ObjectivesPrepare, Print, and Save MapLAB 2 Map Projections This assignment is to be completed individually. Learning Objectives: • Metadata • Metadata and projection in ArcCatalog • Set Workspace Environment • Projection tools using ArcToolbox • Prepare, print, and save map Learning Materials: Relevant topic materials are available on eCampus under this week’s link. *** Make note of answers to any questions raised in this lab instructions. It is also recommended that you read Lab Questions 2 assignment to learn about the lab questions before beginning the lab. That way you can concurrently answer the questions or make a note of potential answers as you move forward with the lab. You will need to use ArcGIS to answer certain lab questions. NOTE: • Always save your work in an appropriate local drive where you have write access to (i.e. where you can save, edit, and access the file when needed) and keep saving all your course files there. If you are working on your computer, it is best to save files to your computer hard drive. If it is not your computer (e.g. in a computer lab), please save all files in an external/flash drive. See Lab00b document on Downloading Data and Working with Zip Files. • Make note of the directory/location of the file so that you do not lose track of it. The instructions will refer to the drive as “local drive.” *** DO NOT let the program save your work to a default geodatabase folder (ending with .gdb), unless the instructions ask you to do so ***Lab 2 – Map Projections Page 2 Metadata Data management is one of the best practices in working with GIS. Before you begin working with any GIS data, it is crucial that you check for the spatial reference (coordinate system and datum) of the data in order to ensure that data can show up properly and/or be able to line up with other data. Since data can come from many different sources, the spatial reference used, if any, even when the data represent the same entity or geographical location, can differ. Failure to attend to the data’s projection can result in mismatching of the data and further cause more problems in the subsequent GIS work process. A good starting point is to look for information about the data, i.e. metadata. Certain types of data come with a separate metadata file, e.g. a text file (.txt) or a HTML or XML file that links to the metadata. Information provided in the metadata allows you to understand the spatial reference associated with the data. If no information is available, then you may try checking with data provider, looking for a common projection used for the specific data, or cross-checking the data with another data that contains a known coordinate system. ArcGIS provides options to project data onto the map, define projection of data that comes with no spatial reference, or convert data from one spatial reference to another. ArcMap has the ability to project data ‘on-the-fly,’ meaning that the program can automatically convert data to a different spatial reference once the data is added into ArcMap. Other than visualizing this projected on-the-fly data, data can (and should) be permanently converted into a different spatial reference using projection tools in ArcToolbox. For data that contains no spatial reference, a define projection tool in ArcToolbox needs to be used first before converting the data into a different spatial reference. The steps below will walk you through these important projection tasks and tools. 1. Open ArcCatalog (can also be clicked from the menu bar or from the Catalog tab on the far-right in ArcMap) 2. Browse for Lab01 folder. 3. Right-click the landuse.shp file in the Catalog Tree. 4. Select Properties. 5. Click the XY Coordinate System tab. Click Geographic Coordinate System. Notice that it is unknown. See the image to the right. Click the X mark on the top-right to close the dialog box.Lab 2 – Map Projections Page 3 6. In ArcCatalog, click to highlight the urban.shp file in ArcCatalog Tree. 7. Right-click the urban.shp file in ArcCatalog Tree and select Properties. 8. Click the XY Coordinate System tab. Notice the Geographic Coordinate System is Listed, and therefore the projection is defined for this file as “NAD_1983_UTM_Zone_14N.” Click to close the dialog box. See a graphic below. 9. In ArcCatalog, search Lab01 folder for the description for the roads.shp, urban.shp, landuse.shp, and soils.shp files (look for the .txt files, and NOT .txt.xml file!). Double-click the file. Look for the projection information. This is the original projection used when the data was collected. Make note of the projection information. *** This is the information we use to define the projection of data in ArcCatalog or ArcMap. Metadata of the file is of critical importance as it describes information of the data. Especially when starting on a project, one needs to reference the metadata, if available, to properly define a coordinate system (in the case that the data contains an unknown coordinate system) before projecting it to a desired coordinate system.Lab 2 – Map Projections Page 4 McMillian Project Abstract The McMillian Research Properties are located in Northeast Texas around the City of Overton. These properties provide a variety of landscape types on which to perform a wide range of analysis. In the winter of 2004, an extensive project was initiated to plot the different properties’ boundaries. This research was part of the "Risk analysis of forest management options for the Bruce McMillan, Jr. Foundation properties" undertaken by a graduate student at Texas A&M. This lab project may be your first exposure to GIS and the ArcGIS software with real world case. The resulting shapefiles will be used for labs and/or other assignments. Objectives - You will become familiar with ArcCatalog and ArcMap - Gain experience investigating and adding data layers - You will define the projections for shapefiles and imagery - You will analyze metadata files Project Plan 1. Download and extract Lab02.zip to your appropriate local directory (if you have not done so). 2. Open ArcCatalog (Start [or click Windows icon] > All Programs [or All Apps] > ArcGIS > ArcCatalog 10.x). 3. Make a connection to the McMillan shapefiles (Lab02 folder). a) Click Connect to Folder button. b) Navigate to the local directory in the pop-up dialog box. Click OK to connect to it. c) In the ArcCatalog Tree, click