Transformation in

GIS
Dr. Saleha Jamal
Associate Professor
Department of Geography
Aligarh Muslim University
Transformation
• Transformation refers to the process of altering or manipulating geographic data to derive new insights,
create meaningful representations, or prepare the data for specific analytical tasks.
• Transformations can involve converting data between different coordinate systems, adjusting the
resolution or scale of spatial datasets, or applying mathematical operations to modify the attributes or
geometry of geographic features
Here are some common types of transformations in spatial analysis:
1.Coordinate Transformation
2.Geometric Transformation
3.Topological Transformation
4.Raster Transformation
5.Attribute Transformation
6.Temporal Transformation
Coordinate
Transformation
• Converting geographic coordinates from one coordinate
reference system (CRS) to another. This is essential for
integrating data collected using different coordinate
systems or for aligning data with a specific map
projection.
Geometric
Transformation:
• Adjusting the shape, size, or orientation of geographic
features. This can include operations like scaling,
rotating, translating (shifting), or warping (rubber-
sheeting) features to match reference data or correct
geometric distortions.
Topological Transformation:
 Modifying the topological relationships between spatial features. This may involve
operations such as splitting, merging, buffering, or simplifying features to create new
datasets or resolve spatial inconsistencies.
 Topological transformation in spatial analysis involves altering the
spatial relationships and connectivity of geographic features while
maintaining their essential geometric properties. This process often
includes operations like buffering, overlay, and simplification, which
impact the topology of spatial datasets.
 Topological transformations are crucial for tasks such as network
analysis, overlay operations, and addressing spatial integrity issues,
ensuring accurate and meaningful spatial analyses in Geographic
Information Systems (GIS).
Buffer in GIS
• Proximity describes the extent to which two objects in geospatial space are close together, and its determination is an
important means of spatial analysis. The land along the river or along the river has its unique importance, the service
radius of public facilities (shopping, post office, bank, hospital, station, school, etc.), the relocation caused by the
construction of large reservoirs, railways, highways and shipping rivers, the importance of economic development
through the region is a problem of proximity. Buffer analysis is one of the spatial analysis tools for solving proximity
problems.
Examples of buffer applications
• Urban planning: identify areas within a certain distance from schools, parks, or public facilities
• Environmental management: assess the effects of pollution, erosion, or habitat loss on nearby features
• Transportation: measure the accessibility and connectivity of roads, railways, or airports
• Public health: locate the population or facilities at risk of exposure to diseases, hazards, or disasters
Buffer methods
•Planar: measure distance on a flat surface using a projected coordinate system
•Geodesic: measure distance on a curved surface using a geographic coordinate system
•Shape-preserving: create a geodesic buffer that matches the shape of the input feature
Continue…
Raster
Transformation
• Manipulating raster datasets by resampling,
reprojecting, or reclassifying pixel values. These
transformations are common when working with
remotely sensed imagery, elevation models, or other
continuous spatial data layers.
• Reclassifying is a process of assigning new values
or categories to the cells or pixels of a raster dataset
based on specified criteria. This transformation
allows for the creation of a new representation of
the data, often simplifying or aggregating
information for specific analytical purposes.
Continue…
Resampling is employed to adjust the spatial resolution of
raster data, either increasing or decreasing the size of the pixels.
Interpolation in ArcToolbox
• Spatial interpolation finds applications in many areas:
• In contouring, when it is necessary to guess where to place contours in between measured
locations.
• In estimating the elevation of the surface in between the measured locations of a DEM.
• In estimating rainfall, temperature, and other attributes at places that are not weather stations,
and where no direct measurements of these variables are available. In resampling raster, the
operation that must take place whenever raster data must be transformed to another grid.
• Two commonly used methods of spatial interpolation are inverse distance weighting
(IDW) and Kriging
• Inverse Distance Weighted (IDW)
• Kriging
IDW:

• Inverse distance weighting (IDW) is the

workhorse of spatial interpolation, the method
that is most often used by GIS analysts.
• It employs the Tobler law by estimating
unknown measurements as weighted averages
over the known measurements at nearby
points, giving the greatest weight to the nearest
points.
• IDW provides a simple way of guessing the
values of a field at locations where no
measurement is available.
Kriging:
• Of all of the common methods of spatial
interpolation it is Kriging that makes the
most convincing claim to be grounded in
good theoretical principles.
• The basic idea is to discover something about
the general properties of the surface, as
revealed by the measured values, and then to
apply these properties in estimating the
missing parts of the surface.
• Smoothness is the most important property,
and it is operationalized in Kriging in a
statistically meaningful way.
Source: Igaz et. al (2021)
Attribute Transformation
• Modifying attribute data associated with spatial features. This can involve calculating new attributes based on
existing data (e.g., population density from population counts and area) or aggregating attributes within
spatial units (e.g., summing property values within census tracts).

• This process often includes changing data types, scaling values, or creating new variables to better suit the
analytical requirements. Attribute transformations are crucial for enhancing the interpretability and
compatibility of spatial datasets, facilitating more meaningful analysis and decision-making in GIS.
Temporal Transformation
• Analysing changes in spatial data over time. This may involve aggregating temporal data into different time
intervals, detecting trends or patterns, or conducting time-series analysis to understand temporal dynamics.