ES 351 Interactive GIS

ES 351 Lab Exercise
INTERACTIVE WEB-BASED GIS
James S. Aber

This exercise will provide practice in utilizing web-based GIS servers for accessing, manipulating, and displaying various kinds of maps online. Such interactive maps are based on ArcView and ArcGIS software and databases. Note: You may want to open a second web browser window--one for this lab exercise, the other for the GIS webserver.

California interactive GIS

Begin by going to the California interactive map web server, known as ICEMAPS2. The initial display shows a colored, shaded-relief image of the state.

1. What is the representative fraction (scale) for the initial display? What does this mean in practical terms?

We will focus on Monterey Bay--this is the large bay south of San Francisco on the Pacific coast. Monterey Bay is home to a famous aquarium and several well-known golf courses, and is part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. South of Monterey Bay is the spectacular Big Sur coastal cliff region. See map to right; adapted from Hapke and Green (2006, fig. 1).

View eastward with Pacific Grove in the foreground and the southern end of Monterery Bay in the background. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.
Point Pinos lighthouse (lower right) surrounded by the Pacific Grove Municipal Golf Links. Rocky shore of the Pacific coast appears beyond the golf course. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.
Low-oblique view across the Elkhorn Slough in late afternoon sun. The estuarine reserve is located next to Moss Landing, near the center of Monterey Bay. Note the intricate pattern of vegetation and channels in the marsh. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.

Additional kite aerial photographs of the California coast.

Continue by "zooming in" by a factor of 10x, so your map is centered on Monterey Bay and the surrounding land vicinity.

2. What happened to the representative fraction? How does the new value relate to the initial value?

Next click the "Select Layers" option in the Toolset on the left. Another browser window will appear; notice the great number of datasets that are available for display. Click on the text link for "California Vegetation," and still another window will appear. This last window describes the nature and content of the California Vegetation dataset.

3. Briefly summarize the characteristics of the California Vegetation dataset.

You may now close the California Vegetation description window. Return to the "Select Layers" window, click on the box for California Vegetation, and then click the "Redraw" button. The main map display now shows color-coded vegetation zones. Next click on "Legend" in the Toolset on left. Note: a new browser window could be hidden behind other windows.

4. What happened when you clicked the legend button?

5. Immediately south of Monterey Bay, locate a vegetation zone depicted in orange color. What is the identity of this vegetation zone?

Now return to the color, shaded-relief display of Monterey Bay vicinity. Using the "Select Layers" in the Toolset, and find "California Managed Areas." Add this layer to your map display.

6. What are California Managed Areas? What happened to the redrawn map display?

Clearly this result is less than desirable, as portions of the shaded-relief layer are blanked out. Now deselect California Managed Areas and select "Proposed significant natural areas" for display.

7. How does this display differ from the previous one? What does it show?

Save your display of "Proposed significant natural areas"--right click on the image and select "save image as." Name the file "monterey1.gif" and save it in your student folder.

Now create a map display of the Monterey Bay region on your own. Add multiple data layers. Your map should emphasize a theme, such as water resources, biodiversity, land use/cover, etc. Save your final map image as "monterey2.gif" and save the legend as "monterey3.gif" to turn in.

8. Briefly describe the map you created and the features that contribute to its main theme.

Turn in

Written answers for question 1-8.
Digital files: monterey1.gif, monterey2.gif, monterey3.gif.

Reference

Hapke, C.J. and Green, K.R. 2006. Coastal landslide material loss rates associated with severe climatic events. Geology 34, p. 1077-1080.

	View eastward with Pacific Grove in the foreground and the southern end of Monterery Bay in the background. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.
	Point Pinos lighthouse (lower right) surrounded by the Pacific Grove Municipal Golf Links. Rocky shore of the Pacific coast appears beyond the golf course. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.
	Low-oblique view across the Elkhorn Slough in late afternoon sun. The estuarine reserve is located next to Moss Landing, near the center of Monterey Bay. Note the intricate pattern of vegetation and channels in the marsh. Kite aerial photo © J.S. & S.W. Aber, Nov. 2002.