GE 137 – Fundamentals of Remote Sensing

and Geographic Information System

for Engineers

Topic 8: Spatial Analysis

Lecturer:

Engr. Monalaine M. Bermoy

Department of Geodetic Engineering
College of Engineering and Geosciences
Caraga State University
Authors/Contributors*
• This material was prepared/contributed by the following faculty
members:
Name Type of Contribution Date of Contribution/Revision
Kendel P. Bolanio Established (first version) 10/31/2021

*If this material was edited, revised or updated, kindly fill-up the table
with required details accordingly.
Copyright Notice
• Copyright © 2020-2021 by All Authors/Contributors and Department of Geodetic Engineering, College of
Engineering and Geosciences, Caraga State University, Butuan City.

• All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials on these module are copyrighted by the entities
indicated above.

• No part of this module maybe reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means, without either the prior written permission or authorization of Authors/Contributors and the
Department of Geodetic Engineering, College of Engineering and Geo-Sciences, Caraga State University,
Butuan City.

• IMPORTANT: The PowerPoint file shall never be distributed to other parties (including students). Only a PDF of
this file shall be distributed to students of the course only. Distribution of the PDF to other parties except
students should have prior permission or authorization of Authors/Contributors and the DGE of CEGS, CSU.
Presentation Outline
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Expected Outcomes
At the end of this lecture, the students would be able to:
• Define spatial analysis concepts, operations and its examples
• Identify the basic primitives as the building blocks of spatial analysis
• Review the ways on how to undertake in modelling spatial world
• Determine different basic spatial analysis geoprocessing operations
and its sample applications
• Identify various spatial analysis functions for raster data models
• Discuss spatial analysis techniques involving surface elevation models
Part 1
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Spatial Operations
• Spatial data follows this sequence of operations:
Data Pre- Analysis/ Map
Acquisition processing Manipulation Generation

Decision
Applied to Real World/ Making/
Evaluation/ Validation Planning
Spatial Operations
• Spatial operations can be applied sequentially to solve problem.
• A chain of spatial operations is often applied, with the output of each
spatial operation serving as the input of the next.

A sequence of spatial operations is often applied to obtain a desired final data layer.
 Spatial Operations
• There are operations that generate several output data layers from a single input.
• Operations may also take several input layers to generate a single output layer.

Much basic spatial data analysis consists largely of spatial operations. These operations are
applied to one or more input data layers to produce one or more output data layers.
What is Spatial Analysis?
• It is the manipulation of spatial
data into various forms to be
able to extract additional and
meaningful information to
understand the real-world.
• It is used to gain new
understanding and to test models
and theories.
What is Spatial Analysis?
• Spatial analysis can reveal things that might otherwise be invisible – it
can make what is implicit explicit.
• It is the crux of GIS, the means of adding value to geographic data,
and of turning data into useful information.
• Effective spatial analysis requires an intelligent user, not just a
powerful computer.
• Spatial analysis helps us in situations when our eyes might otherwise
deceive us.
• It is a set of methods whose results change when the locations of the
objects being analyzed change.
What is Spatial Analysis?
• Spatial analysis lets us ask, and find answers to, a wide range of
questions that fall into six broad categories:
➢ Understanding where things are or where events occur
➢ Measuring sizes, shapes, and distributions of things or measurements
➢ Analyzing relationships and interactions between places
➢ Optimizing locations for facilities, or routes for transportation
➢ Detecting and quantifying patterns and relationships between things or
measurements
➢ Making predictions based on existing or theoretical patterns and relationships
Part 2
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Conceptual Frameworks
Basic Primitives
• The building blocks for any form of spatial analysis
• Refer to the place or places of interest, their attributes and their arrangement.
• These are the basic primitives of spatial analysis:
➢ Place
➢ Attributes
➢ Objects
➢ Maps
➢ Multiple properties of places
➢ Fields
➢ Networks
➢ Density
➢ Detail, resolution and scale
➢ Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • The center of all spatial analysis
Attributes • Places often have names, and people use these to talk
about and distinguish between places
Objects
• People associate a vast amount of information with
Maps places
Multiple Properties of Places • Coordinate system is the basis for rigorous and precise
definition of a place
Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place
• It refers to records in a data table associated with
Attributes individual features in a vector map or cells in grid
• Examples: name of place, address, measured values
Objects
(elevation, temperature, etc.), results of classification
Maps (land cover)
Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place
• Since places vary enormously in size and shape, they
Attributes are referred to as “objects” in spatial analysis
• Representation of objects: points, lines, and areas
Objects
Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology An example map showing points, lines, and areas appropriately symbolized
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • The primary means to store and communicate spatial data
Attributes • Objects and their attributes can be readily depicted
Objects

Maps
Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology Topographic map of the Philippine archipelago, with island names.

 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • In spatial analysis, multiple properties/classes of objects are
Attributes formed as layers of information superimposed on each other

Objects

Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • Field is a continuous function mapping every location to the
Attributes value of some property of interest.
• In continuous-field view, reality is a collection of continuous
Objects surfaces, each representing the variation of one property
(elevation) over the Earth’s surface
Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields
Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology (Left) Noise level raster; (right) filled contour view of field data.
Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • Networks constitute one-dimensional structures embedded
Attributes in two or three dimensions
• They include streets, roads, railroads, and highways; rivers,
Objects canals, and streams
Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks
Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • One of the more useful concepts in spatial analysis
Attributes • The density of some kind of object is calculated by counting
the number of such objects in an area, and dividing by the
Objects size of the area.
Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density
Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place • In spatial analysis, it is clearly impossible to build a representation
that includes every detail, and in reality decisions must be made
Attributes about the amount of detail to include.
Objects • Spatial resolution is the term given to a threshold distance below
which the analyst has decided that detail is unnecessary or
Maps irrelevant.

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place

Attributes

Objects

Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place
Some generalizations made on spatial data to address
Attributes issues on detail, resolution and scale:
• Preselection: deciding on which features to include and which to
Objects exclude (e.g. major roads only, ignore footpaths etc.)
Maps • Elimination: removal of features that are too small/short (below
some threshold)
Multiple Properties of Places • Simplification: simplifying (smoothing, straightening) linear or
polygon boundaries whilst retaining their basic form
Fields
• Aggregation: combining distinct features into a larger composite
Networks object (e.g. a cluster of houses into a polygonal ‘urbanized area’)
• Collapse: reduction of feature dimensionality, as for example when
Density
a town is represented by a point or a broad river by a line
Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
 Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place Some generalizations made on spatial data to address issues
Attributes on detail, resolution and scale:
• Typification: reduction of the level of detail by replacing multiple
Objects objects by a smaller number of the same objects occupying
broadly the same locations
Maps
• Exaggeration: emphasizing important features that might
Multiple Properties of Places otherwise be removed
• Classification and symbolization: grouping together similar
Fields features and using different symbology to represent the new
arrangement
Networks
• Conflict resolution (displacement): identifying and resolving feature
Density conflicts (e.g. overlaps, labeling), and
• Refinement: altering feature geometry and alignment to improve
Detail, Resolution, and Scale aesthetics
Topology
Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place
• In mathematics, a property is said to be topological if it
Attributes survives stretching and distorting of space.
Objects

Maps

Multiple Properties of Places

Fields

Networks

Density

Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology Topological relationships.

Conceptual Frameworks: Basic Primitives
Place
Topological properties that are important in
Attributes spatial analysis:
Objects • Dimensionality: the distinction between point, line,
area, and volume, which are said to have topological
Maps dimensions of 0, 1, 2, and 3 respectively
Multiple Properties of Places • Adjacency: including the touching of land parcels,
counties, and nation-states
Fields
• Connectivity: including junctions between streets,
Networks roads, railroads, and rivers
Density • Containment: when a point lies inside rather than
outside an area
Detail, Resolution, and Scale

Topology
Part 4
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Basic Spatial Analysis
• Selection and Classification • Overlay
➢ Set Algebra ➢ Raster Overlay
➢ Boolean Algebra ➢ Vector Overlay
➢ Spatial Selection Operations
➢ Classification • Network Analysis
➢ Shortest Path Analysis
• Dissolve
➢ Closest Facility
• Proximity Functions and ➢ Allocation
Buffering
➢ Location-Allocation
➢ Buffers
➢ Raster Buffers ➢ Geocoding
➢ Vector Buffers
Basic Spatial Analysis
Selection (Query)
• Selection operations identifies features
that meet one to several conditions or
criteria.
• In these operations, attributes or
geometry of features are checked against
criteria, and those that satisfy the criteria
are selected.
• These selected features may then be
written to a new output data layer, or the
geometry or attribute data may be
manipulated in some manner.

An example of a selection operation based on single

or multiple conditions.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
“Male Population” > “Female Population” “Population” > “7,000,000”

Set Algebra
• Set algebra uses the operations less than
(<), greater than (>), equal to (=), and
not equal to (< >).
• These selection conditions may be
applied either alone or in combination to
select features from a set.

“Region” <> “Mountain” “State Name” = “South Dakota”

Basic Spatial Analysis
Boolean Algebra
• Boolean algebra uses the conditions
OR, AND, and NOT to select features.
• Boolean expressions are evaluated by
assigning an outcome, true or false, to
each condition.
• Order of operations do matter
• Boolean operators are not distributable

Examples of expressions in Boolean algebra, and their outcomes.

Subareas of three regions are selected by combining AND, OR, and
NOT conditions in Boolean expressions. Any sub-area or group of
sub-areas may be selected by the correct Boolean combination.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Spatial Selection Operations
• Adjacency identifies features that share a boundary segment

• Intersect identifies features that ‘touch’

• Containment identifies features that are ‘contained by’ or ‘contain’ other features

• Distance identifies features that are ‘within a set distance’ of a feature

Basic Spatial Analysis
Data Classification
• Classification is a spatial data operation that is often used in conjunction with
selection.
• When performing a classification, similar features are grouped into classes by
assigning the same symbol to each member of the class.
• Aggregating features into classes allows to spot patterns in the data more easily.
• Various classification schemes
• Manual
• Equal Interval
• Quantile
• Geometric Intervals
Basic Spatial Analysis
Manual Classification
• Create classes manually if looking for
features that meet a specific criterion
or comparing features to specific,
meaningful values.
• To do this, specify manually the upper
and lower limit for each class.
• Manual assignment of classes can also
be a useful technique for isolating and The diagram shows how selected ranges of data can be highlighted
highlighting ranges of data. using a manual assignment of classes.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Equal Interval Classification
• The range of possible values is divided
into equal-sized intervals.
• Because there are usually fewer
endpoints at the extremes, the
numbers of values are less in the
extreme classes.
• This option is useful to highlight
Equal-interval classification
changes in the extremes.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Quantile Classification
• The range of possible values is divided
into unequal-sized intervals so that the
number of values is the same in each
class.
• Classes at the extremes and middle
have the same number of values.
• Because the intervals are generally
Quantile classification
wider at the extremes, this option is
useful to highlight changes in the
middle values of the distribution.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
Geometric Interval Classification
• This classification scheme creates class
breaks based on class intervals that have
a geometrical series.
• The geometric coefficient in this classifier
can change once (to its inverse) to
optimize the class ranges.
• The algorithm creates geometric intervals
by minimizing the sum of squares of the Geometric interval classification
number of elements in each class.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Dissolve
• A dissolve function is primarily used to
combine similar features within a data
layer.
• Adjacent polygons may have identical
values for an attribute.
• Dissolve operations are usually applied
based on a specific “dissolve” attribute
associated with each feature.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Proximity Functions and Buffering
• Proximity functions or operations are among the most powerful and common
spatial analysis tools.
• Proximity functions modify existing features or create new features that depend in
some way on distance.

An example of a distance function. This distance function is

applied to a point data layer and creates a raster data layer.
The raster layer contains the distance to the nearest water
feature.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
Buffers
• Buffering is one of the most commonly
used proximity functions.
• A buffer is a region that is less than or
equal to a specified distance from one
or more features
• Buffers may be determined for point,
line, or area features, and for raster or
vector data.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Raster Buffers
• Buffer operations on raster data entail
calculating the distance from each
source cell center to all other cell
centers.
• Raster buffers combine a minimum
distance function and a binary
classification function.
• Buffering with raster data may produce
a “stair-step” boundary, because the
distance from features is measured
between cell centers.
Raster buffering as a combination of distance and
classification. Here, cells less than 15 units from the target
cells are identified.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Vector Buffers
• Vector buffering may be applied to point, line, or area features, but regardless of
input, buffering always produces an output set of area features.

Vector buffers produced from point, line, or polygon input features. In all cases the output is
a set of polygon features.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Proximity: Thiessen Polygons
• Thiessen polygons have the unique
property that each polygon contains only
one input point, and any location within a
polygon is closer to its associated point
than to the point of any other polygon.
• Thiessen polygons can be used to
apportion a point coverage into regions
known as Thiessen or Voronoi polygons.
• Each region has the unique property that
any location within a region is closer to
the region's point than to the point of any
other region.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
Overlay
• Overlay operations are powerful spatial
analysis tools, and were an important
driving force behind the development
of GIS technologies.
• Overlays involve combining spatial and
attribute data from two or more spatial
data layers, and they are among the
most common and powerful spatial This is an example of an overlay of steep slopes, soils, and
data operations. vegetation. New polygons are created by the intersection of the
input polygon boundaries. The resulting polygons have all the
attributes of the original polygons.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
Vector Overlay
• Overlay when using a vector data model
involves combining the point, line, and
polygon geometry and associated attribute
data.
• Overlay involves the merger of both the
coordinate and attribute data from two
vector layers into a new data layer.
• Types: Point-in-Polygon, Line-in-Polygon,
Polygon-on-Polygon
• Vector overlay tools:
➢ Identity
➢ Intersect This is an example of line-on-polygon overlay. The line is split at
➢ Symmetrical Difference the polygon boundaries, and each of the resulting line features has
➢ Union the original line attributes plus the attributes of the polygon it fell
➢ Update within.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Types of Overlay
Point-in-Polygon Overlay
• This type of overlay is used to find the polygon in which a point falls within, or find
a point or points that fall within a certain polygon.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Types of Overlay
Line-in-Polygon Overlay
• This type of overlay is used to find the polygon in which a line or lines fall within,
or find a line or lines that fall within a certain polygon.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Types of Overlay
Polygon-on-Polygon Overlay
• This type of overlay is used to determine which polygons from two layers intersect
or are within another polygon.
 Basic Spatial Analysis: Vector Overlay Tools
Identity
• This analysis computes a geometric
intersection of the input features and
identity features.
• The input features or portions thereof
that overlap identity features will get
the attributes of those identity features.
 Basic Spatial Analysis: Vector Overlay Tools
Intersect
• This analysis computes a geometric
intersection of the input features.
• Features or portions of features which
overlap in all layers and/or feature
classes will be written to the output
feature class.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Vector Overlay Tools
Symmetrical Difference
• Features or portions of features in the input and update features that do not
overlap will be written to the output feature class.
 Basic Spatial Analysis: Vector Overlay Tools
Union
• This analysis computes a geometric
union of the input features.
• All features and their attributes will be
written to the output feature class.
 Basic Spatial Analysis: Vector Overlay Tools
Update
• This analysis computes a geometric
intersection of the Input Features and
Update Features.
• The attributes and geometry of the
input features are updated by the
update features in the output feature
class.
 Basic Spatial Analysis
Raster Overlay
• Raster overlay involves the cell-by-cell
combination of two or more data layers.
• Data from one layer in one cell location
correspond to a cell in another data layer.
• The cell values are combined in some
manner and an output value assigned to a
corresponding cell in an output layer.
• Raster overlay tools:
➢ Zonal Statistics
➢ Combine Cell-by-cell combination in raster overlay. Two input layers are combined in
➢ Weighted Overlay raster overlay. Nominal variables for corresponding cells are joined, creating
➢ Weighted Sum a new output layer. In this example, a soils layer (Layer A) is combined with
a land use layer (Layer B) to create a composite Output layer.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Raster Overlay Tools
Zonal Statistics
• Compute statistics for each zone of a zone dataset based on the information in a
value raster
• Zone dataset can be feature or raster
• The value raster must be a raster

OutRas = ZonalStatistics(ZoneRas, "VALUE", ValRas, "MINIMUM")

Basic Spatial Analysis: Raster Overlay Tools
Combine
• Combines multiple rasters so that a unique output value is assigned to each unique
combination of input values.

OutRas = Combine([InRas1, InRas2])

Basic Spatial Analysis: Raster Overlay Tools
Weighted Overlay
• Overlays several rasters using a common measurement scale and weights each
according to its importance.

In the illustration, the two input rasters have been reclassified to a common measurement scale of 1 to 3. Each raster is assigned
a percentage influence. The cell values are multiplied by their percentage influence, and the results are added together to create
the output raster. For example, consider the upper left cell. The values for the two inputs become (2 * 0.75) = 1.5 and (3 * 0.25)
= 0.75. The sum of 1.5 and 0.75 is 2.25. Because the output raster from Weighted Overlay is integer, the final value is rounded to
2.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Network Analysis
• Network analyses, also known as
network models, are used to represent
and analyze the cost, time, delivery,
and accumulation of resources along
links and between the connected
centers.
• Involves linear features or network of
linear features that are topologically
structured
➢ e.g., roads, powerlines, telephone and
television cables, and water distribution
systems
Basic Spatial Analysis
Shortest Path Analysis
• Shortest path analysis finds the path
with the minimum cumulative
impedance between nodes on a
network.
• Because the link impedance can be
measured in distance or time, a
shortest path may represent the
shortest route or fastest route.
Link impedance values between cities on a road network.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Network Analysis
Closest Facility
• Closest facility is a network analysis
that finds the closest facility among
candidate facilities to any location on a
network.
• The analysis first computes the
shortest paths from the select location
to all candidate facilities, and then
chooses the closest facility among the
candidates.

Shortest path from a street address to its closest fire station,

shown by the square symbol.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Network Analysis
Allocation
• Allocation is the study of the spatial
distribution of resources through a
network.
• Resources in allocation studies often
refer to public facilities, such as fire
stations, schools, hospitals, and even
open spaces (in case of earthquakes)
(Tarabanis and Tsionas 1999).

The service areas of two fire stations within a 2-minute

response time.
Basic Spatial Analysis: Network Analysis
Location-Allocation
• Location–allocation solves problems of
matching the supply and demand by
using sets of objectives and
constraints.
• The setup of a location–allocation
problem requires inputs in supply,
demand, and impedance measures.

The two solid squares represent existing fire stations, the three gray squares
candidate facilities, and the seven circles nursing homes. The map shows the
result of matching two existing fire stations with nursing homes based on the
minimum impedance model and an impedance cutoff of 4 minutes on the
road network.
Basic Spatial Analysis
Geocoding
• Geocoding is the process of transforming
a description of a location – such as a pair
of coordinates, an address, or a name of a
place – to a location on the earth's
surface.
• You can geocode by entering one location
description at a time or by providing many
of them at once in a table.
• The resulting locations are output as
geographic features with attributes, which
can be used for mapping or spatial
analysis.
Part 5
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Raster Data Analysis
• Raster analyses range from the simple to the complex, largely due to
the early invention, simplicity, and flexibility of the raster data model.
• Raster data analysis can be performed at the level of individual cells, or
groups of cells, or cells within an entire raster.
• An important consideration in raster data analysis is the type of cell
value.
➢ Statistics such as mean and standard deviation are designed for numeric
values, whereas others such as majority (the most frequent cell value) are
designed for both numeric and categorical values.
Raster Data Analysis
Map Algebra
• Map algebra is the cell-by-cell
combination of raster data layers.
• A vocabulary and conceptual
framework for classifying ways to
combine map data to produce new
maps.
• Can be simple operations such as
multiplication, subtraction, and addition
• Developed in the 1970’s by Dana
Tomlin
Raster Data Analysis
Zonal Operations
• Compute a new value for each cell as a function of the cell values within a zone
containing the cell
• Zone layer – defines zones or regions with same values
• Value layer – contains input cell values
Raster Data Analysis
Zonal Operations
1 1 4 3 3 1 2 3 4 5
1 1 4 3 3 6 7 8 9 1
2 2 2 3 4 2 3 4 5 6
2 1 2 3 4 7 8 9 1 2
1 1 4 4 4 3 4 5 6 7
Zone Layer Value Layer

Zonal Max
8 8 8 9 9
8 8 8 9 9
9 9 9 9 8
9 8 9 9 8
8 8 8 8 8
Output Layer
Raster Data Analysis
Zonal Operations (Outputs)
• Raster layer
➢ All the cells within a zone have the same
value on the output raster layer
• Table
➢ Each row in the table contains the
statistics for a zone.
➢ The first column is the value (or ID) of
each zone.
➢ The table can be joined back to the zone
layer.
Raster Data Analysis
Reclassification
• May be referred to as recoding or renumbering
• Reassign thematic classes/values to new values for:
• generalizing complex dataset (e.g., map of all land ownership reclassified to public and private;
5000+ classes to 2 classes)
• reclassifying data based on attributes (e.g., soils types recoded to soil suitability for septic
systems)
• assigning map classes ordinal values (e.g., best, worst)
• producing a mask (e.g., map of Caraga Region recoded to binary map showing only Butuan
City (1) and everything else (0))
• Two (2) types:
• Boolean Reclassification
• Weighted Reclassification
Raster Data Analysis
Reclassification
Raster Data Analysis
Boolean Reclassification
• Produces a two-coded image from a complex image
• Original image is reclassified to an image with only 0 or 1 as cell values
• Example, if the forest areas are of interest, all cells representing forestry can be
assigned a value of 1, and all other cells a value of 0.
Raster Data Analysis
Weighted Reclassification
• A different weight is assigned to different feature types or classes, based on the
purpose of the reclassification
• Higher weights can be assigned to priority classes while lower weights to those of
lower priority
• Example, if the purpose is for forest conservation, a weight of 4 can be assigned to
forestry and lower weights to other features
Raster Data Analysis
Reclassification Example
Land Use Original Value New Value: Boolean New Value: Weighted
Forestry 10 1 4
Water 11 0 2
Settlement 12 0 1
Agricultural Land 13 0 3
Raster Data Analysis
Density Analysis
• Mapping data density allows the user to
see where there is a larger number of
observations or higher values
• Shows the spatial relationship amongst
the different locations of data
• Can create predictions from the data as to
where other locations or values will be
• Three (3) Types:
➢ Point Density
➢ Line Density
➢ Kernel Density
Raster Data Analysis
Point Density
• Calculates the density of point features across a specific area
• Does this by adding the points in the specified study area and dividing the total by
the area of the study area
Raster Data Analysis
Line Density
• Similar to point density, calculates the denser vs. less dense areas containing line
features
• Calculates the areas that pertain more line features than those that don’t
Raster Data Analysis
Kernel Density
• Can calculate density of either line or point features using a kernel function
• Allows some features to hold more weight than others based on specific values
➢ Ex. When searching for the density of fire hydrants in an area, some hydrants allow for more
water pressure, covering a wider area than others, these will hold more weight than those that
have a lower water pressure
Raster Data Analysis
Kernel Density
• Differences
• Smoother density formations
• Omits the no data values
• The highest values are at the center of the point/line and taper out to 0 at the edge of the
search radius
Part 6
• What is Spatial Analysis?
• Basic Primitives
• Modeling Spatial World
• Basic Spatial Analysis
• Raster Data Analysis
• Surface and Field Analysis
Surface and Field Analysis
• Elevation and related terrain variables
are important at some point in almost
everyone’s life.
• Both data and methods exist to extract
important terrain variables via GIS.
• Most terrain analyses are performed
using a raster data model.
• Common surface and field mapping
techniques include: slope, aspect, and
hillshade, hydrologic functions,
profile plots and contour lines, and
viewsheds.
Surface and Field Analysis
Slope
• Slope represents the rate of change of elevation for each digital elevation model
(DEM) cell.
• It is the first derivative of a DEM.
• The lower the slope value, the flatter the terrain; the higher the slope value, the
steeper the terrain.
Surface and Field Analysis
Slope
• Slope represents the rate of change of elevation for each digital elevation model
(DEM) cell.
• The Slope command takes an input surface raster and calculates an output raster
containing the slope at each cell.
Surface and Field Analysis
Use of Slope Surfaces
• Slope is important in:
➢ Suitability analysis
➢ Predictive modeling
➢ Predicting potential hazards
• Analyzing the terrain slope of a given location plays an important part
in fields such as:
➢ Hydrology
➢ Site planning
➢ Conservation
➢ Infrastructure development
Surface and Field Analysis
Aspect
• Aspect identifies the downslope
direction of the maximum rate of
change in value from each cell to its
neighbors.
• It can be thought of as the slope
direction.
• The values of each cell in the output Aspect directions
raster indicate the compass direction
that the surface faces at that location.
Surface and Field Analysis
Aspect
• It is measured clockwise in degrees from 0 (due north) to 360 (again due north),
coming full circle.
• Flat areas having no downslope direction are given a value of -1.
• The value of each cell in an aspect dataset indicates the direction the cell's slope
faces.
Surface and Field Analysis
Use of Aspect Surfaces
• Calculate the solar illumination for each location in a region as part of a
study to determine the diversity of life at each site.
• Identify areas of flat land to find an area for a plane to land in an
emergency.
• Subdivision planning (e.g., finding the best orientation of subdivision
blocks such that all houses will receive equal amount of sunlight)
• Aspect as well as slope are required in fields such as hydrology,
conservation, site planning, and infrastructure development.
Surface and Field Analysis
Hillshade (Shaded Relief)
• The Hillshade obtains the hypothetical illumination of a surface by determining
illumination values for each cell in a raster.
• It does this by setting a position for a hypothetical light source and calculating the
illumination values of each cell in relation to neighboring cells.

Output hillshade raster

Surface and Field Analysis
Using Hillshade for Display
• By placing an elevation raster on top of a hillshade raster and adjusting the
transparency of the elevation raster, you can easily create a visually appealing relief
map of a landscape.

Create a shaded relief raster by combining elevation and

hillshade rasters with transparency
Surface and Field Analysis
Using Hillshade for Analysis
• By modeling shade, you can calculate the local illumination and whether the cell
falls in a shadow or not.
• By modeling shadow, you can identify each cell that will be in the shadow of
another cell at a particular time of day.
Surface and Field Analysis
Surface Curvature
• The curvature function displays the shape or curvature of the slope.
• The curvature is calculated by computing the second derivative of the surface.
• Convex parts of surfaces, like ridges, are generally exposed and drain to other
areas. Concave parts of surfaces, like channels, are generally more sheltered and
accept drainage from other areas.
Surface and Field Analysis
Use of Surface Curvature
• The output of the curvature function can be used to describe the physical
characteristics of a drainage basin in an effort to understand erosion and runoff
processes.
• The curvature value can be used to find soil erosion patterns as well as the
distribution of water on land.
• The profile curvature affects the acceleration and deceleration of flow and,
therefore, influences erosion and deposition.
• The planform curvature influences convergence and divergence of flow.
Surface and Field Analysis
Profile Plots
• Profile plots are another common derivative of elevation data.
• These plots sample elevation along a linear profile path, and display elevation
against distance in a graph.
• These profile plots are helpful in visualizing elevation change, slope, and
cumulative travel distance along the specific profile path.
 Surface and Field Analysis
Contours
• Contours are lines that connect points of equal value (such as elevation, temperature,
precipitation, pollution, or atmospheric pressure).
• The distribution of the lines shows how values change across a surface.
• Where there is little change in a value, the lines are spaced farther apart; where the
values rise or fall rapidly, the lines are closer together.
Surface and Field Analysis
Visibility Analysis
• Determines the raster surface locations visible to a set of observer features, or
identifies which observer points are visible from each raster surface location
• Various forms:
➢ Construct sight lines
➢ Intervisibility
➢ Line of sight
➢ Skyline
➢ Viewshed
Surface and Field Analysis: Visibility Analysis
Line of Sight (LOS) Analysis
• Determines the visibility of sight lines over obstructions consisting of a surface
and an optional multipatch dataset.
Surface and Field Analysis: Visibility Analysis
Viewshed Analysis
• A viewshed identifies the cells in an input raster that can be seen from one or
more observation locations.
• Each cell in the output raster receives a value that indicates how many observer
points can be seen from each location.
Surface and Field Analysis: Visibility Analysis
Viewshed Analysis
• A viewshed analysis determines
locations visible to an observer in all
directions.
• Hence, a viewshed is an area that is
visible from a specific location.
• In this type of analysis, it shows visible
and non-visible in all of the
surrounding areas.
• Instead of using a straight line as an
input, viewshed analysis uses a single
point.
Source: https://gisgeography.com/line-of-sight-viewshed-visibility-analysis/
Surface and Field Analysis: Visibility Analysis
Importance of Viewshed Analysis
• It is useful when you want to know how visible objects might be—for example:
➢ From which locations on the landscape will the cell towers be visible if they are placed in a
particular location,
➢ What will the view be from a road?
➢ If I put a CCTV camera over a location, what areas will be covered by the camera?

• It can play an important role when planning new buildings or roads especially in
urban settings where obstructed views may raise safety concerns.
Surface and Field Analysis
Watershed
• A watershed is the area of land where
all of the water that falls in it and
drains off of it goes into the same
place or common outlet.
• A watershed is also defined by
topographic divides between two or
more adjacent catchment basins, such
as a ridge or a crest.
• Also called a drainage basin

Source: http://www.gisresources.com/giswatershedwatershed-analysis/
Surface and Field Analysis
Watershed
• A watershed is the upslope area that
contributes flow—generally water—to a
common outlet as concentrated drainage.
• It can be part of a larger watershed and can
also contain smaller watersheds, called
subbasins.
• The boundaries between watersheds are
termed drainage divides.
• The outlet, or pour point, is the point on the Watershed components
surface at which water flows out of an area; it
is the lowest point along the boundary of a
watershed.
References
• Chang, K. 2019. Introduction to Geographic Information Systems. McGraw-Hill Education.
• Longley, P. A., Goodchild, M. F., Maguire, D. J., Rhind, D. W., 2005. Geographic Information System
and Science, 2nd Edition, John Wiley and Sons, Ltd., England.
• Bolstad, P. 2016. GIS Fundamentals: A First Text on Geographic Information Systems, 5th Edition,
XanEdu.
• Aronoff S., 1989. Geographic Information Systems: A Management Perspective. WDL Publ., Ottawa,
Canada
• de By, R. 2001. Principles of Geographic Information Systems: An Introductory Textbook. ITC,
Enschede, The Netherlands.
• de Smith, M.J., Goodchild, M.F., Longley, P., 2015. Geospatial Analysis – A Comprehensive Guide to
Principles, Techniques and Software Tools, 5th Edition, The Winchelsea Press. Available online at:
http://www.spatialanalysisonline.com/index.html
• Fazal, S. 2008. GIS Basics. New Age International (P) Ltd.
• http://www.gisresources.com
• http://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/10.3
 Questions?

Department of Geodetic Engineering

College of Engineering and Geosciences
Caraga State University, Ampayon, Butuan City