Tuesday, June 30. 2009

Podcast: Delivering Maps to the FBI

This past week two geospatial practitioners were cited for their good work by the FBI. What did they do? At the request of the Bureau, they went online and found some Digital Raster Graphics, scanned quad maps, printed them and gave them to agents working in their area. Is this how agents and others in the federal government, or even citizens, should get their geographic data? What does this scenario reveal about the FBI? The state of our geospatial infrastructure? The value of the geospatial workforce?


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Posted by Adena Schutzberg in Google, USGS, Directions on the News Podcast at 01:00 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Tuesday, June 9. 2009

Digital USGS Quads Now Available from The National Map - Beta

When last we heard from USGS (February, at the NSGIC mid-year, APB post), the plan was to use The National Map as the engine to produce digital geoPDF quads. Well, the beta of this workflow is now available. It went up quietly last week. Luckily, Gary Price at Resource Shelf let me know when he found it. The latest news from USGS is from May 8. (Just sayin'; I know the USGS folks work very hard!)

Today, if you visit the Digital Map page of the TMN you'll learn of this beta. Basic info:

The "Digital Map - Beta" is the first step toward a new generation of digital topographic maps delivered by the U.S. Geological Survey. These maps are built from The National Map data, which are integrated from local, State, Federal, and other sources. The initial version of the "Digital Map – Beta" includes orthoimagery plus roads and geographic names in the traditional 7.5 minute quadrangle format. "Digital Maps - Beta" are available free on the Web in the GeoPDF format. File size is about 15 to 20 Megabytes.

Tools are available free for download. Users can turn data layers on and off, zoom in and out, and print the maps. As the "Digital Map - Beta" evolves, the USGS will add historical versions of the topographic maps and will incorporate other data layers including hydrography and contours. Use of the term "Beta" signifies that these maps are initial versions that do not yet contain the full content of the traditional USGS topographic quadrangle maps.

The USGS values your comments and suggestions about the new "Digital Map - Beta".

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in USGS at 15:42 | Comments (3) | Trackbacks (0) |

Tuesday, June 2. 2009

Podcast: A Geospatial Look at Data.gov

Last week the federal government launched data.gov, a data portal to enhance transparency. What's in it for geospatial practitioners and how will the new offering evolve? Our editors share their thoughts on the current offering and some possible paths forward.


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Posted by Adena Schutzberg in ESRI, USGS, Standards, Directions on the News Podcast, Data at 01:00 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Wednesday, April 15. 2009

USGS Selects Vivisimo as Search Engine for NBII

USGS picked the Vivisimo Velocity Search Platform to replace the National Biological Information Infrastructure's (NBII) current search solution. "NBII is a broad, collaborative program to provide increased access to data and information on the nation's biological resources."

What's the current search solution? So far as I can tell "Custom Google Search."

The Velocity implementation will initially search at least 30 diverse data sources - and here's the interesting geo part - "Velocity will also enable geospatial display of search results - allowing users to search for certain plants or animals in a specific region or location." I wonder if USGS will use the tool on its other websites?

- press release

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in USGS at 06:00 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Thursday, March 5. 2009

Podcast: Landsat 5 Retrospective...an Interview with Dr. Tom Loveland, USGS EROS Data Center

On March 3rd, the U. S. Geological Survey marked the 25th anniversary of the launch of the Landsat 5. The earth imaging satellite in a sun synchronous orbit with the Thematic Mapper (TM) payload offered both better spectral and spatial resolution than previous Landsat missions with the Multispectral Scanner (MSS). Editor in chief Joe Francica speaks with Dr. Tom Loveland, a USGS scientist at the EROS Data Center with over 30 years of experience with the Landsat mission.

Dr. Loveland was among the first to create continental and global-scale land cover data sets derived from remotely-sensed imagery. He currently leads a USGS research team that is developing a contemporary land cover history of the United States. In addition, Dr. Loveland is leading the Landsat Data Continuity Mission Science Team and is a member of the NASA National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Preparatory Project science team. He is a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Land Use Sciences and has served in leadership roles in a number of national and international science organizations including the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Climate Change Science Program, and the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme. Dr. Loveland has published almost 90 scientific papers and has received career achievement awards from the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing and the Association of American Geographers. Dr. Loveland has B.S. and M.S. degrees in geography from South Dakota State University and a Ph.D. in geography from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

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Posted by Joe Francica in USGS, Remote Sensing, Podcasts, Special Topics Podcast at 09:40 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) |

Wednesday, February 25. 2009

The National Map: Quad Sheet Factory

Mark DeMulder of USGS briefed NSGIC on The National Map this week. He started with why the program exists, citing three basic reasons:

- serves info to decision makers
- supports our science mission of USGS too
- cross-jurisdictional maps are useful in emergencies

He then moved on to what The National Map got from the Stimulus Bill. Right now, it looks like the program will receive $15 million to add to its typical $60 million budget.

He went on to focus on basically one use of The National Map that’ll start showing itself in the coming months: electronic topo quads.

Posted by Adena Schutzberg in USGS, NSGIC 09 Mid-Year at 07:56 | Comments (5) | Trackbacks (0) |