Energy & Environmental Information Resources Center
e-Newsletter #4, September 1999
Topics:
We are pleased to welcome aboard a new member to the EE-IR Center initiative, Dr. Minkoo Kim, now employed as a Research Scientist at CACS. Author of numerous articles and presentations, Dr. Kim received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from Pennsylvania State University in 1989. Dr. Kim was previously teaching in the Department of Information and Computer Engineering, Ajou University, Suwon, Korea. His current research interests are intelligent information retrieval, intelligent character agents, and multimedia authoring.
Twice per year the Energy and Environmental Information Resources Center writes a "Continuation Progress Report." This report is sent to our project liaison, Dr. Dennis Traylor, at the Department of Energy's Office of Science, Technology & Information. The back issues of our reports are all available on the EE-IR Center Web site, at http://eeirc.nwrc.gov/pubs.htm . You can read the lastest report in .pdf format at the following address: http://eeirc.nwrc.gov/pubs/prog0799.pdf
On 20 August, Larry Handley, Brent Yantis, Nathan Handley, Suzanne Harrison, Dan Foley, Adam Chandler and Lynda Wayne met to discuss the relationship and possible cooperative activities between the NASA/USL Regional Applications Center, the Louisiana Geographic Information Center, and the Energy and Environmental Information Resources Center.
The most obvious common thread between the three research groups is FGDC-compliant metadata. Since all three groups are involved in the production and distribution of metadata and data sets, there is a need therefore, to communicate and cooperate to eliminate duplicate effort.
The EE-IR Center and RAC have a close working relationship already, primarily through the work of Suzanne Harrison, who is involved in both projects. Suzanne writes FGDC-compliant metadata for both groups and has completed six FGDC metadata records for data sets produced or housed at RAC. Her colleague, Dan Foley writes Dublin Core and Marc versions of these FGDC metadata records.
The main topic discussed at the meeting was to decide which node should the EE-IR Center FGDC metadata be placed in. There are several options. The two most sensible choices we all agree are to either send the metadata records to LAGIC, or to create and operate a node running at RAC: this node would run the ISITE Z39.50 software, and would then be indexed and available through both the NBII and FGDC Clearinghouse sites, thus making the metadata and data sets therein described available through those additional access points. The LAGIC node is close to being online, and will house metadata created through the LOSCO and LSU teams to start. (A decision was made after the meeting to establish a RAC/EE-IR Center metadata node.)
Nathan Handley, now employed by a private firm in Texas, proposed a model for metadata distribution within Louisiana that was discussed and critiqued.
See also:
Louisiana Geographic Information Center
http://lagic.lsu.edu/
The EE-IR Center is pleased to report that a collaborative research relationship is being established with the Internet Scout Project. The Internet Scout Project is a National Science Foundation sponsored Internet information service based in the Computer Sciences Department at the University of Wisconsin - Madison.
The EE-IR Center will be collaborating on their distributed metadata research initiative, called Isaac. The Isaac Network uses the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). The EE-IR Center will be operating one of the first Isaac nodes. We will place our 250+ Dublin Core metadata records in the node server, thus providing ANOTHER access point to our high quality, subject-specific metadata. More detail on the project will appear in future issues of the EE-IR Center e-Newsletter.
See also:
Internet Scout Project
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/
Isaac Network
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/research/index.html
"Toolkits and Applications for Natural Resource Management" is the theme for the 1999 Mid-South Region of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing fall meeting. The meeting is being held at the University Center, Stephen F. Austin State University Nacogdoches, Texas, 7 - 8 October 1999.
Larry Handley and Suzanne Harrison will be presenting a paper, titled "The Energy & Environmental Information Resources (EE-IR) Center: A Partnership in Spatial Data Handling."
See also:
Mid-South ASPRS Web site
http://rac.usl.edu/msasprs/index.html
Decimal Degree Conversion Tools
By Dan Foley
GIS specialists, map librarians, and others interested in geospatial data sets may want to convert decimal degrees (DD) to degrees-minutes-seconds (DMS) or vice versa (DMS to DD). This can be done with a calculator on many Windows PCs, by using converters available at two Internet sites, or by using mathematical formulas.
The information here was submitted as responses to a question about decimal degree conversion posted to MAPS-L, the list of the American Library Association's Maps and Geography Round Table (MAGERT):
I. Scientific Calculator
The calculator on many Windows PCs has two formats: standard and scientific. The latter can be used for decimal degree conversion. Go to Start -> Accessories -> Calculator, then and select "Scientific" under View. (Information provided by Jenny Stone, GIS Librarian, Map Collection, University of Washington Libraries.)
To convert DD to DMS, enter a latitude or longitude and click the "dms" button.
Examples:
Enter latitude of Lafayette, La. = 30.22389, click "dms" = 30.1326004 = 30 deg 13'26.004"
Enter longitude of Lafayette, La. = 92.01972, click "dms" = 92.0110992 = 92 deg 01'10.992"
To convert DMS to DD, enter a lat/long, check "Inv" box, then click "dms".
Examples:
Enter 30 deg 13'26" = enter 30.1326, "Inv", "dms" = 30.22389
Enter 92 deg 01'11" = enter 92.0111, "Inv," "dms" = 92.01972
II. Converters on the Internet
There are at least two converters (DD to DMS and DMS to DD) available on the Internet,
from the University of Northumbria and Vancouver Web sites. The latter also provides
elevation in feet or meters and has a clickable map for approximate coordinates.
University of Northumbria converter by Gary J. Park: DD to DMS:
http://www.unn.ac.uk/~evgp1/gary/dec2deg.htm and DMS to DD: http://www.unn.ac.uk/~evgp1/gary/deg2dec.htm (Information provided by Mark Thomas, Public Documents & Maps, Perkins Library, Duke University.)
Vancouver Web sites converter by Andrew Daviel:
DD to DMS : http://vancouver-webpages.com/META/DD.html and DMS to DD: http://vancouver-webpages.com/META/DMS.html (Information provided by Mary Larsgaard, Map Librarian, University of California at Santa Barbara.)
III. Mathematical formulas
Bill Thoen of Computer Terrain Mapping, Inc. (http://www.ctmap.com)
provides the following information:
"Remember that there are 60 minutes in a degree and 60 seconds in a minute, or 3600 seconds to the degree. So to convert DD to DMS: First convert the sign to a direction. A negative longitude means "West"; positive is "East". If the coordinate is latitude, a negative means "South"; positive is "North".
D = int(DD) degrees
M = int((DD-D)*60) minutes
S = (DD-D+M/60)*60 seconds
The int() function means "take the integer part of the result between the parentheses, and ignore the numbers to the right of the decimal point."
So a coordinate of -105.234156, 39.978832 becomes 105 14 2.96 W, 39 58 43.79 N
To go back again it's: DD = D + M/60 + S/3600
Another formula for DD to DMS conversion is given in "Map Use", by Muehrcke and Muehrcke (1992). (Information provided by Naomi Heiser, Map Library, University of Colorado Libraries.)
Multiply decimal portion of degree by 60 to get minutes:
Example: 39.54712 = .54712 x 60 = 32.83 minutes
Multiply decimal portion of this number by 60 to get seconds:
Example: .83 x 60 = 50 seconds
Reconstruct degrees, minutes and seconds:
Example: 39° 32' 50"
One of the interesting challenges associated with the acquisition of satellite imagery is imagining practical applications for the data. Brent Yantis, Director of the NASA/ULL Regional Applications Center (where a steady stream of satellite data are pumping in) is responsible for finding wider applications for their data. (You may send your ideas to Brent Yantis or to the EE-IR Center Newsletter editor.)
This week an article appeared on the space.com Web site about a San Francisco Bay area company, Visual Forensics, that is utilizing satellite imagery as evidence in legal cases, creating simulations by assembling satellite imagery in to moving pictures. The full-text of the article is on the Web: http://www.space.com/science/planetearth/ikonos_990921.html
See also:
Visual Forensics
http://www.visualforensics.com/