A GIS can answer five generic questions by analyzing geographic data and features: location, condition, trends, patterns, and modeling. It integrates hardware, software, data, and personnel to capture, store, manipulate, analyze and display geospatial data. Key components of GIS include geospatial data capture through remote sensing, GPS, and digitization; data storage and management in vector and raster formats; data analysis and visualization; and information output.

1. Introduction to GIS
June 13, 2011

2. Introducing GIS concepts
• What is a GIS
• Five generic questions that a
sophisticated GIS can answer
• Components of geographic data
• GIS functions
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3. Five generic questions that a
sophisticated GIS can answer
• Location
What is at ….?
• Condition
Where is it ?
• Trends
What has changed since … ?
• Patterns
What spatial patterns exists ?
• Modeling
What if … ?
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4. Location
• Locate a specific feature or attribute
France flashes
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5. Condition
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6. Trends
Changes in the same area but in different
seasons
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7. GIS is used for decision making …
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8. GIS definition
An organized collection of computer hardware,
software,
geographic data & personnel
designed
to efficiently
capture ,
store,
update,
manipulate,
analyze ,
and display
all forms of geographically referenced information.
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9. What is a GIS?
• An integration of five basic components
Procedures
A
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10. GIS functions
Capture Analyze
Store Display
Query Output
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11. 1) Data Capturing
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12. Remote Sensing
• SPOT
• Landsat (TM) SPOT
• RadarSAT
• NOAA LANDSAT
• ERS
RADARSAT
ERS
NOAA

13. Remote Sensing

14. Global Positioning Systems
• GPS is a revolutionary
navigation system
– 24 satellites orbiting the
earth
– Provide location within
metres or less anywhere on
the globe.
– Now available in many cars
as an option

15. Capturing data
Paper maps Digital data
GIS
Data
1,543.42 2223.54
2,582.32 5947.65
3,577.22 6548.52
4,857.66 9856.56
5,875.25 6582.12
Coordinates
GPS
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16. Features as vector & raster
Vector
Points Lines Polygons
Raster
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17. Abstracting real-world entities
real-
Geographic
• Real-world
Real- entities can
be abstracted
database
into three basic shapes
Points Lines/Arcs/Routes Areas/Polygons/Regions
(Retail stores) (Streets) (Land uses)
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18. Linking features and attributes
• Feature classes have an associated table
• Each feature has a record in the table
– Unique identifier links feature and attributes
FID = 4103
(Feature IDentifier)
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19. Query
• Identifying features based on conditions
Landlocked
countries with
a population
greater than Uzbekistan
20,000,000
Ethiopia
A
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20. What is a GIS?
(Geographic Information System)
• A Method of Organizing Data
– Geographic Data (Maps)
– Descriptive Data (Databases)
– Images
• A Method of Distributing Data
• A Method of Analyzing Data
• A Method of Visualizing Data

21. GIS – Describing Our World
We can describe any
element of our world
in two ways:
Attribute Information:
What is it?
Location Information:
Where is it? Species: Oak
Height: 15m
Age: 75 Yrs
Condition:
Good
51°N, 112°W
51° 112°

22. GIS - Links Datasets
• GIS software links the
location data and the
attribute data:

23. GIS - Analysis
• GIS software can answer Attribute Questions:
questions about our world:
What provinces have more
than 1.5 million people?
Spatial Questions:
What provinces border
Saskatchewan?

24. How GIS works
• In a GIS, different types of
information are represented
as separate map layers
• Each layer is linked to
descriptive information
• Layers are combined to make
a map

25. GIS - Analysis
• GIS can analyze data in many ways:

26. Summary - What is GIS?
• GIS is about using data to describe our
world in two ways:
– Location Data - Where is it?
– Attribute Data - What is it?
• GIS software maintains a link between
layers of location and attribute data
– With the link, we can ask questions about
our world…

27. GIS Technology Is Increasingly
Common in Today's Applications.

28. Tsunami Relief

29. Hurricane Tracking and
Response

30. Agriculture / Suitability Analysis

31. Municipalities / Planning

32. Health Care

33. Telecommunication

34. Cartography

35. School District Admin
• School mapping and
redistricting
• Enrollment analysis
• Facilities
management
• School
transportation
• Staff/student
location analysis
• School safety

36. Classroom Applications
• History
• Earth Science
• Social Studies
• Biology
• Environmental
Studies
• Political
Science
• Mathematics
• Economics
• Business
• Computer
Science

37. Creation of DEM
Gollalapale Bhilimili
m
Edulapaka
and
Bonangi
Bay of
Bengal
Nadupuru
Reserved
Forest

38. Possible Routes

39. Identification of Ground water
Potential Zones

40. Landuse/Land cover changes

41. Flood Modelling

42. Automatic Delineation of Streams

43. View the surveyed GPS data in
Google Earth

44. Measure the distance from one
place to other

45. Overlay the images one above the
other

46. Digitization

47. Create Contour values
automatically

48. Creation of DEM and TIN

49. 3D View – Buildings in Google
Earth

50. 3D View in Arc Scene

51. Optimum routing/possible routes

52. Buffer Analysis

53. Preparation of Thematic Maps

54. Overlaying of thematic maps