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Geographical Data Sets


Raster Formats
Raster files generally are used to store image information, such as scanned paper maps or aerial photographs. They are also used for data captured by satellite and other airborne imaging systems. Images from these systems are often referred to as remote-sensing data. Unlike other raster files, which express resolution in terms of cell size and dots per inch (dpi), resolution in remotely sensed images is expressed in meters, which indicates the size of the ground area covered by each cell.

Some common raster formats are described below
Format Name Software Platform Internal or Transfer Developer Comments
Arc Digitized Raster Graphics (ADRG) Military mapping systems Both US Defense Mapping Agency  
Band Interleaved by Line (BIL) Man Both Common remote-sensing standard.  
Band Interleaved by Pixel (BIP) Many Both Common remote-sensing standard.  
Band Sequential (BSQ) Many Both Common remote-sensing standard.
Digital Elevation Model for (DEM) Many Transfer United States Geological Survey (USGS) USGS standard format digital terrain models.
PC Paintbrush Exchange (PCX) PC Paintbrush Both Zsoft Widely used raster format.
Spatial Data Transfer Standard (SDTS) Many (in the future) Transfer US Federal Government New US standard for both raster and vector geographic data; raster version still under development.
Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) PageMaker Both Aldus Widely used raster format.


An Example of Raster and Vector Integration


Figure 7: An Example of Raster and Vector Integration

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