Introduction to GIS
GIS Cyberinfrastructure Module
Day 1
http://web2.uconn.edu/cyberinfra/module1/outline.html
Course Objectives
1) Become familiar with ArcMap and ArcCatalog interfaces
2) Learn critical basic concepts in GIS, such as data types and
projections
3) Explore a variety of sources where digital GIS data can be
obtained for domestic and international projects (such as climate,
land-use, soils, and species distribution data)
4) Use tools available in ArcMap frequently used by ecologists and
evolutionary biologists to link organismal observations to
environmental data
5) Understand the Geospatial Modeling Environment, which is an R-
based tool developed external to, but used in conjunction with,
ArcMap to accomplish analyses not available in ArcMap
6) Recognize the importance of metadata
Expectations
• Attend all class meetings
• Complete exercises begun in class before
the next class meeting
• Complete assigned homework
Logistics
• Connect to internet
• Computing ArcMap and ArcCatalog
• Create data folder for class on C:\
– Work on same machine/drive each time!
• Download settings (Firefox)
– From the main menu, select Tools Options
General
– Select “Always ask me where to save files”
Basics of GIS
Registered Data Layers
Roads
Towns
Water
Wells
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
GIS Coordinate Systems
A GIS plots cartographic features using a Cartesian
coordinate system that is based on two or three
perpendicular axes. An object can be located in 2-D
space by measuring distances along the X and Y
axes. By adding a third Z axis, objects also can be
located in 3-D space.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Coordinate Systems
X = 750,000
Y = 570,000
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Some Definitions
Projection: a projection is the mathematical
transformation of Earth’s 3-d surface to a 2-d
planar surface (a map)
Datum: a point of reference from which distance
measurements are made (local vs. Earth
centered)
Spatial Reference: includes info on the
projection, projection parameters, ellipsoid,
datum, units of measure, and other
parameters.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Projections: From Spheres to Flat Maps
A paper map and a computer display are 2-D flat surfaces.
We use projections to convert 3-D map data from a
spherical coordinate system to flat 2-D maps.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Example of Two Projections
Mercator Albers Equal Area
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Datum
Coordinates systems used by GISes are referenced to “Real
World” locations. All coordinate systems have an origin or
reference point from which other locations are measured.
This is a datum.
Commonly used datums include
North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27)
North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)
World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84)
These are systems by which geographic (lat/lon) coordinates
can be assigned to places in North America or the world.
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Datum
A point of reference from which positional measurements
are made (local vs. Earth centered)
NAD27 – legacy data
over 50,000 surveying monuments NAD83 – modern data
tied to Meades Ranch, KN; based on based on Geodetic Reference System
Clarke ellipsoid of 1866. of 1980 ellipsoid
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Comparison of NAD27 and NAD83
E=1,000,000 and N=500,00 defined as
Longitude -720 45’
Latitude 400 50’
As established by Conn General Statutes
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Vector Data
X,Y coordinates record map feature locations:
Points (single X,Y coordinate)
Examples: fire hydrants, water wells, utility poles
Lines (ordered set of X,Y coordinates)
Examples: power lines, road centerlines, streams
Polygons (sets of X,Y coordinates that
start and end at the same location)
Examples: parcels, wetlands, flood zones
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Raster Data
Each raster or pixel in this 8-bit
image contains brightness values
from 0 (dark) to 255 (bright) for red,
green and blue colors.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
ArcGIS Spatial Data Formats
• Supported data types:
– Shapefile
– Grid
– Images (MrSID, GeoTiff, IMG, JPEG, etc.)
– Tables
– Coverage
– Geodatabase (not a format but a type of storage)
– CAD
– TIN (Triangular Irregular Network)
– Terrains
Note: Formats in BOLD will be used in the class
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Shapefile
• A Shapefile is actually a set of files that share the
same root name. Together, the set of files contain
data that define a type of geospatial dataset. The
geometric features of a shapefile are represented
by either points, lines or polygons.
4 shapefiles
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Grids
• ESRI Grids are a proprietary raster storage format
• Values may be integer or floating point (decimal)
• Like a shapefile, multiple inter-related files
comprise each Grid raster layer
Imagery
Airborne Scanned
Satellite
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Databases – Tabular Data
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What is ArcGIS Desktop?
• Two applications: ArcMap and ArcCatalog
– ArcMap is the application for viewing and
symbolizing data, performing spatial analyses,
creating / editing data, creating charts and reports
and making publication quality maps for printing
– ArcCatalog is the application for managing
geospatial data (rename, copy, paste, delete),
creating geodatabases and creating metadata
• ArcToolbox is a shared “application” that contains
wizards, scripts, models and tools for data analysis,
conversion, management, etc.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
ArcMap – ArcCatalog – ArcToolbox
ArcCatalog: GUI
Menus
Standard
Toolbar
Explorer-
like
window to
navigate to
folders, etc.
Window that displays folder contents,
Catalog Tree previews datasets and tables and
displays/edits metadata.
Three Ways to View Data
Metadata
Preview
Contents
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Adding Toolbars
ArcCatalog: Connecting to Folder
Connect to Folders that you access frequently so they’ll appear in the top level of the Catalog Tree
Click the Connect
to Folder button to
open a window
where you can
navigate to a folder
that you want listed
in the Catalog
New Catalog
entry
ArcCatalog: Manage Your Data
Windows Explorer
ArcCatalog
Use ArcCatalog to copy, paste, rename, and delete your geographic datasets!!!!
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
ArcToolbox
Toggles window
Tools to perform various types of
spatial analyses are accessed and
initiated through ArcToolbox.
ArcToolbox can be opened from both
ArcMap and ArcCatalog.
Title bar
Map name Program License
ArcMap GUI
Menu bar
Tools toolbar
Standard
toolbar
Table of
Contents
Display Area
Draw toolbar
Status bar
Switch between data view and layout view
Table of Contents – Display Tab
Display Button
Active Data Frame
(in bold text)
Individual Layers
Not Active Data Frame
(in normal text)
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Table of Contents – Display Tab:
Data Organization
Data Frame
Group Layers
Note: Water Resources is
nested inside Base Map
Layers
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Table of Contents – Source Tab
Source Button
Data Frame
Folder Name
Layers
Tables
Folder Name
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Data View
Data View
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Layout View
Layout View
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Standard Toolbar
Toggle Editor Launch
toolbar on / off ArcCatalog
Scale
Undo and Add Data Context Toggle
Redo Button Sensitive ArcToolbox
Buttons Help on / off
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Moving Around the Map
Tools Toolbar
View Fixed Go to
Select Go to X Y
full Zoom in next
extent elements Find
extent and out
Zoom in Pan Identify Measure
Go back to Select
and out
previous features
extent Unselect
features
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Modifying the GUI – Adding Toolbars
Click Mouse
over
Right-clicking “here” also will
open the toolbar pop-up menu
Click on a new toolbar
to add it to the GUI
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Data Frame
• A data frame is a “container” for layers
• ArcMap supports multiple data frames
• Only one data frame can be active
• The active data frame is indicated in
BOLD and is displayed in the data view
• Layers can be dragged between
data frames
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Data Frame Properties: General
• Right-click on a
data frame in the
ToC to open its
Data Frame
Properties window
• Includes coordinate
information and
other properties
that influence all
layers within the
data frame
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Data Frame Properties:
Coordinate System
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layers
A Layer references a geospatial dataset –
shapefile, grid, image, etc. Layers typically
represent a single category of data such as
parcels, wells, roads or soils.
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layer Properties: General
Right-click on a
layer and select
Properties…
from the pop-up
menu to open its
Layer Properties
dialog box
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layer Properties: Source
• A layer references a data source (shapefile, grid,
image, etc.)
• Map documents can lose track of data
when its moved on the computer
• Source tab lets you change the data source
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layer Properties: Symbology
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layer Properties: Fields
Turn on/off
Change numeric
display format
Column heading when
displayed in a table
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Layer Properties: Review
All the parameters entered on all the tabs establish each layer’s properties
• General: Name, description, display scales
• Source: Pathname to the data source
• Selection: Set how to display selected features
• Display: Map tips, scale symbols, transparency, hyperlinks
• Symbology: Methods to classify and symbolize features
• Fields: Primary display field, set aliases, field visibility, formats
• Definition Query: Create a query to subset data
• Label: How to label features, label placement, formats, scales
• Joins & Relates: Establish links to other tables
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
Getting Help
Metadata
Metadata is that component of data which describes it
Date Latitude Longitude Chlor
3/22/91 32.677 -117.896
3/23/91 33.011 -117.193
3/25/91 33.523 -116.328
Chlor (chlorophyll
Spatial Metadata a concentration)
measured in
g/L
Non-spatial or Latitudes and
attributes longitudes were
measured using ...
Components of Data
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
This is the metadata for this
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
This is the metadata for this
Identification_Information
Citation
Citation_Information
Originator: NOAA Coastal Services Center
Publication_Date: 19971131
Title: Hurricane Storm Surge
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: Map
Publication_Information
Publication_Place: Charleston, SC
Publisher: NOAA Coastal Services Center
Larger_Work_Citation
Citation_Information
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ArcGIS Licenses
• ArcView provides comprehensive mapping
and analysis tools along with simple editing
and geoprocessing tools
• ArcEditor includes the full functionality of
ArcView, plus advanced editing capabilities
for coverages and geodatabases
• ArcInfo extends the functionality of both to
include advanced geoprocessing and also
includes the legacy applications for ArcInfo
workstation
Courtesy of: CLEAR GeoSpatial Technologies at Work
