Orthorectified Photomosaic FAQ Metadata

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Frequently-anticipated questions:

• What does this data set describe?
  1. How should this data set be cited?
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
• Who produced the data set?
  1. Who are the originators of the data set?
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
• Why was the data set created?
• How was the data set created?
  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
• How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?
  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the data, including topology?
• How can someone get a copy of the data set?
  1. Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
  2. Who distributes the data?
  3. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  4. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
  5. How can I download or order the data?
• Who wrote the metadata?

What does this data set describe?

1. How should this data set be cited?

   North Carolina State University, Center for Earth Observation, 20040915, Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site Color Infrared Orthorectified Photomosaic (ERDAS IMAGINE 8.6 .img and MrSID formats).

   Online Links:

   • <http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/ftp/vegmapping/alpo/alpoortho.zip>

2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

   West_Bounding_Coordinate: -78.876888

   East_Bounding_Coordinate: -78.429416

   North_Bounding_Coordinate: 40.485450

   South_Bounding_Coordinate: 40.334037

   Description_of_Geographic_Extent: Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site and environs

3. What does it look like?

4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

   Calendar_Date: 13-Apr-2003

   Currentness_Reference: ground condition

5. What is the general form of this data set?

   Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: remote-sensing image

6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
   1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Raster data set. It contains the following raster data types:

      • Dimensions 55299 x 60809, type Pixel

   2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator

      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:

      UTM_Zone_Number: 17

      Transverse_Mercator:

      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.999600

      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -81.000000

      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0.000000

      False_Easting: 500000.000000

      False_Northing: 0.000000

      Planar coordinates are encoded using row and column
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.297
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.297
      Planar coordinates are specified in meters

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1983.
      The ellipsoid used is Geodetic Reference System 80.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222.
      

7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

   Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:

   Dataset consists of a raster 3 band color image. The bands are blue, green and near infrared. Each pixel contains a value between 0 - 255.

   Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: none

Who produced the data set?

1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
   • North Carolina State University, Center for Earth Observation

2. Who also contributed to the data set?

   Bill Millinor

3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
   Nathan Piekielek
   Data Manager
   208 C Ferguson Building
   University Park, Pennsylvania 16802
   USA
   

   (814) 863-2320 (voice)
   Nathan_Piekielek@nps.gov
   

Why was the data set created?

The dataset was developed for use by Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS as a GIS component and for digital monoplotting and mapping.

How was the data set created?

1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

   dem (source 1 of 2)

   (<http://seamless.usgs.gov>), USGS, unknown, 30 Meter Digital Elevation Model- USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED).

   Type_of_Source_Media: online

   Source_Scale_Denominator: 30 meter

   Source_Contribution: elevation

   photos (source 2 of 2)

   Kucrea International, Inc, Unpublished Material, Aerial photographs of Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS.

   Type_of_Source_Media: color ir aerial transparencies

   Source_Scale_Denominator: 6000

   Source_Contribution: Aerial view of Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS

2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

   Date: Dec-2003 (process 1 of 1)

   The photos (84 total) were used to create two orthorectified mosaics using ER Mapper 6.4 and ERDAS IMAGINE 8.6. The photos were scanned at 1200 dpi and imported into IMAGINE. A 30 meter DEM was downloaded from the NED and then resampled to 10 meters. The images were orthorectified using ERDAS IMAGINE Orthobase software and airborne GPS and IMU data. The orthorectified images were then mosaicked within ER Mapper to form two seamless basemap images for Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS. The mosaics were compressed using MrSID software at a 20:1 target compression ratio. (NOTE: the row and column counts below under Spatial_Data_Organization_Information were calculated by adding the values for the two mosaics.)

   Person who carried out this activity:
   

   NCSU, Center for Earth Observation
   NCSU, Center For Earth Observation
   NCSU Campus Box 7106
   Raleigh, NC 27695-7106
   USA
   

   919-515-3430 (voice)
   919-515-3439 (FAX)
   

3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

1. How well have the observations been checked?

2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

   Overall positional accuracy of 1.184640162 Horizontal accuracy was assessed on the basis of 55 field survey points distributed throughout the image. The actual field coordinates for these points were recorded with a Trimble ProXRS GPS unit with real-time differential correction with a minimum of 120 (usually 180 depending on field conditions) fixes per point. The field coordinates were then compared to the image mosaic coordinates for these points, determined in ESRI ArcView 3.3 software.

3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

   Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS

5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

   none

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: none

Use_Constraints: none

1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
   USGS/CSS/Core Science Analytics and Synthesis
   c/o USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program Coordinator
   Denver Federal Center, Building 810, Room 8000, MS 302
   Denver, Colorado 80225
   

   (303) 202-4220 (voice)
   303-202-4219 (FAX)
   gs-b-npsveg@usgs.gov
   

2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

   Orthorectified 3 band color infrared image of Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS.

3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

   The U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained herein. These data and related graphics (if available) are not legal documents and are not intended to be used as such.

   The information contained in these data is dynamic and may change over time. The data are not better than the original sources from which they were derived. It is the responsibility of the data user to use the data appropriately and consistent within the limitations of geospatial data in general and these data in particular. Any related graphics (if available) are intended to aid the data user in acquiring relevant data; it is not approriate to use the related graphics as data.

   The U.S. Geological Survey and the National Park Service gives no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of these data. It is strongly recommended that these data are directly acquired from an U.S. Geological Survey and National Park Service servers and not indirectly through other sources which may have changed the data in some way. Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey, no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the utility of the data on another system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This disclaimer applies both to individual use of the data and aggregate use with other data. It is also strongly recommended that careful attention be paid to the contents of the metadata file associated with these data. Mention of trade names or commercial products in this metadata report does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the U. S. Department of the Interior, U. S. Geological Survey and National Park Service.

4. How can I download or order the data?
   • Availability in digital form:

     Data format:	HTML
     Network links:	<http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/alpo/index.html>

   • Cost to order the data: None

5. Is there some other way to get the data?

   Contact Natthan Piekielek 208 C Ferguson Building University Park, PA 16802 814-863-2320 Nathan_Piekielek@nps.gov

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:

Last modified: 20-Nov-2006
Last Reviewed: 11-May-2010

Metadata author:

USGS/CSS/Core Science Analytics and Synthesis
c/o USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program Coordinator
Denver Federal Center, Building 810, Room 8000, MS 302
Denver, Colorado 80225

(303) 202-4220 (voice)
303-202-4219 (FAX)
gs-b-npsveg@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:

FGDC Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001.1-1999)

Metadata extensions used:

• <http://www.nbii.gov/portal/server.pt/community/fgdc_metadata/255>