about doing
this step for you if asked.
Another Problem are Datums basically mathematical descriptions of
the Earths size and shape. If either the projection or the datums of
your map layers are not identical:
YOUR MAP LAYERS WILL NOT LAY ON TOP OF EACH OTHER,
BUT RATHER BE SHIFTED INTO DIFFERENT AREAS!! This is
embarrassing and frustrating.
This is what happens when
projections mix!
Notice the
boundary lines
do not line up
Points that are
placed on the
wrong
projection will
be misaligned
as well
Raster vs. Vector: types of GIS
map representation
Vector vs. Raster
Two basic ways that spatial data can be
represented
Raster:
Data represented by pixels with values,
creating a grid
Allows certain types of operations not
possible with vector data
Map algebra is possible with multiple
data layers creating index maps
Vector:
Data stored as points, lines, and
polygons
Uses less memory than raster format
Does not loose positional accuracy
How is all this done?
GIS stores data in a
relational database
structure (3-D
spreadsheets)
e.g. employee names linked to
store number, store number
linked to shipment arrival
any data can be linked by a
common attribute to any other
data
Example shown here is a