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Center of Excellence for Geospatial Information Science (CEGIS)

The CEGIS vision is to conduct, lead, and influence the research and innovative solutions required by the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) and the emerging GeoSpatial and GeoSemantic Web. CEGIS is a virtual organization with Federal and academic affiliate scientists conducting research in support of The National Map and the Three-Dimensional Elevation Program (3DEP).

 

The U.S. Geological Survey Center of Excellence for Geospatial Information Science (CEGIS) was created in 2006 and since that time has provided research primarily in support of The National Map. The presentations and publications of the CEGIS researchers document the research accomplishments that include advances in electronic topographic map design, generalization, data integration, map projections, sea level rise modeling, geospatial semantics, ontology, user-centered design, volunteer geographic information, and parallel and grid computing for geospatial data from The National Map. A research plan spanning 2013–18 has been developed extending the accomplishments of the CEGIS researchers and documenting new research areas that are anticipated to support The National Map of the future. In addition to extending the 2006–12 research areas, the CEGIS research plan for 2013–18 includes new research areas in data models, geospatial semantics, high-performance computing, volunteered geographic information, crowdsourcing, social media, data integration, and multiscale representations to support the Three-Dimensional Elevation Program (3DEP) and The National Map of the future of the U.S. Geological Survey.

Publications

Evaluation of classified ground points from National Agriculture Imagery program photogrammetrically derived point clouds

Studies have shown that digital surface models and point clouds generated by the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) can measure basic forest parameters such as canopy height. However, all measured forest parameters from these studies are evaluated using the differences between NAIP digital surface models (DSMs) and available lidar digital terrain
Authors
Jung-Kuan (Ernie) Liu, Samantha Arundel, Ethan J. Shavers

Assessing the utility of uncrewed aerial system photogrammetrically derived point clouds for land cover classification in the Alaska North Slope

Uncrewed aerial systems (UASs) have been used to collect “pseudo field plot” data in the form of large-scale stereo imagery to supplement and bolster direct field observations to monitor areas in Alaska. These data supplement field data that is difficult to collect in such a vast landscape with a relatively short field season. Dense photogrammetrically derived point clouds are created and are faci
Authors
Jung-Kuan (Ernie) Liu, Rongjun Qin, Samantha Arundel

Remote sensing-based 3D assessment of landslides: A review of the data, methods, and applications

Remote sensing (RS) techniques are essential for studying hazardous landslide events because they capture information and monitor sites at scale. They enable analyzing causes and impacts of ongoing events for disaster management. There has been a plethora of work in the literature mostly discussing (1) applications to detect, monitor, and predict landslides using various instruments and image anal
Authors
Hessah Albanwan, Rongjun Qin, Jung-Kuan (Ernie) Liu
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