Day: July 16, 2010

Moving Code in Spatial Data Infrastructures – Web Service Based Deployment of Geoprocessing Algorithms

/ Matt Artz

Transactions in GIS, Volume 14 Issue s1, Pages 101 – 118

Matthias Müller, Lars Bernard, and Johannes Brauner

“This article proposes a concept for offering complex geoprocessing functionality in service-based Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI). Today, geoprocessing in SDI is typically realized in a data driven manner. Applying the suggested “moving code” approach in a case study in the field of Spatial Decision Support proves its applicability. The proposed solution is analyzed and assessed in terms of gained efficiency, performance behavior and support for distributed development of geoprocessing functionality. In data and computation intensive SDI applications the deployment of moving code proves to be beneficial.”

Spatial Patterning and Prehistoric Settlement Patterns, Cumberland County, North Carolina

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

2010 ESRI Southeast Regional User Group Conference

Sallie Vaughn

“The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 requires large Federal construction projects, such as highway construction, to consider project impacts on historical sites. In preparation for the development of Interstate 295 in Cumberland County, North Carolina, URS Archaeologists excavated 13 sites along the corridor that ultimately will be impacted by road construction. During excavation, the location and characteristics of artifacts such as stone tools and pottery are collected. Artifact characteristics, such as stone tool shape or the form of a ceramic pot, assist in dating those artifacts to certain time periods. These characteristics are later recorded in a database which is used to generate a series of artifact density maps using ArcGIS. Archaeologists use artifact densities to interpret occupational patterns and settlement history. GIS is an effective tool in developing artifact densities and was used to support this project. Survey and artifact information easily translates to the GIS environment as a series of two-dimensional layers representing specific slices in prehistory. Neighborhood Statistics and Surface Analysis methods are then used to create artifact densities. Resulting maps provide visual interpretations of the archaeological record. The result is a set of grid-based surfaces similar to digital elevation models, where artifact density is recorded as the Z value, and for each distinct period of time, an artifact density surface is created. Artifact densities can further be analyzed by artifact type and used to interpret settlement and occupational patterns. Artifact density surfaces from particular time periods illustrate probable shifts in settlement preferences over 3,000 years. Also, clusters of similar artifacts, such as stone tools associated with hunting activities, are easily identified using density maps. Such information assists in the interpretation of land use during a specific period. Artifact density surfaces and maps included in the final report to NCDOT reinforce the intense research and analysis that went into the interpretations of prehistoric settlements. Archaeologists can use these maps and the report as a reference for future research in the Sandhills of North Carolina. The result of this project is the only permanent record of historic occupation of this site. Maps and artifact density surfaces enhance the understanding of the site history and ensure that this information is easily communicated in the future.”

A Spatial Analysis of Fish Farming in the Context of ICZM in the Bay of Izmir-Turkey

/ Matt Artz

Coastal Management, Volume 38, Issue 4 July 2010 , pages 399 – 411

Guzel Yucel-Giera; Yalcin Arisoyb; and Idil Pazi

“Cage fish farming is one of the fastest growing food industries, both worldwide and in Turkey. There are growing concerns about the manner of resolving the competing claims for the use of limited coastline and water body space. Matters connected with the siting of fish farming increase the need for the integrated coastal zone planning of aquaculture. This should be undertaken in collusion with other coastal stakeholders and with the cooperation of the government ministries that promote and regulate aquaculture development. In this study the integration and coexistence of fish farms is evaluated in the context of other activities in Izmir Bay. This study shows how different terrestrial and marine activities interact with each other, and that certain areas are subject to layers of multiple usages. One of the major sea users of the Bay, for example, is the fishery sector, which utilizes 850.4 km2 of a total surface area of Izmir’s Bay of 960.4 km2. This overlaps with the 113.4 km2 that are used by marine transportation. Military zones encompass 63.1 km2 and fish farming utilizes only 1.23 km2. This study uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to build a spatial database that analyzes conflicting claims for integrating fish farming with other claimants. Clearly planned and properly managed fish farming development should be undertaken within a broader framework of integrated coastal zone management.”

Simulation of the Snowmelt Runoff Contributing Area in a Small Alpine Basin

/ Matt Artz

Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 14, 1205–1219, 2010

C. M. DeBeer and J. W. Pomeroy

“Simulation of areal snowmelt and snowcover depletion over time can be carried out by applying point-scale melt rate computations to distributions of snow water equivalent (SWE). In alpine basins, this can be done by considering these processes separately on individual slope units. However, differences in melt timing and rates arise at smaller spatial scales due to the variability in SWE and snowpack cold content, which affects the timing of melt initiation, depletionof the snowcover and spatial extent of the snowmelt runoff contributing area (SRCA). This study examined the effects of variability in SWE, internal energy and applied melt energy on melt rates and timing, and snowcover depletion in a small cold regions alpine basin over various scales ranging from point to basin. Melt rate computations were performed using a physically based energy balance snowmelt routine (Snobal) in the Cold Regions Hydrological Model (CRHM) and compared with measurements at 3 meteorological stations over a ridge within the basin. At the point scale, a negative association between daily melt rates and SWE was observed in the early melt period, with deeper snow requiring greater energy inputs to initiate melt. SWE distributions over the basin (stratified by slope) were measured using snow surveys and repeat LiDAR depth estimates, and used together with computed melt rates to simulate the areal snowcover depletion. Comparison with observations from georeferenced oblique photographs showed an improvement in simulated areal snowcover depletion curves when accounting for the variability in melt rate with depth of SWE in the early melt period. Finally, the SRCA was characterized as the product of the snowcovered area and the fraction of the SWE distribution undergoing active melt and producing an appreciable runoff quantity on each slope unit. Results for each slope were then aggregated to give the basin scale SRCA. The SRCA is controlled by the variability of melt amongst slope units and over individual SWE distributions, the variability of SWE, and the resulting snowcover depletion patterns over the basin.”