Between the Poles

OpenStreetMap database contains 34 million km of roads and 78 million buildings

OpenStreetMap (OSM) was started in 2004 largely motivated by the expensive and restrictive licensing of the government spatial data available in the UK at the time.  Since then OSM has defined crowdsourcing in the geospatial domain. 

August 9^th 2004 was the day that the first user registered the domain and started the project.  I blogged about March 16th, 2009 when the 100 000^th user registered on OpenStreetMap.  On January 6, 2013, OpenStreetMap crossed the one million users mark.  The number is currently about 1.1 million registered users.  (OSM are careful to point out a majority of users are casual or inactive, with a small minority contributing the majority of additions and corrections to the map.)  When the number of users hit 750,000 the number of active mappers was about 24,000.  More than 1,000 new mappers contribute every day.  New edits appear on the map in about a minute.  In 2007 this took a week.

Initially OSM used a Creative Commons license, but OSM now has its own data license which it moved to on April 1st, 2012.

According to the just released 2013 OpenStreetMap Data Report, OSM's  database now contains 33,968,739 km (21,107,196 miles) worth of road data.  It also contains 78 million building footprints.  That's about 3.2 billion GPS points.

A new in-browser map editor was just released on OpenStreetMap.org. The new editor is designed to improve the first-time editing experience while providing a fast and intuitive interface for everyone mapping on OpenStreetMap.

NASA announces Landsat 8 data available for download

NASA has announced that the Landsat Data Continuity Mission's on-orbit checkout is complete, and it has been renamed Landsat 8 with the hand-off of operations to the USGS!

Starting at 1 pm CT on May 30 data collected by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) on the satellite is available for download from EarthExplorer and the LandsatLook Viewer. Data is available on GloVis since 2 pm CT

The satellite orbits the Earth every 99 minutes.   Landsat 8 images the entire Earth every 16 days in the same orbit used by Landsat 5. The data is available within 12 hours of reception.

OLI and TIRS data from Landsat 8 is processed to be consistent with the already archived Landsat 1 through 7 data products.   The OLI sensor includes refined heritage bands, along with two new band files, and a new Quality Assurance band file. The TIRS sensor provides two thermal bands. Band names, wavelengths and resolution for each sensor are listed.

A comparison of Landsat 8 and Landsat 7 band file combinations and wavelength values is available.

Resolution:

OLI multispectral bands 1-7,9: 30-meters
OLI panchromatic band 8: 15-meters
TIRS bands 10-11: collected at 100 meters but resampled
to 30 meters to match OLI multispectral bands

Format:          

GeoTIFF data format

Executive order makes open and machine readable data the default for the US Federal Government

The principle of free and open access to government geospatial data has been adopted by many governments including US Federal, Canada, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, California, and by the City of Vancouver and other cities.  But being able to access prepared maps and other derived material is just a first step, governments need to provide access to raw geospatial data in commonly used Web-friendly formats. Tim Berners-Lee, in Government Data Design Issues, is a strong advocate of making raw data accessible over the web including supporting standard Web methods, most critically, searching.

An Executive Order has been released by the White House which makes open and machine readable (raw) data the default for government information.

"To promote continued job growth, Government efficiency, and the social good that can be gained from opening Government data to the public, the default state of new and modernized Government information resources shall be open and machine readable. Government information shall be managed as an asset throughout its life cycle to promote interoperability and openness, and, wherever possible and legally permissible, to ensure that data are released to the public in ways that make the data easy to find, accessible, and usable. In making this the new default state, executive departments and agencies (agencies) shall ensure that they safeguard individual privacy, confidentiality, and national security."

Location-enabled Society: Mapping tweets using real-time big data technology and privacy

In a very appropriately titled session Taking Society's Pulse in Real-time at the Creating the Policy and Legal Framework for a Location-enabled Society conference in Boston, one item really got people's attention focussed on the issues that arise from combining location with personal data. TweetMap is a technology that visualizes a large number of tweets on a map of the world. This is not the first time I have seen tweets mapped.  But what really got people's attention is that a speaker showed how to drill down to your neighbourhood and see what the people next door are tweeting about.  Of course you can do this without a map by simply following your neighbors on Twitter.  But somehow mapping it makes it seem more intrusive, even invasive to some people. In another demonstration, Tweetmap was used to show how a person sailing in the Caribbean could be tracked as they tweeted from their boat.

To be tracked geospatially on Twitter requires that you explicitly agree to geolocation tracking for Twitter on your iPhone or Android device.  For example, on an iPhone the geolocation option allows you to make your location known to others. Apps such as Facebook or Twitter for iPhone can report your location as well as the messages you post.  The iPhone requires that these applications obtain your permission before they can be enabled.  Apparently only about 2-4% of smart phone users, mostly younger folks, agree to this.  After seeing a Tweetmap drill down, I would expect that some people might have second thoughts about agreeing to the gelocation option. And in the not too distant future this will be possible in real-time on inexpensive hardware with open souce software.

TweetMap is an instance of MapD, a massively parallel database platform being developed through a collaboration between Todd Mostak, (a researcher at MIT), and the Harvard Center for Geographic Analysis (CGA).  Currently the tweet database starts on 12/10/2012 and ends on 12/31/2012 and contains 125 million tweets.  The database can be queried by time, space, and keyword.  The ultimate objective is to be able to query billions of tweets live in real-time.  In this case real-time means from tweet to tweet on a map in under a second.

MapD is a general purpose SQL database that can be used to provide real-time visualization and analysis of very large data sets.  MapD uses commodity Graphic Processing Units (GPUs) to parallelize compute intensive tasks such as querying and rendering very large data sets on-the-fly.  MapD runs on inexpensive hardware ( ~$1000) and is intended to be open source.

Open source geospatial lab announced at University of Southampton

The Open Source Geospatial Foundation (OSGEO) has announced the formation of the Open Source Geospatial Laboratory (OSGL) at the University of Southampton in the UK..

In 2011, the International Cartographic Association (ICA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the OSGeo to develop global collaboration opportunities for academia, industry and government organisations in the field of open source geospatial software and data.

The Open Source Geospatial Laboratory is supported by the GeoData Institute and Geography and Environment at the University of Southampton and brings together staff from various disciplines including Engineering, Geography, Electronics and Computer Science.

The laboratory will conduct open source research for geospatial software and data, using open source geospatial software and data as tools and contributing to the development of tools, standards and data through research. The lab will seek to exploit new opportunities for research, often in partnership with other OSGLs and members of the ICA-OSGeo initiative. The Laboratory will also deliver open source geospatial training programs.

US Government releases national strategy for civil Earth observation

The National Science and Technology Council has released a National Strategy for Civil Earth Observation..  Currently, 11 Federal departments and agencies participate in over 100 Earth observation programs which together cost billions of dollars annually. The Strategy provides a mechanism for assessment and planning across all the Federal agencies engaged in Earth observations. It outlines a process for evaluating and prioritizing Earth-observation investments according to their social value in critical areas including agriculture, climate change, disasters, water resources, and weather.

The Strategy will be used as a blueprint for future investments in US Earth-observing systems. It will also support  the United States’ commitment to work with international partners through the multi-national Group on Earth Observations (GEO).

The National Strategy includes two main elements

• A policy framework and method for Federal Government assessment of Earth observations (data and products derived from Earth observing systems).
• Data management guidelines for improving information delivery systems for Earth observation data.

 

Providing web access to usable open geospatial data

The principle of free and open access to government geospatial data has been adopted by many governments including US Federal, Canada, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, California, and by the City of Vancouver and other cities.  But being able to access prepared maps and other derived material is just a first step, governments need to provide access to raw geospatial data in commonly used Web-friendly formats. Tim Berners-Lee, in Government Data Design Issues, is a strong advocate of making raw data accessible over the web including supporting standard Web methods, most critically, searching.

GeoREST

I blogged previously about an initiative called GeoREST developed by Haris Kurtagic and implemented by Jason Birch at Nanaimo for property records that attempted to enable visual browsing of open datasets, support standard search engines, plus enable simple access to raw geospatial data in web-friendly formats such as GeoJSON.

What do users want ?

Brian Timoney has reported metrics and a analysis of  how the public actually uses local goverment web maps. He has also created a minimally viable property lookup service.

In light of this Bill Morris has developed an alternative way of accessing public datasets that he feels is compelling to technicians as well as to the lay public, as an example, a template geoportal for accessing multipurpose public data, specifically, building records.

He targeted his geoportal on two audiences:

1. Citizens who want to access their own zoning information and permit history fast.  These folks can search for address, see buildings in context, and get the basic information in one minute or less.
2. GIS analysts who want to download raw building footprint geodata for urban planning, disaster response or cartography.   Thes folks acn download all the features within the current view extent, in a choice of interoperable formats.

Value of geospatial services to the United States economy

According to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) the geospatial services industry in the United States generates annual revenues of $75 billion annually.  That is about 0.5 % of the US GDP. The report breaks the geospatial services industry into geospatial data including maps and imagery, geospatial software, applications and devices and geo-expert services.  End users of geospatial services are government, business, and consumers.

For comparison studies of the contribution of the geospatial industry in Australia and New Zealand estimated a contribution of between 0.6 and 1.2% of the GDP in the case of Australia and 0.6 % in the case of New Zealand. 

The BCG report estimates the economic impact of the geospatial services industry on government, business, and consumers is estimated to be $1.6 trillion in revenues (greater efficacy) and $1.4 trillion in cost savings (greater efficiency).

The BCG study reports that the value that consumers ascribe to geospatial services is about $37 billion per year or about $350 per year for the average U.S. household.

BCG also estimates that more than 5 million employees in the U.S. in a variety of industries use geospatial services as part of their job.

BCG forecasts that the economic impact of geospatial services in three business functions, marketing, logistics, and strategic decision-making will increase by at least 10 percent a year over the next five years. 

BCG forecasts that the geospatial services industry will reach $100 billion in annual revenues over the next five years.  It projects that the efficiency gain in the U.S. economy will reach $2.6 trillion.  But the report cautions that to continue this growth will require sustained public- and private-sector cooperation and partnership, open policies governing collection and dissemination of location-based data and increased technical education and training at all levels.

Thanks to Talbot Brooks for pointing me to the BCG report.

Contribution of geospatial to the Canadian economy

Two countries, Australia and New Zealand, have commissioned studies to estimate the contribution of geospatial data and technology to the national economy.  Canada has just announced the award of a similar project to a team that includes ACIL Tasman, who conducted the Australian and New Zealand studies.

Australia

In 2008 a report The Value of Spatial Information, The impact of modern spatial information technologies on the Australian economy was prepared for the CRC for Spatial Information & ANZLIC – the Spatial Information Council by ACIL Tasman. 

The report found that in 2006/2007 the spatial information sector contributed between $6.4 billion and $12.6 billion to the gross domestic product (GDP), which represents between 0.6% and 1.2% of the GDP.

Secondly, it found that restrictions on access to spatial data reduced productivity in some economic  sectors by between 5% and 15% which could have reduced the GDP by about 7% in 2006-2007.

Thirdly, it projected that with the right policies the contribution of the spatial information sector to the national economy in the medium term had the potential to be up to 50% higher than in 2006-2007.  In other words, instead of a contribution of about 1%, the spatial information sector could have contributed 1.5% of GDP.

New Zealand

In August 2011 a study was released by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), the Department of Conservation (DOC) and the Ministry for Economic Development (MED) that estimated the contribution spatial information makes to the New Zealand economy.  

According to the report the use of spatial information added at least $1.2 billion, about 0.6% of GDP, to the economy last year through productivity gains, but the report indicates that wider and better use of spatial information could lead to even greater productivity and add another $481 million to the economy.

Canada

Natural Resources Canada’s Mapping Information Branch in collaboration with the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing and the Surveyor General Branch, has announced the award of a contract  to Hickling Arthurs Low Corporation and partners ACIL Tasman, Fujitsu Canada and ConsultingWhere,  to conduct the Canadian study.
 
The primary focus for the study is to understand the current situation and emerging trends in Canadian geospatial activities and their overall direct and indirect economic value and contribution to the Canadian economy.  There are two components to the project.  The first is a geomatics environmental scan to examine the current geospatial information market in Canada and profile the Canadian geomatics sector.  The second is a economic value study that will determine the value of open geospatial information within the Canadian economy and its contribution to competitiveness and innovation in Canada, evaluate geospatial information as a ‘public good’ in the Canadian context, and make recommendations on the future strategic direction for geospatial information in Canada with an emphasis on the roles that can be played by the government, industry and academia.

The study will be managed by the GeoConnections Program of NRCan’s Mapping Information Branch and is scheduled to be completed by March 31, 2014.

Free and open authoritative European geospatial data site launched

Starting 8 March 2013, a 1:1 million scale topographic dataset, EuroGlobalMap has been available free of charge for any use under a new open data licence, the EuroGeographics OpenData Licence, which allows you to:

• Reproduce the Product, distribute it and communicate it to the public;
• Adapt the Product and reproduce, distribute and communicate the adaptation to the public;
• Extract and re-utilise the data of the database (as a part of the Product);
• Exploit the Product (and its derivative creations) commercially.

All you have to do is to acknowledge the copyright and the source of the data by including an attribution statement:

“© EuroGeographics. Original product is freely available at www.eurogeographics.org. Terms of the licence available at http://www.eurogeographics.org/form/topographic-data-eurogeographics”

And you have to avoid anything that suggests that EuroGeographics endorses you or your use of the data.

The data is comprised of six themes - administrative boundaries; names locations; transport networks; settlements; elevation; and the water network.  The data is sourced from authoritative national mapping supplied by 45 European countries and territories, members of EuroGeographics, the Association for European Mapping, Cadastre and Land Registry Authorities.