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HYDROGL020 - U.S. National Atlas Water Feature Areas: aqueducts, canals, dams, intercoastal waterways, rivers, and streams

Metadata also available as: OUTLINE | TEXT

Frequently-anticipated questions:


What does this data set describe?

    Title:
    HYDROGL020 - U.S. National Atlas Water Feature Areas: aqueducts, canals, dams, intercoastal waterways, rivers, and streams
    Abstract:
    U.S. National Atlas Water Feature Areas represents the water feature areas of the United States.
    Supplemental_Information: Largest scale when displaying the data: 1:1,000,000.

  1. How should this data set be cited?

    U.S. Geological Survey, 200301, HYDROGL020 - U.S. National Atlas Water Feature Areas: aqueducts, canals, dams, intercoastal waterways, rivers, and streams: U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -178.065720
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: 179.683853
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 71.222237
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 17.685579

  3. What does it look like?

    hydrogl020 (GIF)
    Overview of detail area (U.S. north east) showing data coverage.

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Beginning_Date: 1995
    Ending_Date: 2002
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):

      • String (42260)

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.000001. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1983.
      The ellipsoid used is Geodetic Reference System 80.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257222.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    hydrogl020

    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI)

    Coordinates defining the features.

    FEATURE
    The type of water feature. (Source: National Atlas of the United States and the United States Geological Survey)

    ValueDefinition
    AqueductA structure designed to transport water from a supply source to a distribution point, often by gravity.
    Braided StreamA stream or river that flows in an intricate network of interlacing channels.
    CanalAn artificial open waterway constructed to carry water, to irrigate or drain land, to connect two or more bodies of water, or to serve as a waterway for water craft.
    Canal IntermittentAn artificial open waterway, that contains water part of the year, constructed to carry water, to irrigate or drain land, to connect two or more bodies of water, or to serve as a waterway for water craft.
    DamA barrier constructed to control the flow or level of water.
    FallsA vertical or near vertical descent of water over a step or ledge in the bed of the stream.
    Intercoastal WaterwayA system of rivers, canals and designated channels along the northern border and the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the United States.
    StreamA body of water flowing in a channel or watercourse.
    Stream IntermittentA body of water flowing in a channel or watercourse for part of the year.

    NAME
    The water feature name. (Source: National Atlas of the United States and the United States Geological Survey)

    Names for the features.

    STATE
    The two-letter abbreviation for each state in which the water feature is located. (Source: Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology)

    Formal codeset
    Codeset Name:Federal Information Processing Standards 5-2
    Codeset Source:National Institute of Standards and Technology


Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Valerie Paskevich
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Information Specialist, GIS Coordinator
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2281 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    vpaskevich@usgs.gov


Why was the data set created?

U.S. National Atlas Water Feature Areas provides the water feature areas for geographic display and analysis at regional and national levels.


How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

    USGS National Atlas water features (source 1 of 2)
    Atlas, National, and U.S. Geological Survey, 19991109, National Atlas Water Features: Streams and Waterbodies (hydrogm020.tar.gz): U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Type_of_Source_Media: online
    Source_Scale_Denominator: 2000000
    Source_Contribution: Attribute and geospatial data

    (source 2 of 2)

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: 1999 (process 1 of 2)
    This file was originally digitized by the National Mapping Division based on the sectional maps contained in 'The National Atlas of the United States of America' published by the USGS in 1970. The 1:2,000,000-scale Digital Line Graph (DLG) data were merged into a single national hydrography coverage. Where necessary to effect the merge, alignment changes were made. The names were taken from the USGS Topographic 1:100,000-scale maps. For Alaska, the names were taken from the USGS Topographic 1:250,000-scale maps. State lines across water bodies were removed from the national coverage. State attributes were assigned to the features.

    Some spatial features were added and corrected. Some name attributes were added or corrected. All occurrences of St. were changed to Saint. Extra spaces were removed from the attributes. Hydrographic features for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands were added. A minor adjustment was made to the shoreline in Galveston Bay, Texas.

    Data sources used in this process:

    • National Atlas

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • hydrogl020.dbf
    • hydrogl020.shp
    • hydrogl020.shx

    Date: 15-Mar-2004 (process 2 of 2)
    Downloaded the archive file hydrogm020.tar.gz containing the data layer hydrogl020 from <http://www.nationalatlas.gov/atlasftp.html> and extracted it. Removed unneeded ArcInfo related attributes. Removed null records. Removed features also represented in National Atlas Water Feature Areas or available in more detail from other sources (e.g. shoreline). Created ArcView legend file (.avl). Created projection file (.prj).

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Valerie Paskevich
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Information Specialist, GIS Coordinator
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 x2281 (voice)
    (508) 457-2310 (FAX)
    vpaskevich@usgs.gov

    Data sources used in this process:
    • hydrogl020.dbf
    • hydrogl020.shp
    • hydrogl020.shx

    Data sources produced in this process:

    • hydrogl020.dbf
    • hydrogl020.shp
    • hydrogl020.shx


How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    The geospatial part of this data set was originally extracted from the individual 1:2,000,000-scale State boundary Digital Line Graph (DLG) files produced by the U.S. Geological Survey which have a positional accuracy of 1,720 meters. It was updated several times using various sources whose horizontal positional accuracies are unknown.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    This is a subset of the data set available from the U.S. Geological Survey National Atlas. Removed unneeded attributes. Records with "Null" fields have been removed. Removed features also represented in National Atlas Water Feature Areas. Removed features with "shoreline" as not to conflict with other shorelines (e.g. NOS80k) used by the USGS, Coastal and Marine Geology Program, Woods Hole Science Center.

    This data set includes water features for all 50 States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Data completeness generally reflects the content of the original DLG files.

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    The data set was checked for topological consistency using the Arc/INFO command BUILD. No other checks for logical consistency were performed on this data set.


How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:
Public domain data from the U.S. government are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Acknowledgment of the National Atlas of the United States of America and (or) the U.S. Geological Survey would be appreciated in products derived from these data.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 2)

    Earth Science Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey
    507 National Center
    Reston, VA 20192

    1-888-ASK-USGS (1-888-275-8747) (voice)

    Contact_Instructions:
    In addition to the address above there are other ESIC offices throughout the country. A full list of these offices is at <http://mapping.usgs.gov/esic/esic_index.html>.
  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data: hydrogm020.tar.gz

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey, no warranty expressed or implied is made by the U.S. Geological Survey regarding the utility of the data on any other system, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. No responsibility is assumed by the U.S. Geological Survey in the use of these data.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    The data are available in Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) shapefile format. The user must have ArcGIS® or ArcView® 3.0 or greater software to read and process the data file. In lieu of ArcView or ArcGIS, the user may utilize another GIS application package capable of importing data. A free data viewer, arcexplorer, is available from ESRI at www.esri.com.


  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 2 of 2)

    U.S. Geological Survey, Coastal and Marine Geology Program
    384 Woods Hole Road
    Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
    USA

    (508) 548-8700 (voice)

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Downloadable Data: hydrogl020.zip

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Although this data set has been used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by the USGS as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS in the use of these data or related materials.

    Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

  5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

    The data are available in Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) shapefile format. The user must have ArcGIS® or ArcView® 3.0 or greater software to read and process the data file. In lieu of ArcView or ArcGIS, the user may utilize another GIS application package capable of importing data. A free data viewer, arcexplorer, is available from ESRI at www.esri.com.


Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 15-Mar-2004

Metadata author:
U.S. Geological Survey
c/o Valerie Paskevich
Information Specialist, GIS Coordinator
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598
USA

(508) 548-8700 x2281 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
vpaskevich@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)


Generated by mp version 2.7.3 on Mon Mar 15 15:00:14 2004