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# *The National Map* - Delaware Pilot Project

### Fact Sheet 116-01 (November 2001)

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 || The Nation Needs *The National Map* || The DataMIL Pilot Project ||  || More Information About the Delaware Project || More Information About *The National Map* || 

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### The Nation Needs *The National Map*

Governments depend on a common set of geographic base information as a tool for economicand community development, land and natural resource management, and health and safetyservices.  Emergency management and defense operations rely on this information.  Privateindustry, nongovernmental organizations, and individual citizens use the same geographic data. Geographic information underpins an increasingly larger part of the Nation's economy.

Available geographic data often have the following problems:

- They do not align with each other because layers are frequently created or revisedseparately,
- They do not match across administrative boundaries because each producing organizationuses different methods and standards, and
- They are not up to date because of the complexity and cost of revision.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is developing ***The NationalMap*** to be a seamless, continuously maintained, and nationally consistent set ofonline, public domain, geographic base information to address these issues.  ***TheNational Map*** will serve as a foundation for integrating, sharing, and using otherdata easily and consistently.

In collaboration with other government agencies, the private sector, academia, and volunteergroups, the USGS will coordinate, integrate, and, where needed, produce and maintain basegeographic data.

***The National Map*** will include digital orthorectified imagery;elevation data; vector data for hydrography, transportation, boundary, and structure features;geographic names; and land cover information.  The data will be the source of revised papertopographic maps.

Many technical and institutional issues must be resolved as ***The NationalMap*** is implemented.  To begin the refinement of this new paradigm, pilotprojects are being designed to identify and investigate these issues.  The pilots are the foundationupon which future partnerships for data sharing and maintenance will be built.

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### The DataMIL Pilot Project

Many Delaware State agencies produce, revise, and use a variety of geospatial data toaccomplish their mission of serving the public.  These same agencies have been working closelywith the USGS to establish a Web-based mapping system using large-scale, seamless geospatialdata.  When completed, this system will enable users to combine data from the USGS, severalDelaware State agencies, and the National Geodetic Survey.  The Delaware Geological Survey,the Delaware Office of State Planning Coordination, and the University of Delaware, as well asthe Delaware Geographic Data Committee, the Delaware State Mapping Advisory Committee,and the Delaware I-Team, are playing central roles in planning, developing, and implementing thispilot project for ***The National Map*** with the USGS.  The result ofthis cooperative effort, known as the ***USGS National Map/Delaware FrameworkData Mapping and Integration Laboratory (DataMIL) Project,*** will provide amechanism for agencies to easily share their data holdings.

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This statewide project covers all of Delaware's approximately 1,982 square miles.  Delawareoffers a diverse and varied geographic landscape; urban, rural, forested, and coastal environmentsare well represented within the State.  There are several near-term goals for this project:

- Deploy an Internet mapping system that offers the best available high-resolution State(Delaware) and Federal (USGS) geospatial data to aid in identifying and resolving dataintegration issues between source providers.
- Provide map generation capabilities so users can produce customized cartographicproducts online.
- Identify additional requirements for standards development, data content, and productspecifications through user feedback.

The "laboratory" environment of the DataMIL project will enable users to superimpose datalayers from disparate sources in an effort to see how these data integrate.  Map generationfunctionality will be incorporated into the system so users will be able to create a variety ofcartographic products.  An important aspect of this project is obtaining feedback from users onissues pertaining to the data.  Through the use of an online discussion forum and variousWeb-based feedback mechanisms, users will be able to comment on issues ranging from individualfeature content and currentness to data integration concerns.

Many different data layers will be provided through this project.  All have originated fromsources at  1:24,000 scale or larger.  The USGS is providing seamless datasets for nine digital linegraph categories, as well as data from the National Elevation Dataset, Geographic NamesInformation System, and Digital Raster Graphics.  Data provided by Delaware will originate fromthe Delaware Department of Transportation, Delaware Department of Natural Resources andEnvironmental Control, Delaware Office of State Planning Coordination, and University ofDelaware.  Geodetic data from the National Geodetic Survey's High Accuracy ReferenceNetwork will also be provided through this project.

The DataMIL project will serve as a strong beginning in defining and implementing***The National Map***.  As this project matures, other issues regardingdata maintenance responsibilities, expansion of partnership opportunities, and data integrationrequirements will be explored.

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### More Information About The Delaware Pilot Project

Robert RinehartU.S. Geological Survey1400 Independence Road, MS 510Rolla, Missouri  65401Phone:  573-308-3663Fax:  573-308-3652Email: [email protected]

### More Information About *The National Map*

We welcome your comments on ***The National Map*** missionand strategies.  You can view and download the full report at nationalmap.usgs.gov.  Please share your thoughtsabout the vision with the USGS by e-mail at [email protected] or by mail to USGS-National Map, MS 511 National Center, 12201Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA  20192.

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Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only anddoes not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.  This document has undergone officialreview and approval for publications established by the National Mapping Discipline, U.S.Geological Survey.  Some figures have been modified or added to improve the scientificvisualization of information.

U.S. Department of the Interior — U.S. Geological Survey — 509 National Center, Reston, VA 20192, USA **URL:***http://mac.usgs.gov/mac/isb/pubs/factsheets/fs11601.html* — **Contact:**[email protected]**Page Maintainer:** USGS Eastern Region Geography**Last modified:**   07:25:53 Fri 20 Feb 2004 — USGS Privacy Policy and Disclaimers— Accessibility
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