Tribhuvan University

Institute of Engineering (IoE)

Department of Civil Engineering
Pulchowk Campus, Lalitpur

Assignment II of

GIS

Submitted By:- Submitted To:-

Nirgun Sherchan Dr. Manita Timalsina
073 MSGT 811
1. Discuss the basic elements of GIS.

GIS (Geographic Information System) when overlooked as a system consisting of people, data,
processing interface and system can be divided into following basic elements:

a) People: People are the basic and most important element of the GIS as the data, processing
methods and procedures are majorly governed by this component not only this but people
can also overcome the shortcoming of other components of GIS ( data, software, hardware,
and procedure).

b) Data :It is the information that is fed to the system or used in GIS. Datas used in GIS may
be numerical data, vector data, or raster data. Since the data used in GIS is obtained from
numerous sources, affecting the quality of the final output obtained. Demographic data,
satellite images, topographic images, scanned images etc. are the examples of data used in
GIS.

c) Software :It comprises of all softwares used for databases, drawings, statistics, and imaging
along with the GIS package.The functionality of the software used to manage the data and
information determines the type of problem that the GIS may be used to solve. The software
used must match the need and skills of the end user. ArcGIS (ESRI) , ArcView, ENVI
,IDRISI are the few examples of GIS softwares.

d) Hardware : This element defines and determines the processing speed and extent of use of
GIS softwares in addition to the selection of the softwares to be used and the processing
speed, hardwares also affects the types of data that can be incorporated during the course of
processing and data input .

e) Procedures/ Methods of analysis : The procedure used to input analyze and query data
determine the quality and validity of the final result. The procedure used for the analysis or
data quarrying are simple steps which are well defined and consistent methods to produce
correct and reproducible results from GIS system.

2. Describe the various sources of GIS data and methods of GIS data capturing.
GIS data sources are in the form of:
i. Analogue data– They are physical product displaying information visually on paper or film
such as photographs, maps.
ii. Digital data– They are computer readable files such as satellite data.

There are various sources of obtaining these types of data. The sources are maps, aerial
photographs, satellite images, existing tabular data (in analogue or digital format) and field data
(GPS).

A GIS is able to capture these different types of data from various sources. Creating a database
i.e. capturing the data, is the initial and time-consuming stage of a GIS project. Any operation that
converts GIS data into computer-readable form is known as GIS data capturing. Geographic data
can be captured by being downloaded directly into a GIS from sources such as remote-sensing or
GPS data, or it can be digitized, scanned, or keyed in manually from paper maps or photographs.
Methods of GIS data capturing:

a. Photogrammetric Compilation

The primary source used in the process of photogrammetric compilation is aerial photography.
Generally, the process involves using specialized equipment,a stereoplotter) to project
overlapping aerial photos so that a viewer can see a three-dimensional picture of the terrain.

b. Digitizing

A digitizing workstation with a digitizing tablet and cursor is typically used to trace digitize.
Both the tablet and cursor are connected to a computer that controls their functions. Digitizing
involves tracing with a precise cross hair in the tablet and instructing the computer to accept the
location and type of the feature. Separate features may be input into map layers or an attribute
may be attached to identify the feature.

c. Map Scanning

Optical scanning systems automatically capture map features, text and symbols as individual
cells or pixels and produce in raster format. Scanning output files in raster form, usually in one
of several compressed formats (eg. JPEG, TIFF 4) save storage space. Most scanning systems
provide software to convert raster data to vector format that differentiates point, line and area
features. Creating an intelligent GIS database from a scanned map will require vectorising the
raster data and manual entry of attribute data from a scanned annotation.

d. Satellite Data

Earth resources satellites have become a source of huge amounts of data for GIS applications.
The data obtained from satellites are in digital form and can be imported directly into a GIS.
There are numerous satellite data sources such as LANDSAT or SPOT. A new generation of
high-resolution satellite-data, that will increase opportunities and options for GIS database
development, are becoming available from private sources and national governments. These
systems will provide panchromatic(black & white) or multi spectral data in the 1m to 3m ranges
as compared to the 10m to 30m range available from traditional remote sensing satellites.

e. Field data collection

Advances in hardware and software have greatly increased opportunities for capture of GIS data
in the field (e.g. utility sign inventory, property surveys, and land-use inventories). In particular,
electronic survey systems and GPS have revolutionized surveying and field data collection.
Electronic distance measurement services allow for survey. Sophisticated GPS collection units
provide a quick means of capturing the coordinates and attributes of features in the field.
 f. Tabular data entry

Some of the tabular attribute data that are normally in a GIS database exist on maps as
annotation or can be found in paper files. Information from these sources that is required for GIS
applications has to be converted to a digital form through keyboard entry.

3. What are most common digitizing problems?

In GIS digitization is the process of conversion of analog data that can be either harcopy scanned
data or other datas into vector data by tracing the features.During the process the features that are
traced from the maps or images are captured either as point , line or polygon along with spatial
reference. The general problems or errors that can be encountered during the digitizing process
can be listed as :

a) Open polygons (Dangles or dangling nodes): Dangles or dangling nodes are the lines
that are not connected but should be or in other words these are the errors that are likely
to be caused when the polygons does not close i.e an open polygon. With dangling
nodes, gaps occur in the linework where the two lines should be connected.

b) Switchback, Knots and loops: These type of errors are generally caused during
digitization when the user moves the cursor or puck in such a way that the feature
polygon or line) being digitized ends up with extra vertices or nodes such that it creates
unneccesary loops or bends (extra polygons) which are not needed for the final result of
the digitization process.

c) Overshoots and Undershoots: These are the errors encountered during digitization when
the lines digitized doesn’t meet with the line it should intersect with. These type of error
is generally caused due to snap tolerance which is set by digitizer , snap tolerance also
known as snap distance is the measurement of diameter of a circle extending from point
of cursor any nodes of the neighbouring line which when falls in the circle of snap
tolerance will result in automatic snapping to that nearest node. Undershoot and
overshoot generally occurs when the value of the snap tolerance is set too high ot set
too low for the scale being digitized ( when set low or not set undershoot occurs and
when set too high overshoot occurs) .

d) Slivers: Slivers are the errors during digitizing of polygons when two neighbouring
polygons donot meet (gap between the polygons ) or these polygons intersect with each
other, these errors can be eliminated by setting proper parameter for the snap tolerance.

4. Describe the concept and use of raster-based GIS analysis.

In simple words data stored in rectangular matrix, where each cell of the matrix represents certain
information or data. Raster are digital aerial photographs, imagery from satellites, digital pictures
or scanned maps. It may also be understood as pixelated data set in GIS where each pixel contains
information with reference to coordinates. There are raster analytical function that can be
performed on raster data for example:
 a) Local operation: Local function process a grid on a cell by cell basis, i.e. the output
value of each cell depends on the values of corresponding cells in raster input analysis.
The examples of local operations are:

 Arithmetic Operation: Cells or the rectangular matrix grid can undergo arithmetic
operation such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. (When any integer
is decided by zero the corresponding resultant cell be undefined are assigned no data
and no data cells always remain no data in arithmetic operation).

 SELECT

 CON

 TEST

All the above-mentioned function is dependent only on the cell on which the local
operation is to be done and independent of the data of the neighboring cells.

b) Focal operation: Focal operation is also known as neighborhood analysis. In this type of
analysis, the value of cell in the output raster depends upon the value of the
corresponding cell and their neighboring cells in the input raster. The neighborhood for
a cell is generally taken as a 3 x 3 matrix in which the cell itself occupies the center and
is surrounded by the other eight cells. With each cell in the input getting processed, the
neighborhood window keeps moving.

c) Zonal operation: Zonal operations are such that the functions processes grid in such a
manner that cells of same zone are analyzed together. Zone may or may not be
contiguous. The output value for each location depends upon the value of cell at that
location and the association the location has within the zone.

d) Global operation: These functions perform operation based on the input of the entire
grid.

Based on the above-mentioned operations raster-based analysis such as calculation of

distance surfaces and buffers, determination of proximity etc. are done.

5. Write the advantage and disadvantage of vector and raster based GIS.

There are several advantages and disadvantages for using either the vector or raster data model to
store spatial data. These are summarized below

Vector Data:

Advantages :

 Data can be represented at its original resolution and form without generalization.

 Graphic output is usually more aesthetically pleasing (traditional cartographic

representation);

 Since most data, e.g. hard copy maps, is in vector form no data conversion is required.

 Accurate geographic location of data is maintained.

  Allows for efficient encoding of topology, and as a result more efficient operations that
require topological information, e.g. proximity, network analysis.

Disadvantages:

 The location of each vertex needs to be stored explicitly.

 For effective analysis, vector data must be converted into a topological structure. This is
often processing intensive and usually requires extensive data cleaning. As well,
topology is static, and any updating or editing of the vector data requires re-building of
the topology.

 Algorithms for manipulative and analysis functions are complex and may be processing
intensive. Often, this inherently limits the functionality for large data sets, e.g. a large
number of features.

 Continuous data, such as elevation data, is not effectively represented in vector form.
Usually substantial data generalization or interpolation is required for these data layers.

 Spatial analysis and filtering within polygons is impossible

Raster Data

Advantages :

 The geographic location of each cell is implied by its position in the cell matrix.
Accordingly, other than an origin point, e.g. bottom left corner, no geographic
coordinates are stored.
 Due to the nature of the data storage technique data analysis is usually easy to program
and quick to perform.
 The inherent nature of raster maps, e.g. one attribute maps, is ideally suited for
mathematical modeling and quantitative analysis.
 Discrete data, e.g. forestry stands, is accommodated equally well as continuous data,
e.g. elevation data, and facilitates the integrating of the two data types.
 Grid-cell systems are very compatible with raster-based output devices, e.g.
electrostatic plotters, graphic terminals.

Disadvantages:

 The cell size determines the resolution at which the data is represented.;
 It is especially difficult to adequately represent linear features depending on the cell
resolution. Accordingly, network linkages are difficult to establish.
 Processing of associated attribute data may be cumbersome if large amounts of data
exists. Raster maps inherently reflect only one attribute or characteristic for an area.
 Since most input data is in vector form, data must undergo vector-to-raster conversion.
Besides increased processing requirements this may introduce data integrity concerns
due to generalization and choice of inappropriate cell size.
  Most output maps from grid-cell systems do not conform to high-quality cartographic
needs.

6. Describe various methods of preparing spatial data.

Spatial data are the data structure or information about physical objects which can be represented
by numerical values in a geographic coordinate system. For example, if the attribute data consists
of demographic data for any location, then the spatial data must provide at least location
boundaries. The common methods of preparing spatial data are:

a) Manual Digitizing: This is the most common way of preparing spatial data in which
paper-based sources of spatial information such as maps are converted to digital data.
The spatial reference for such analog maps are given through overlaying process where
possible and in absence of an overlying grid system, points are taken from identifiable
location such as street intersections or landmarks. The data is then digitized by tracing
features using puck (a hand-held mouse like device).

The precision of digitized data is represented by RMS error and average error. The
factors contributing to this error can be human error, physical alteration of paper maps
and projection difference.

b) Heads up digitizing: Heads up digitizing or on-screen digitizing involves digitizing

directly on top of orthorectified images (such as satellite image or an aerial
photograph). The feature of interest is then traced from image. The benefit of this over
manual digitizing is that no transformation is needed to convert the data into needed
projection.

c) Coordinate geometry (COGO): A keyboard-based method of spatial data entry which is

most commonly used to enter cadastral or land record data. Since this method uses
actual survey measurements of the property lines to create data base hence is highly
precise. Distances and bearings are entered into GIS from original surveyor plats. The
GIS software build the digital vector file from these values.

d) Geocoding: Similar to coordinate geometry system geocoding is also a keyboard-based

method. Geocoding uses addresses from a flat file (*.dbf, Ms Access data base or excel
spread sheet) to create x, y coordinate interpolated from a geo-codable spatial data base.
The resultant geocoded data base obtained is a point file.

e) Image processing: Spatial data set can also be obtained from digital imagery, commonly
satellite imagery is utilized in a process called supervised classification in which a user
selected a sampling of pixels for which the user knows the type (land use, vegetation
species etc.). Using classification algorithm, remote sensing software such as ERDAS
or ENVI classifies a digital image into these names categories based on sample pixels.
Compared to other methods discussed above supervised classification results in a raster
data set.

7. Describe various types of overlay operation in GIS.

Overlay operations are those operation which involves combining spatial and attributal data from
two or more spatial data layers.In, simple words, it can be understood as stacking the data, and
 looking for where the layers overlap. Overlay operation can be further discussed under following
topics

a) Vector overlay: A vector overlay involves combining of point, line or polygon

geometry and their associated attributes. Here, overlay operation creates a new
geometry and new geospatial data set. Here it should be kept in mind that with certain
overlay operations, very large attribute table may be generated if the overlay operation
involves combination of many layers with each layer containing huge attribute table.
Further, the attribute table may contain duplicate attribute table fields hence care must
be taken while performing overlay operation. Few examples of overlay operations are
clip, intersection, union (clip defines the area for which features will be based on a
‘clipping’ polygon , intersection combines data from two layer for the region where all
data contain data, union includes all data from input layers and no geographic data are
discarded in union operation).

When performing vector overlaying operation the overlaying layers must have same
scale in such cases while performing vector overlaying there exists possibility of
creation of sliver polygons (refer Q.2) .

Advantages of vector overlay :

 Clear, sharp edged criteria ,e.g no building zones in hazard maps.

 Clear, sharp-edged input data.

Disadvantages of vector overlay :

 Vector overlay is more complex , time-consuming and computationally intensive than

raster overlay operation.

b) Raster overlay :

Raster overlay superimposes at least two input raster layers to produce an output layer.
Each cell in the output layer is calculated from the corresponding pixels in the input
layers. To do this, the layers must line up perfectly; they must have the same pixel
resolution and spatial extent. If they do not align, they can be adjusted to fit by the
preprocessing functions. Raster overlay, frequently called map algebra, is based on
calculations which include arithmetic expressions and set and Boolean algebraic
operators to process the input layers to create an output layer. The most common
operators are addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, but other popular
operators include maximum, minimum, average, AND, OR, and NOT. In short, raster
overlay simply uses arithemetic operators to compute the corresponding cells of two or
more input layers together, uses Boolean algebra like AND or OR to find the pixels that
fit a particular query statement, or executes statistical tests like correlation and
regression on the input layers.

8. Briefly describe the raster spatial data model.

Conversion of real world geographical variation into discrete object is done through data model.
Data model works as the linkage between real world domain of geographic data and the
computer representation of these features (for representation of spatial information)
 Data model are two types: vector and raster data model.

Depending on the type of problem that needs to be solved, the type of maps that need to be
made, and the data source, either raster or vector, or a combination of the two can be used. Each
data model has strengths and weaknesses in terms of functionality and representation. As we get
more experience with GIS, we will be able to determine which data type to use for a particular
application.

Raster data model (for spatial information):

Raster data model represent the geographical (Spatial) data in the form of cell or pixel, each cell
is independently addressed with the value of an attribute. Each cell contains a single value and
every location corresponds to a cell. One set of cell and associated value is a LAYER. Raster
model are simple with which spatial analysis is easier and faster. However raster data model
require a hung volume of data to be stored, fitness of data be limited by cell size and output is
less beautiful.

Raster model divide space into uniform cells or pixels and use a 2-D matrix to store sampled
values for each cell. The cell width and height are of a uniform size; however, the cell height
may be different than the cell width. The cells of a raster depict a variety of data, such as light
reflectance captured by a satellite, a photograph's color value, a thematic attribute such as
vegetation type, a surface value, or elevation. Rasters can represent an imaged map, a surface,
an environmental attribute sampled on a grid, or photographs of objects referenced to features.

In the context of GIS applications, raster data is an abstraction of the real world to which spatial
data is expressed as a matrix of cells or pixels, with spatial position implicit in the ordering of
the pixels. With the raster data model, spatial data is not continuous but divided into discrete
units. This makes raster data particularly suitable for certain types of spatial operations, such as
overlays or area calculations. Unlike vector data, however, there are no implicit topological
relationships.

With raster data, each pixel is independent of the other pixels, recording information only about
the area it covers. For example, a pixel does not know that the pixel beside it might be part of
the same tree or building.

A raster is sometimes also called a scan line. A raster image, therefore, is an image made of
such scan lines.

9. Define vector spatial data model. What are the three basic vector structures used in
vector GIS?

Vector data model is the representation of the phenomena in terms of the spatial primitives or
components consisting of point, line, polygon, surfaces and volumes. The vector representation
of an object is an attempt to represent the object as exactly as possible. The coordinate space is
assumed to be continuous not quantized as with the raster space allowing all positions, lengths
and dimensions to be defined precisely.

The three basic vector structures used in vector GIS are:

 a. Point Entities:

Point entities can be considered to embrace all geographical and graphical entities that are
positioned by a single XY coordinate pair. Besides the XY coordinates other data must be stored
to indicate what kind of point it is and the other information associated with it.

b. Line Entities:

Line entities can be defined as all the linear features that are built up with straight line segments
made up of two or more coordinates. The simplest line is made by the storage of a begin point
and an end point (two XY coordinates) plus a possible record indicating the display symbol to be
used.

Also an arc, chain or a string is a set of n “XY” coordinates pair describing a continuous
complex line. The shorter the line segments, the larger the number of coordinate pairs and the
closer the chain will approximate a complex curve.As with the point and simple line chains can
be stored with data records indicating the type of display line symbols to be used.

c. Area Entities:

There are several ways of vector structure possible for structuring a polygon. The simplest way
to represent a polygon is the spagetti representation which is the only extension of the simple
chain i.e. to represent each polygon as a set of XY coordinates on the boundary i.e. the polygons
are described to the concept of line representation and are characterized by a set of XY
coordinate pairs but have the same vector as the beginning and ending vector representing a self
closing line as a polygon.

10. What is GPS and how it work?

GNSS stands for Global Navigation Satellite System. GNSS is a satellite system that is used to
pinpoint the geographic location of a user's receiver anywhere in the world. Two GNSS systems
are currently in operation:

1. The United States' Global Positioning System (GPS)

Total no. of Satellites: 31

2. The Russian Federation's Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS). total no.
of Satellites: 24

GPS stands for Global Positioning System, which is a system of satellites, ground stations, and
receivers that allow you to find your exact location on Earth. GPS provides highly accurate
continuous three dimensional positioning 24 hours a day, all weather, real time throughout the
world to the military and civilian users. The accuracy of the data is from 10m to
Navigation purpose to sub-meter accuracy to mapping to sub millimeter accuracy to geodetic
survey.

Working of GPS

GPS system consists of three segment namely

 i. Space segment

ii. Control segment

iii. User segment

Space segments consist of GPS space vehicles SVs (satellite). It consists of 24 SVs and spares in
orbits inclined 55 degrees to the equator. The satellites orbit about 20,200km from the earth's
surface and make two orbits per day. The orbits are designed so that there are always 6 satellites
in view, from most places on the earth.

Control Segment: - Each satellite is controlled by 5 system tracking stations located on various
corner of world namely

a) Falcon AFB Colorado spring -- Master control monitor station

b) Hawaii – Monitor station

c) Ascension Island –Monitor station

d) Diego Garcia – Monitor Station

e) Kwajalein -- Monitor Station

User Segment:- GPS receiver

a) Civilian uses Standard positioning services which uses single frequency L1

b) Military uses precise positioning services which uses two frequencies L1 and L2

The GPS receiver gets a signal from each GPS satellite. The satellites transmit the exact time the
signals are sent. By subtracting the time the signal was transmitted from the time it was received,
the GPS can tell how far it is from each satellite. The GPS receiver also knows the exact position
in the sky of the satellites, at the moment they sent their signals. So given the travel time of the
GPS signals from three satellites and their exact position in the sky, the GPS receiver can
determine your position in three dimensions - east, north and altitude.

11. Discuss the errors and inaccuracies in GPS data.

GPS errors are:

1. Atmospheric effects

2. Measurement noise

3. Ephemeris errors

4. Satellite clock drift

5. Multipath effects

6. Satellite geometry
Atmospheric effects

The ionosphere and troposphere both refract the GPS signals. This causes the speed of the GPS
signal in the ionosphere and troposphere to be different from the speed of the GPS signal in space.
Therefore, the distance calculated from "Signal Speed x Time" will be different for the portion of
the GPS signal path that passes through the ionosphere and troposphere and for the portion that
passes through space.

Multipath

A GPS signal bouncing off a reflective surface prior to reaching the GPS receiver antenna is
referred to as multipath. Because it is difficult to completely correct multipath error, even in high
precision GPS units, multipath error is a serious concern to the GPS user.

Satellite geometry

Pollution dilution of precision (PDOP is an indicator of the quality of the geometry of the satellite
constellation. computed position can vary depending on which satellites are used for the
measurement. Different satellite geometries affect the errors. A greater angle between the
satellites lowers the PDOP, and provides a better measurement. A higher DOP indicates poor
satellite geometry, and an inferior measurement configuration. PDOP under good conditions is
below 6. The accuracy specification for a high end GPS unit is only valid when the PDOP is
below a specified value (usually 6).

Good PDOP (<6) – higher accuracy : poor PDOP (>6) – lower accuracy

Satellite clock drift

The Global Positioning System (GPS) can provide location, altitude, and speed with near-pinpoint
accuracy, but the system has intrinsic error sources that have to be taken into account when a
receiver reads the GPS signals from the constellation of satellites in orbit.

The main GPS error source is due to inaccurate time-keeping by the receiver's clock. Microwave
radio signals travelling at the speed of light from at least three satellites are used by the receiver's
built-in computer to calculate its position, altitude and velocity.

Tiny discrepancies between the GPS receiver's onboard clock and GPS time, which synchronizes
the whole global positioning system, mean distances calculated can drift. There is also an intrinsic
error source in GPS associated with the way the system works. GPS receivers analyze three
signals from satellites in the system and work out how long it has taken each signal to reach them.
This allows them to carry out a trilateration calculation to pinpoint the exact location of the
receiver. The signals are transmitted by the satellites at a specific rate.

Unfortunately, the electronic detector in standard GPS devices is accurate to just 1 percent of a bit
time. This is approximately 10 billionths of a second (10 nanoseconds). Given that the GPS
microwave signals travel at the speed of light, this equates to an error of about 3 meters. So
standard GPS cannot determine position to greater than 3-metre accuracy. More sophisticated
GPS receivers used by the military are ten times more accurate to 300 millimeters.
 Other errors arise because of atmospheric disturbances that distort the signals before they reach a
receiver. Reflections from buildings and other large, solid objects can lead to GPS accuracy
problems too. There may also be problems with the time-keeping accuracy and the data onboard a
particular satellite.

12. Define GIS and discuss its uses in various fields.

GIS is an information system designed to work with data referenced by spatial or geographical
coordinates. It is both a database system with specific capabilities for spatially referenced data as
well as a set of operations for working with the data.

GIS is a computer system that provides the following four sets of capabilities to handle
georeferenced data:

 Data capture and preparation

 Data management, including storage and maintenance

 Data manipulation and analysis

 Data presentation

GIS is a relatively broad term which can refer to a number of technology and processes. It has
been used as a multidisciplinary tool as it is compatible in several fields of engineering.

Modern GIS technologies use digital information, for which various digitized data creation
methods are used. The most common method of data creation is digitization, where a hard
copy map or survey plan is transferred into a digital medium through the use of a CAD program,
and geo-referencing capabilities. With the wide availability of ortho-rectified imagery (from
satellites, aircraft, Heli kites and UAVs), heads-up digitizing is becoming the main avenue
through which geographic data is extracted. Heads-up digitizing involves the tracing of
geographic data directly on top of the aerial imagery instead of by the traditional method of
tracing the geographic form on a separate digitizing tablet.

13. Discuss the use of GIS in Spatial analysis.

• SIMPLE QUERY

-by database

- By attribute data / spatial

• SPATIAL QUARRYING

- buffering

- zoning according to pollution level (i.e. sound / industrial)

• SINGLE LAYER OPERATION

- attribute quarries

- Spatial quarries
 - Alteration of data

• MULTIPLE- LAYER OPERATIONS

- overlaying two layers

- change patterns in land use

- Product of different layers

- SPATIAL MODELING

- Soil erosion modeling

- Rainfall - runoff model

- air pollution spatial modeling

• SURFACE ANALYSIS

- Visualization of 3d of a surface to represent variety of phenomena such as population, crime,

market potential & topography

• NETWORK ANALYSIS

- Transportation problems

- Location analysis / route alignment

- Facility management

• POINT PATTERN ANALYSIS

- point rain fall data into spatial distribution

- Point Groundwater sample data into spatial patterns

- determine most favorable environmental conditions

• GRID ANALYSIS

- flow analysis

- Slope / aspect analysis

- Fire probability model

14. What is map projection? Discuss the properties of map projection.

Map projections are systematic transformations of the spheroidal shape of the earth so that the
curved, three-dimensional shape of a geographic area on the earth can be represented in two
dimensions, as x, y coordinates. Maps are flat, but the surfaces they represent are curved.
Transforming three-dimensional space onto a two-dimensional map is called projection. This
process inevitably distorts at least one of these properties: shape, area, distance, or direction. For
small areas, such as a city or county, the distortion will probably not be great enough to affect
 your map or measurements. If we are working at the national, continental, or global level, we
want to choose a map projection that minimizes the distortion based on the requirements of our
specific project.

Some of the important properties of map projection are:

i. Area,

ii. Shape,

iii. Direction,

iv. Bearing,

v. Distance &,

vi. Scale.

Map projections are constructed to preserve at least one of these properties. Each projection
preserves or compromises or approximates basic properties in different ways. The purpose of
the map determines which projection should form the base for the map.

15. Discuss the projection surfaces and projection family.

Projection Surface: If a surface can be transformed onto another surface without stretching,
tearing, or shrinking, then the surface is said to be an applicable surface. The sphere or
ellipsoid are not applicable with a plane surface so any projection that attempts to project them
on a flat sheet will have to distort the image (similar to the impossibility of making a flat sheet
from an orange peel). A surface that can be unfolded or unrolled into a flat plane or sheet
without stretching, tearing or shrinking is called a ‘developable surface’. The cylinder, cone
and of course the plane are all developable surfaces since they can be unfolded into a flat sheet
without distorting the projected image (although the original projection of the earth’s surface on
the cylinder or cone would be distorted).

Orientation of projection

Once a choice is made between using a cylinder or cone is made, the orientation for that shape
must be chosen (how the cylinder or cone is “placed” on the earth). The orientation of the
projection surface can be normal (in line with the earth’s axis), transverse (at right angles to the
earth’s axis) or oblique (any angle in between). These surfaces may also be either tangent or
secant to the sphere or ellipsoid (if you see both a 1st and 2nd parallel on a projected map then
the projection must be secant).

Globes vs projecting on a plane

The globe is the only way to represent the earth without distorting one or more of the above-
mentioned metric properties. Globes have the advantage of being true to metric properties and
able to provide a true picture of spatial relationships on the earth’s surface. The disadvantages
of the globe are that it is impractical to make large-scale maps with it, it is difficult to measure
on a globe, one can’t see the whole world at once and it is difficult to handle and transport a
globe around (unlike a folding map).
The flat map has the disadvantage of always distorting one or more of the metric properties and
it is more difficult to get a true picture of the spatial relationships between objects. Flat maps
have numerous advantages however; it is not practical to make large or even medium scale
globes, it is easier to measure on a flat map, easy to carry around, and one can see the whole
world at once.

Scale in particular is affected by the choice between using a globe vs. a plane. Only a globe can
have a constant scale throughout the entire map surface and the scale for flat maps will vary
from point to point and may also vary in different directions from a single point (as in
Azimuthal maps). The scale for a flat map can only be true along one or two lines or points
(tangent or secant points/lines). The ‘scale factor is therefore used to measure the difference
between the idealized scale and the actual scale at a particular point on the map.

Choosing a model for shape of Earth

The projection is also affected by how the shape of the earth is approximated. In the following
discussion on projection categories, a sphere is assumed, but the Earth is not exactly spherical
but is closer in shape to an ellipsoid with a bulge around the equator. Selecting a model for a
shape of the earth involves a choice between the advantages and disadvantages between using a
sphere vs. an ellipsoid. Spherical models are useful for small-scale maps (features are small)
such as world atlases and globes since the error at that scale is not usually noticeable or
important enough to justify using the more complicated ellipsoid. The ellipsoidal model is
commonly used to construct topographic maps and for other large and medium scale maps that
need to accurately depict the land surface.

A third model of the shape of the earth is called a geoid, which is a complex and more or less
accurate representation of the global mean sea level surface that is obtained through a
combination of terrestrial and satellite gravity measurements. This model is not used for
mapping due to its complexity but is instead used for control purposes in the construction of
geographic datums. A geoid is used to construct a datum by adding irregularities to the ellipsoid
in order to better match the Earth’s actual shape (it takes into account the large-scale features in
the Earth’s gravity field associated with mantle convection patterns, as well as the gravity
signatures of very large geomorphic features such as mountain ranges, plateaus and plains).
Datums are always based on ellipsoids that best represent the geoid within the region the datum
is going to be used for. Each ellipsoid has a distinct major and minor axis and different controls
(modifications) are added to the ellipsoid in order to construct the datum, which is specialized
and used for specific geographic regions (such as the North American Datum)

Families of projection

A cylindrical projection is produced by wrapping a cylinder around a globe representing the

Earth. The map projection is the image of the globe projected onto the cylindrical surface,
which is then unwrapped into a flat surface. When the cylinder aligns with the polar axis,
parallels appear as horizontal lines and meridians as vertical lines. Cylindrical projections can
be either equal-area, conformal, or equidistant. The following figure shows a regular cylindrical
or normal aspect orientation in which the cylinder is tangent to the Earth along the Equator and
the projection radiates horizontally from the axis of rotation. The projection method is
diagrammed on the left, and an example is given on the right (equal-area cylindrical projection,
normal/equatorial aspect).
 Some widely used cylindrical map projections are

 Equal-area cylindrical projection

 Equidistant cylindrical projection

 Mercator projection

 Miller projection

 Plate Carrée projection

 Universal transverse Mercator projection

Pseudocylindrical Map Projections

All cylindrical projections fill a rectangular plane. Pseudocylindrical projection outlines tend to
be barrel-shaped rather than rectangular. However, they do resemble cylindrical projections,
with straight and parallel latitude lines, and can have equally spaced meridians, but meridians
are curves, not straight lines. Pseudocylindrical projections can be equal-area, but are not
conformal or equidistant.

Some widely-used pseudocylindrical map projections are

 Eckert projections (I-VI)

 Goode homolosine projection

 Mollweide projection

 Quartic authalic projection

16. Discuss about importance of GIS in engineering geology

The need for comprehensive geoscience information systems in research and education is
overwhelming. GIS provides tools to capture, store, manipulate, analyze and present effectively.
The success of research in engineering geology relies on how efficiently and effectively
researchers can access multidisciplinary data sets, see relations between them and present them
through diagrams for better understanding in their analysis. As our understanding of the Earth
increases, it is becoming clearer that cross- disciplinary techniques must be utilized to achieve a
higher level of understanding. This becomes available at much less effort level using GIS.
Using GIS, a user can select a geologic unit and present its area, its topography, or the number
of faults within it through digital maps. These are simple tasks that can be completed in a few
seconds.

Following specific uses of GIS highlight its importance in Engineering geology

i. Urban development

Urban development is a high priority in any developing Country. Urban development in any
new City may encounter several geo-environmental problems. The identification is not the only
hindrance in analysis but analysis and presentation is equally difficult. This can easily be
obtained using GIS.

For example Karst conditions and structural features in the bedrock limit its suitability for
constructional purposes. Suitability of the area for urban development can be assessed using a
geographic information systems (GIS). A weighted GIS model that incorporates land use/cover,
types of soil, karst feature distribution, fracture densities, slopes, distances to major faults and
streams, road network, and city boundaries can be established to create a map of site suitability
for a city.

ii. Seismic Study

It is possible to generate new structural maps and tectonic models for a very large region much
quicker using GIS. These new interpretations of seismic reflection profiles, well data, remote
sensing imagery, and potential-field data can be merged with existing interpretations.

Location of Geological structures such as faults, folds and other data can be interpreted from
seismic reflection profiles and their digitized locations can entered into the GIS.

GIS is an essential component in tectonic mapping and structural interpretation. Data

manipulation, visualizations, and integrated interpretations, previously time-consuming or
impossible, are quick and easy using GIS technology. This allows faster, more accurate
analysis, and better quality, highly accessible, end products.

Having the historical earthquake events data managed in GIS platform can help in avoiding
urban development in areas with high risk records and it also helps in knowing high risk areas
for better emergency planning and management.

iii. Geo-Hazard Assessment

Hazard mapping can be done for geological hazards such as earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides
etc., to select land use location invulnerable or less vulnerable to these hazards. Map overlaying
technique (a method of hazard assessment) becomes much more convenient and efficient using
GIS. For this different data required for analysis can be collected separately and combined using
GIS.

For example: If analysis of landslide is to done , data regarding slope , relief, rainfall, presence
of discontinuities etc. can be arranged on different layers . Even arbitrary values can be assigned
to them for analysis purpose like low relief value 1 and high relief value 4 as attributes. Based
on this hazard can be calculated using not just observation but values assigned. These value can
 be made to score high for high hazard areas and low for safe areas. Thus GIS helps in decision
making but GIS user needs to be up to it.

17. Discuss how GIS can be useful in environment Assessment.

Remote sensing, a part of GIS technique used to obtain data, is used to generate information to
study environment change over time. The available information from remote sensing data may
be manipulated as following:-

-Land use/ Land cover

-Land forms (Geomorphic features)

-Water bodies

- Mass wasting

-Geology and Structures

- Settlement and built up areas

- Infrastructures

- Identification of vulnerable location

GIS is used for the comparison, statistics and presentation of findings. It makes the use of
spatial component along with the tabulated data linked with spatial component. These data can
be obtained at regular intervals to compare over time. By comparison trends for future can be
estimated.

Some environmental aspects that can have the use of feature of GIS are:-

-Watershed Assessment

-Wetlands

-Land use change

-Flood Plain management

-Hazard Assessment

-Growth of settlement

The things that RS/GIS do in Impact Assessment are

-Provide synoptic view of environment issues and enhance understanding

-Change mind, convey environmental issue in visually compelling way (as a result it is
extremely useful for research and awareness)

- Build consensus
-Enable monitoring of temporal image

Thus we can say that RS/GIS is useful in environmental assessment.

18. Discuss the importance of remote sensing data in various fields, especially in
environment and geotechnical aspects.

Importance of remote sensing data:

 Remote Sensing is used to generate information to study environmental change over

time.

 It is a good decision making tool

 Digital classification of RS data makes possible for quick findings

 It is cost effective and applicable in all geographical terrain

 Remotely sensed data have the advantage of not being constrained by political and
administrative boundaries.

 Facilitates in presentation and discussions with local communities

 Improve the Monitoring and Auditing capability even in the areas with poor access.

Importance of remote sensing data in various fields are as follows:

 Geology and Mineral

exploration

 Oceanography

 Agriculture and forestry

 Land degradation

 Environmental monitoring

 Natural resource mapping

 Hydropower study

 Geo-hazard assessment

 Disaster Management

 Geotechnical Engineering
aspect
Importance of RS data in environment aspects:

 Enhance understanding : Provide synoptic view of environmental issues

 Change minds: convey environmental changes in a visually compelling way which is

extremely useful for raising awareness.

 Build consensus

 Enable monitoring : temporal images

 Identification of Lineaments

 Identification of landslides on satellite image

 Assessment of land use map

Importance of RS data in geo-technical aspects:

 3d model for visualization of geological formation and soil types

 Maintaining large database of boring location

 Spatial Liquefaction Evaluation

 Earthquake shaking intensity maps

 Seismic micro zonation map

 Basement Topography (Sediment depth)

 Petroleum, gas, mining companies must have top-end 3D suites in their offices where
they can visualize wells and the planned steering of the drill head to avoid problematic formations

19. List and describe the element of the image interpretation.

The following eight elements are mostly used in image interpretation:

i. Color

Color display of remote sensing data is of importance for effective visual interpretation. There are
two color display methods: color composite, to generate color with multi-band data and pseudo-
color display, to assign different colors to the grey scale of a single image.

ii. Tone
The continuous grey scale varying from white to black is called tone. In panchromatic photographs,
any object will reflect its unique tone according to the reflectance. For example, dry sand reflects
white, while wet sand reflects black. In black and white near infrared photographs, water is black
and healthy vegetation white to light grey. Tone denotes the spectral reflectance of the features.

iii. Texture

Texture is a group of repeated small patterns. For example, homogeneous grassland exhibits a
smooth texture, coniferous usually show a coarse texture. However, this will depend upon the scale
of the photograph or image.

iv. . Pattern

Pattern is a regular, usually repeated, shape to an object. For example, rows of houses or
apartments, regularly-spaced rice fields, interchanges of highways, orchards, and so on, can provide
information form their unique patterns.

v. Shape

The specific shape of an object, as it viewed from above, will be imaged on a vertical photograph.
Therefore, the shape from a viewpoint should be known. For example, the crown of a conifer tree
looks like a circle, while that of a deciduous tree has an irregular shape. Airports, factories, and so
on can also be identified by their shapes.

vi. Size

A proper photo-scale (image resolution) should be selected depending on the purpose of the
interpretation. The approximate size of an object can be measured by multiplying the length of the
image by the inverse of the photo-scale

vii. Shadow

Shadow is usually a visual obstacle for image interpretation. However, shadow can also give height
information about a tower, tall building, mountain ranges, and others, as well as shape information
from the non-vertical perspective –such as the shape of a bridge.

viii. Association

A specific combination of elements, geographic characteristics, and configuration of the

surroundings, or the context, of an object can provide the user with specific information for image
interpretation.

20. Describe various activities involved in visual image interpretation.

Image interpretation is

 An art of examining images to identify the objects and judge their significance

 Information extraction process from the images

  The aerial photograph and satellite image employ the electromagnetic energy reflected by the
objects to identify them.

 An image is a pictorial view of object or scene, which is digital or analog. The digital image use
the basis of electromagnetic energy for the interpretation

The various activities involved in image interpretation are as below

1) Detection

2) Recognition

3) Analysis

4) Identification

5) Deduction

6) Classification

7) Convergence of proof

8) Mensuration

9) Enumeration

10) Delineation

1) Detection:

 During detection the general overview of the object is ascertained.

 Determining the presence or absence of a feature

2) Recognition:

 Assigning an object or feature to a general class or category

 The object or feature is recognized by studying the electromagnetic energy radiated.

3) Analysis :

 The complete analysis of the object is done referring to the various standards relating to the
energy radiation, reflecting patterns etc.
 4) Identification:

 Specifying the identity of an object with enough confidence to assign it to a very specific class.

5) Deduction:

 All the possible identification and non-identifications are separated to deduct the possible objects.

6) Classification:

 Assigning objects, features, or areas to classes. This occurs at three levels of confidence.

7) Convergence of proof:

 The various energy patterns, color shades, reflection patterns are taken as a proof basis and the
object identified.

8) Mensuration:

 Measurement of objects and features in terms of distance, height, volume or area.

9) Enumeration:

 Listing or counting discrete items visible on an image.

10) Delineation:

 Drawing boundaries around distinct regions of the image characterized by specific tones or
textures.

The results of image interpretation are most often delivered as a set of attributed points, lines and/or
polygons in any one of a variety of CAD or GIS data formats. The classification scheme or
interpretation criteria must be agreed upon with the end user before the analysis begins.

21. Writes short notes on:

a) Accuracy and precision

There is no such thing as perfect GIS data. Error, inaccuracy and imprecision in GIS can affect
the quality of many types of GIS projects, in the sense that errors that are not accounted for can turn
the analysis in a GIS project to a useless exercise. . The saying, “Garbage in, garbage out” applies
all to well when data that is inaccurate, imprecise, or full of errors is used during analysis.
 Accuracy can be defined as the degree or closeness to which the information on a map matches the
values in the real world. Hence accuracy directs refers to the quality of data and about number of
errors contained in a certain dataset. In GIS data, accuracy can be referred to a geographic position.

Precision refers how exact is the description of data. Precise data may be inaccurate, because it
may be exactly described but inaccurately gathered. As an example of imprecision, maybe the
surveyor made a mistake, or the data was recorded wrongly into the database.

There are many error sources of inaccuarcy and imprecision in GIS. Some of these are:

 Errors created when formatting data for processing

 Error during changes in scale, reprojections, import and export from raster to vector

 Age of data

 During measurements etc

b) Basic objectives of GIS

The some of the basis objectives of GIS are enlisted below:

 Provide county departments with the data, tools, and training to needed to provide county
employees a tool to provide common data in one easy format within the GIS.
 Provide county geographic information to departments via the Intrenet while protecting citizens'
rights to privacy through the establishment of responsible data access policies. These policies will
adhere to Federal and State laws and local ordinances with respect to data development.
 Assemble thematic data (elevation, land cover, soils, property boundaries, etc.) in a common
geographic framework within a single data warehouse.
 Facilitate information exchange between the county, State governments and other organizations
through the establishment of policies and technical standards for the submittal, collection,
maintenance, and dissemination of geographical information.
 Formalize agreements between partners for the exchange of data, methods, results, and policies
impacting our community.

c) GIS layers

Layers are the mechanism used to display geographic datasets in ArcMap, ArcGlobe, and
ArcScene. Each layer references a dataset and specifies how that dataset is rendered using symbols
and text labels. Or it can be defined as the logical collections of geographic data that are used to
create maps and scenes.

They are also the basis for geographic analysis. For example, a building layer could represent a
collection of campus buildings and include attributes that describe each building's properties, such
 as the name of the building, what type of building it is, the size of the building, and other potential
attributes.

Layers are displayed in a particular order displayed in the map's table of contents. Layers listed at
the bottom are displayed first, followed by the layers above them.

d) GPS constellation

GPS space segment consists of a constellation of GPS satellites transmitting radio signals to
users. This constellation comprises of 24 to 32 satellites in medium Earth orbit and also includes the
payload adapters required to launch them into orbit.

The GPS satellites design was originally eight each in three approximately circular orbits, but was
modified to six orbital planes with four satellites each. The six orbit planes have approx. 55°
inclination relative to the earth’s equator and are separated by 60° angle along the equator from a
reference point to the orbit’s intersection. These satellites orbits at an altitude of approx. 20,200 km
with an orbital radius of approx. 26,600 km. The orbital period is one half a sideral day (11 hours
and 58 minutes). These orbits are so arranged that at least 6 satellites are always within line of sight
from almost everywhere on the earth’s surface. The angular difference between satellites in each
orbit is 30°, 105°, 120°, and 105° apart, which sum to 360°.

From Feb. 2016, there are 32 satellites in the GPS constellation, 31 of which are in use. The
additional satellites imrove the precision of the GPS receiver calculations by providing redundant
measurements.

e) Error in GIS

Maps created by GIS have deficiencies. These deficiencies occur due to “Errors” that may have
taken place at different stages of GIS implementation. Flaws in data are referred to as errors. An
error is the physical difference between the real world and the GIS output. Errors may be single,
definable departures from reality, or maybe persistent widespread deviations throughout a whole
database. Errors reduce the accuracy of the map generated. Using well defined and controlled
procedures errors can be avoided.

There are two types of errors in GIS:

I. Source Errors:

They are the errors that are present in “Source Data” that is given to the GIS. They occur
before the actual implementation of GIS:

a. Instrumental inaccuracies:

● Satellite/ air photo/ GPS/ surveying (spatial).

● Inaccuracies in attribute measuring instruments.

 b. Human Processing:

● Misinterpretation (e.g. photos), spatial and attribute.

● Effects of scale change and generalization.

● Effects of classification (nominal / ordinal / interval).

c. Actual Changes:

● Gradual 'natural' changes: river courses, glacier recession.

● Catastrophic change: fires, floods, landslides.

● Seasonal and daily changes: lake/sea/ river levels.

● Man-made: urban development, new roads.

● Attribute change: forest growth (height etc.), discontinued trail /roads, road surfacing

II. Processing Errors:

They are the errors that occur during the processing of the data i.e. during the
implementation of GIS.

a. Input:

● Digitizing: human error, the width of a line, spikes, knots, also entering attribute
data.

● Dangling nodes (connected to only one arc): permissible in arc themes (river
headwaters etc.).

● Pseudo-nodes (connected to one or two arcs) - permissible in island arcs, and where
attributes change,e.g. road becomes paved from dirt or vice versa.

● Projection input error.

b. Manipulation:

● Interpolation of point data into lines and surfaces.

● Overlay of layers, digitized separately, e.g. soils and vegetation.

● The compounding effects of processing and analysis of multiple. layers: for example, if two
layers each have correctness of 90%, the accuracy of the resulting overlay is around 81%

● Density of observation.

● Inappropriate or inadequate inputs for models.

 c. Output:

● Scale changes - detail and scale bars.

● Color palettes: intended colors don't match from screen to Printer.

In addition to the above, errors may also be introduced during data transfer and conversion. These
types of errors, may lead to loss of data.

It is a misconception that data from a GIS is of a higher quality. The quality of information from a
GIS depends upon the quality of the data used as input to the GIS.

f) Geodetic Datum

A geodetic datum is a tool used to define the shape and size of the earth, as well as the reference
point for the various coordinate systems used in mapping the earth. Throughout time, hundreds of
different datum has been used - each one changing with the earth views of the times.

True geodetic datum, however, are only those which appeared after the 1700s. Prior to that, the
earth's ellipsoidal shape was not always taken into consideration, as many still believed it was flat.

Datum are used in

• Geodesy

• Navigation

• Surveying

• Satellites Navigation

To translate the positions indicated on maps to their real position on Earth.

Each starts with an ellipsoid (stretched earth), and then defines latitude, longitude and altitude
coordinate. One or more locations on the earth surface are chosen as base point.

They can be studied under two heading:

Horizontal Datum:

Horizontal datum is used for describing a point on the earth’s surface, in latitude and longitude or
other coordinate system. Earth have different co-ordinate depending on the datum used to make the
measurement.

Eg: WGS84 datum, NAD83 datum used in America and ETRS89 datum used in Europe are
common standard Datum.

Vertical Datum:
Vertical datum is used as reference point for elevation of surface. Vertical datum is are tidal, based
on sea levels; gravimetric, based on a geoids; or geodetics, based on the same ellipsoidal models of
the earth used for computing horizontal datum.

Eg: a gravity-based geodetic datum is NAVD88, used in North America, which is referenced to a
point in Quebec, Canada.

Ellipsoid-based diatoms such as WGS84, GRS80 or NAD83.

g) Spatial Analysis

GIS is differentiated from other information systems due to its spatial analysis functions.
Spatial analysis functions are used to answer questions about the real world using GIS databases as
a model of the real world.
Spatial analysis techniques are used to create an image of reality that can be easily understood.
Basic spatial analysis can be performed at various levels:
1. Sorting data in attribute tables for presentation

2. Performing arithmetic, boolean and statistical operation on attribute tables

3. Compiling new data based on original and derived attributes or based on geographic
relationships.

4. Within each level operations may be logical, arithmetic, geometric, statistical or a combination of
any of these four types.

Spatial analysis requires logical connections between attribute data and map features. Spatial
analysis builds operational procedures on spatial relationship between map features.

Spatial Analysis is the heart or core of GIS because it includes transformations, manipulations and
methods that can be applied to geographic data to support decisions, reveal patterns and anomalies
not immediately obvious and add value.

Spatial analysis is a set of methods whose results change when locations of the objects being
analysed or the frame used to analyse them changes.

Spatial analysis can be:

1. Inductive: Examining empirical evidence and searching for patterns that might support new
theories or general principles

2. Deductive: Focussing on testing of known theories against data

3. Normative: Using spatial analysis to develop new or better designs

Spatial analysis is a vital part of GIS and can be used for many applications like:

1. Site suitability

2. Natural resource management

 3. Environmental Disaster Management

h) Choice of projection in GIS

Even with all we've learned about map projections, you may feel that you still don't know how to
choice good one (i.e a projection that meets your needs). So basically two main things should be
considered for the choice of map projection, they are

i. Projection should preserve true property, so that map provides a true spatial property.

ii.Projection should minimizes distortion in your area of interest.

Beside these, it is also depends upon the purpose of the map. For general reference and atlas maps,
you usually want to balance shape and area distortion. If your map has a specific purpose, you may
need to preserve a certain spatial property—most commonly shape or area—to achieve that
purpose.

Depending upon the purpose of maps, different projection are:

i. Conformal projection:

- All local angles measured from a point are correct and all local shapes are true.

- Showing accurate local directions, or representing the shapes of features or contour lines. This
category includes:

· Topographic maps and cadastral (land parcel) maps

· Navigation charts (for plotting course bearings and wind direction)

· Civil engineering maps

· Military maps

· Weather maps (for showing the local direction in which weather systems are moving)

ii. Equal area projection:

- the size of any area on the map is in true proportion to its size on the earth.

- equal-area projections uses to show:

· The density of an attribute with dots (for example, population density)

· The spatial extent of a categorical attribute (for example, land use maps)

· Quantitative attributes by area (for example, Gross Domestic Product by country)

Equal-area maps have also been used as world political maps to correct popular misconceptions
about the relative sizes of countries.
iii. Azimuthal Equidistant projection:

- preserves true scale from a single specified point on the projection to all other points on the map

- Possible uses for this property include:

· Maps of airline distances from a single city to several other cities

· Seismic maps showing distances from the epicenter of an earthquake

· Maps used to calculate costs or charges based on straight-line distance from a source

· Maps used to calculate ranges; for example, the cruising ranges of airplanes or the habitats of
animal species

The Two-Point Equidistant projection preserves true scale from two specified points on the
projection to all other points on the map. This projection could be used to determine the distance of
a ship at sea from the start and end of a voyage.

Recommended projections for maps of continents and smaller areas

Besides these, Nepal WCGS 1984 projection system is used based on Everest Ellipsoid.
UTM(universal Transverse Mercator) system consist of 60 zones out of which Nepal lies in UTM
–zone 44N and UTM-zone 45N and used different Zone for different location of work like for
western and eastern region respectively
i) Methods of vector inputs
j) Application of Geoinformatics
Geoinformatics is the science and the technology which develops and uses information
science infrastructure to address the problems of geography, cartography, geosciencesand related
branches of science and engineering.
Geoinformatics has been described as "the science and technology dealing with the structure and
character of spatial information, its capture, its classification and qualification, its storage,
processing, portrayal and dissemination, including the infrastructure necessary to secure optimal
use of this information" or "the art, science or technology dealing with the acquisition, storage,
processing production, presentation and dissemination of geoinformation".
Geoinformatics combines geospatial analysis and modeling, development of geospatial databases,
information systems design, human-computer interaction and both wired and wireless networking
technologies.
Geoinformatics uses geocomputation and geovisualization for analyzing geoinformation.
Many fields benefit from geoinformatics, that includes:
 urban planning and land use management,
 in-car navigation systems,
 virtual globes,
 public health,
 local and national gazetteer management,
 environmental modeling and analysis,
 military,
 transport network planning and management,
 agriculture, meteorology and climate change,
 oceanography and coupled ocean
 atmosphere modelling,
 business location planning
 architecture and archeological reconstruction,
 telecommunications,
 criminology and crime simulation,
 aviation,
 biodiversity conservation
 maritime transport.

k) Major topological concept of GIS

It is in fact the mathematical method used to define spatial relationships. Without a topologic data
structure in a vector based GIS most data manipulation and analysis functions would not be
practical or feasible.

The most common topological data structure is the arc/node data model. This model contains two
basic entities, the arc and the node. The arc is a series of points, joined by straight line segments
that start and end at a node. The node is an intersection point where two or more arcs meet. Nodes
also occur at the end of a dangling arc, e.g. an arc that does not connect to another arc such as a
 dead end street. Isolated nodes, not connected to arcs represent point features. A polygon feature is
comprised of a closed chain of arcs.

In GIS software the topological definition is commonly stored in a proprietary format. However,
most software offerings record the topological definition in three tables. These tables are analogous
to relational tables. The three tables represent the different types of features, e.g. point, line, area. A
fourth table containing the coordinates is also utilized. The node table stores information about the
node and the arcs that are connected to it. The arc table contains topological information about the
arcs. This includes the start and end node, and the polygon to the left and right that the arc is an
element of. The polygon table defines the arcs that make up each polygon.

Since most input data does not exist in a topological data structure, topology must be built with the
GIS software. Depending on the data set this can be an CPU intensive and time consuming
procedure. This building process involves the creation of the topological tables and the definition of
the arc, node, and polygon entities. To properly define the topology there are specific requirements
with respect to graphic elements, e.g. no duplicate lines, no gaps in arcs that define polygon
features, etc. These requirements are reviewed in the Data Editing section of the book.

The topological model is utilized because it effectively models the relationship of spatial entities.
Accordingly, it is well suited for operations such as contiguity and connectivity analyses.
Contiguity involves the evaluation of feature adjacency, e.g. features that touch one another, and
proximity, e.g. features that are near one another. The primary advantage of the topological model
is that spatial analysis can be done without using the coordinate data. Many operations can be done
largely, if not entirely, by using the topological definition alone.

l) Spatial query
Spatial query is a special type of database query supported by geo data bases and spatial
data bases. Spatial query is a statement or logical expression that selects geographic features
based on location or spatial relationship. These queries differ from non-spatial queries in several
important ways. Two of the most important ways are that they allow for the use of geometry
data types such as points, lines and polygons and that these queries consider the spatial
relationship between these geometries. For example, a spatial query might find which points are
contained within a polygon or set of polygons, find features within a specified distance of a
feature, or find features that are adjacent to each other.

m) Multi-Layer Operation

During the analysis of the data in GIS, we have to do overlays analysis in a number of layers. Each
layer consists of certain data. For example; one layer consisting the topographic Points, second
layer containing Land use data, etc. and so on. Identical data are kept in one layer and the operation
and analysis on those data can be done based on the desired output. Multi-Layer operation in GIS is
understood to be Synonyms to Overlay Operation.

Among the most powerful and commonly used tools in geographic information system (GIS) is the
overlay of cartographic information. In a GIS, an overlay is the process of taking two or more
different thematic maps of the same area and placing them on top of one another to form a new
 map. Inherent in this process, the overlay function combines not only the spatial features of the
dataset but also the attribute information as well.

Overlay processes place two or more thematic maps on top of one another to form a new map.
Overlay operations available for use with vector data include the point-in-polygon, polygon-on-
point, line-on-line, line-in-polygon, polygon-on-line, and polygon-in-polygon models. Union,
intersection, symmetrical difference, and identity are common operations used to combine
information from various overlain datasets.

Overlay Operations

The point-in-polygon overlay operation requires a point input layer and a polygon overlay layer.
Upon performing this operation, a new output point layer is returned that includes all the points that
occur within the spatial extent of the overlay .In addition, all the points in the output layer contain
their original attribute information as well as the attribute information from the overlay.

The polygon-on-point overlay operation is the opposite of the point-in-polygon operation. In this
case, the polygon layer is the input, while the point layer is the overlay. The polygon features that
overlay these points are selected and subsequently preserved in the output layer.

A line-on-line overlay operation requires line features for both the input and overlay layer. The
output from this operation is a point or points located precisely at the intersection(s) of the two
linear.

The line-in-polygon overlay operation is similar to the point-in-polygon overlay, with that
obvious exception that a line input layer is used instead of a point input layer. In this case, each line
that has any part of its extent within the overlay polygon layer will be included in the output line
layer, although these lines will be truncated at the boundary of the overlay.

The polygon-on-line overlay operation is the opposite of the line-in-polygon operation. In this
case, the polygon layer is the input, while the line layer is the overlay. The polygon features that
overlay these lines are selected and subsequently preserved in the output layer

Finally, the polygon-in-polygon overlay operation employs a polygon input and a polygon
overlay. This is the most commonly used overlay operation. Using this method, the polygon input
and overlay layers are combined to create an output polygon layer with the extent of the overlay.
The attribute table will contain spatial data and attribute information from both the input and
overlay layers.

In addition to the aforementioned vector overlay methods, other common multiple layer
geoprocessing options are clip, erase, and split tools. The clip geoprocessing operation is used to
extract those features from an input point, line, or polygon layer that falls within the spatial extent of
the clip layer. The erase geoprocessing operation is essentially the opposite of a clip. Whereas the
clip tool preserves areas within an input layer, the erase tool preserves only those areas outside the
extent of the analogous erase layer. The split geoprocessing operation is used to divide an input layer
into two or more layers based on a split layer. The split layer must be a polygon, while the input
layers can be point, line, or polygon. A spatial join is a hybrid between an attribute operation and a
vector overlay operation. A spatial join results in the combination of two feature dataset tables by a
common attribute field. Unlike the attribute operation, a spatial join determines which fields from a
source layer’s attribute table are appended to the destination layer’s attribute table based on the
relative locations of selected features. This relationship is explicitly based on the property of
proximity or containment between the source and destination layers, rather than the primary or
secondary keys. The proximity option is used when the source layer is a point or line feature dataset,
while the containment option is used when the source layer is a polygon feature dataset.

n)Grid Analysis

The operations of cell-based (Grid Based) analysis available in the ArcGIS Spatial
Analyst extension can be divided into five types:

Those that work on single cell locations (local operations),

Those that work on cell locations within a neighborhood (focal operations),

Those that work on cell locations within zones (zonal operations),

Those that work on all cells within the raster (global operations),

Those that perform a specific application (for example, hydrologic analysis operations).

Each of these categories can be influenced by, or based on, the spatial or geometric representation
of the data and not solely on the attributes that the cells portray. For example, a tool that adds two
layers together (via single cell locations) is dependent on the cell's location and the value of its
counterpart in the second layer. Tools applied to cell locations within neighborhoods or zones rely
on the spatial configuration of the neighborhood or zone as well as the cell values in the
configuration.

Local operations

Local operations, or per-cell functions, compute a raster output dataset where the output value at
each location (cell) is a function of the value associated with that location on one or more raster
datasets. That is, the value of the single cell, regardless of the values of neighboring cells, has a
direct influence on the value of the output. A per-cell operation can be applied to a single raster
dataset or to multiple raster datasets. For a single dataset, examples of per-cell operations include
the trigonometric tools.

Local operations can also be performed on multiple input rasters. In this case, a single value will be
returned for each cell based on some operation being applied to the corresponding cell in each of
the input rasters. An example of this type of operation is using the Cell Statistics tool: for each
output cell, a statistical calculation (such as the mean or range) is performed on the cell values of all
the input rasters at that corresponding location.

Focal operations:
Focal, or neighborhood, operations produce an output raster dataset in which the output value at
each cell location is a function of the input value at a cell location and the values of the cells in a
specified neighborhood around that location. As each cell in the input is processed, the
neighborhood is essentially a moving window that shifts along with it. The configuration (size and
shape) of the neighborhood determines specifically which cells surrounding the processing cell
should be used in the calculation of each output value. The most typical neighborhood is 3 by 3
cells, which incorporates the processing cell and its closest eight neighbors.

Focal operations: value of the output cell determined by the cells in a specified neighborhood
around each input cell

Zonal operations:

Zonal operations compute an output raster dataset where the output value for each location depends
on the value of the cell at the location and the association that location has within a cartographic
zone. Zonal operations are similar to focal operations except that the definition of the neighborhood
in a zonal operation is the configuration of the zones themselves, not a specified neighborhood
shape. Individual zones can be of any shape or size and can be disconnected from each other. Zones
can be defined either as raster or feature data. For raster data, a zone is all cells with the same value.
For feature data, a zone is all features with the same attribute value.

Global operations:

Global, or per-raster, operations compute an output raster dataset in which the output value at each
cell location is potentially a function of all the cells combined from the various input raster datasets.
There are two main groups of global operations: Euclidean distance and weighted distance.

Application operations:

There are some cell-based modeling operations developed to solve specific applications. An
application operation performs an analysis that is specific to a discipline. For example, the
hydrologic operations create a stream network and delineate a watershed. The local, focal, zonal,
and global operations are general operations and are not specific to any application. There is some
overlap in the categorization of an application operation and the local, focal, zonal, and global
operations (for example, even though slope is usually used in the application of analyzing surfaces,
it is also technically a focal operation). Some of the application operations are more general in
scope, such as surface analysis, while other application functions are more narrowly defined, such
as hydrologic analysis functions. The categorization of the application operations into groups helps
in understanding both the scope and specific capabilities of these operations.

Application operations include the following:

 Altering raster resolution

 Density analysis

 Hydrologic analysis
  Image classification

 Generalization

 Surface analysis

 Surface generation

o)Passive and Active Sensors

Passive Sensors

Remote sensing systems which measure energy that is naturally available are called passive
sensors. Passive sensors can only be used to detect energy when the naturally occurring energy is
available. For all reflected energy, this can only take place during the time when the sun is
illuminating the Earth. There is no reflected energy available from the sun at night. Energy that is
naturally emitted (such as thermal infrared) can be detected day or night, as long as the amount of
energy is large enough to be recorded.

Passive sensors are microwave instruments designed to receive and to measure natural emissions
produced by constituents of the Earth's surface and its atmosphere. The power measured by passive
sensors is a function of the surface composition, physical temperature, surface roughness, and other
physical characteristics of the Earth. The frequency bands for passive sensor measurements are
determined by fixed physical properties (molecular resonance) of the substance being measured.
These frequencies do not change and information cannot be duplicated in other frequency bands.

Passive sensors are patterned after radio astronomy instruments, which detect emissions having
very low power. They are particularly sensitive to accumulated radiation from a multitude of
emitters on the ground, both from within the frequency band in which measurements are being
made, and from out-of-band. Space borne passive sensors provide the ability to obtain all-weather,
day and night, global observations of the Earth and its atmosphere. These space borne passive
sensors operate in frequency bands allocated to the Earth Exploration-Satellite Service or to the
Space Research Service.

Active Sensors

An active sensor is a radar instrument used for measuring signals transmitted by the sensor that
were reflected, refracted or scattered by the Earth's surface or its atmosphere. Space borne active
sensors have a variety of applications related to meteorology and observation of the Earth's surface
and atmosphere. For example, precipitation radars measure the radar echo from rainfall to
determine the rainfall rate over the Earth's surface; and cloud profile radars measure the radar echo
return from clouds to provide a three dimensional profile of cloud reflectivity over the Earth's
surface. Space borne active sensors operate in the Earth Exploration-Satellite Service or in the
Space Research Service. Active sensor frequency allocations are often shared with other radar
systems, as such systems are normally compatible with the operation of the sensors.

Active sensors provide their own energy source for illumination. The sensor emits radiation which
is directed toward the target to be investigated. The radiation reflected from that target is detected
and measured by the sensor. Advantages for active sensors include the ability to obtain
measurements anytime, regardless of the time of day or season. Active sensors can be used for
examining wavelengths that are not sufficiently provided by the sun, such as microwaves, or to
better control the way a target is illuminated. However, active systems require the generation of a
fairly large amount of energy to adequately illuminate targets. Some examples of active sensors are
a laser fluorosensor and synthetic aperture radar (SAR).

A camera provides an excellent example of both passive and active sensors. During a bright sunny
day, enough sunlight is illuminating the targets and then reflecting toward the camera lens, that the
camera simply records the radiation provided (passive mode). On a cloudy day or inside a room,
there is often not enough sunlight for the camera to record the targets adequately. Instead, it uses its
own energy source - a flash - to illuminate the targets and record the radiation reflected from them
(active mode).

p)Atmospheric Effects on Electromagnetic Energy

The Earth is constantly bombarded with electromagnetic radiation but the atmosphere protects us
from the exposure to higher energy waves that can be harmful to life – i.e. X-Ray and Gamma
Rays. The Earth's atmosphere reflects, absorbs and scatters electromagnetic radiation. This has
significant implications to remote sensing as most radiation detected by passive remote sensors
passes through the atmosphere where it interacts with molecules and particles in the atmosphere.
In portions of the electromagnetic spectrum significant amounts of energy are absorbed by the
Earth's atmosphere, with very little of the energy reaching the Earth's surface. All radiation
detected by remote sensors passes through the atmosphere for some distance, this distance is
known as path length. The path length can very; it could be a short path (i.e. hand-held camera) or
a very long path (space photography).

In remote sensing it is important to understand the impact the atmosphere has on electromagnetic
radiation. First, it is crucial to understand atmospheric windows and to be able to identify whether
or not a sensor can see through atmosphere in a given portion of the spectrum. Because the
atmosphere absorbs and scatters the incoming radiation we often want to correct for the
interaction. This process is known as "atmospheric correction" and is a common image processing
technique.

Atmospheric absorption affects mainly the visible and infrared bands. Optical remote sensing
depends on solar radiation as the source of illumination. Absorption reduces the solar radiance
within the absorption bands of the atmospheric gases. The reflected radiance is also attenuated
after passing through the atmosphere. This attenuation is wavelength dependent. Hence,
atmospheric absorption will alter the apparent spectral signature of the target being observed.
Atmospheric scattering is important only in the visible and near infrared regions. Scattering of
radiation by the constituent gases and aerosols in the atmosphere causes degradation of the
remotely sensed images. Most noticeably, the solar radiation scattered by the atmosphere towards
the sensor without first reaching the ground produces a hazy appearance of the image. This effect
is particularly severe in the blue end of the visible spectrum due to the stronger Rayleigh scattering
for shorter wavelength radiation.

Furthermore, the light from a target outside the field of view of the sensor may be scattered into
the field of view of the sensor. This effect is known as the adjacency effect. Near to the boundary
between two regions of different brightness, the adjacency effect results in an increase in the
apparent brightness of the darker region while the apparent brightness of the brighter region is
reduced. Scattering also produces blurring of the targets in remotely sensed images due to
spreading of the reflected radiation by scattering, resulting in a reduced resolution image.