Integrating GIS & fieldwork for geoscience undergraduates
Anne-Marie NuttallSchool of Biological and Earth Sciences
Liverpool John Moores University
Introduction
• Two case studies:
• Level 1 fieldtrip to Arran
– First introduction to GIS
• Level 3 fieldtrip to Snowdonia
– After completing GIS/Remote Sensing
module
Benefits of using GIS at Level 1
• Initial orientation & familiarisation with field area
• day-by-day record of field sites
• overview of how sites relate to each other
• appreciation of topography & sense of scale
• interpretation of contours & gradients
• appreciation of software & GIS concepts for future use
Level 3 - Spatial modelling
• Hypothesis: glacier formation is more likely on high-elevation, north-facing slopes
• Input data: Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of Snowdonia
• Calculate all grid cells with northerly orientation and > 600 m.a.s.l.
• Overlay results on satellite image
Web resources:• Digimap (to download OS map & DEM data):
http://digimap.edina.ac.uk
• Landmap (satellite image coverage of the UK): http://www.landmap.ac.uk
• ERDAS Imagine (Image processing software): http://www.erdas.co.uk
• CHEST (university licensing for all of the above): http://www.chest.ac.uk
• National Remote Sensing Centre (purchase of satellite images): http://www.nrsc.co.uk