Projects

The 3D Explorer is the world's first-ever library digital twin. It's an interactive 3D model and web application for exploring and accessing the Hub's geographic information resources while virtually touring its physical premises. The model represents the Hub's interior workspace and the main features contained therein, including cabinets and furniture used for storing cartographic materials. Users can conduct searches for and identify specific locations of materials while learning more about the Hub's staff members and space, including through a 360-degree panorama photo viewer.

ASU GeoData is the centralized site for the curation and distribution of geographical information resources managed by the Hub. ASU GeoData organizes GIS datasets by thematic category and spatially indexes map and imagery resources by collection. It also provides direct access to ASU research data sites managed by various ASU entities, as well as to the open geospatial data sites managed by government agencies throughout Arizona.

Web map indexing is a core activity at the Hub. It involves the creation of interactive, web-based map indexes designed to aid users in discovering, exploring, and accessing collections of map, imagery, and geospatial data resources. They offer enhanced functionality for the user, including the ability to change background basemaps, select features, and add external data, etc. Our web map indexes are consolidated on the Indexed Collections section of ASU GeoData.

100 Years of Grand is a geographic finding aid for exploring over 240 geo-located archival materials for the Grand Canyon (National Park) centennial in 2019. It is part of a larger collaborative archival access project between ASU, NAU, and the Grand Canyon National Park Museum Collection. Support for 100 Years of Grand came from the Arizona State Library, Archives & Public Records, with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Metro Phoenix USGS LiDAR is a set of projects meant to raise the profile of and facilitate access to a set of light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data products for the Phoenix metro region. Data were acquired and processed in 2014 by a third party contractor on behalf of the United States Geological Survey. ASU GeoData contains a spatial index for accessing raw point cloud files and offers direct download of derivative data products, such as 2D and 3D building layers.

Visualizing the Survey is a dynamic multimedia exhibit visually describing, explaining, and celebrating an historic collection of maps and charts: Plans and Profiles of the Colorado River. The collection reflects the output of multiple Colorado River surveys conducted by the USGS between 1902 and 1923. Visualizing the Survey visually dissects the mechanics of the technical, but beautiful, survey sheets while contextualizing their historical and geographical significance.

Multiple small projects undertaken at the Map and Geospatial Hub fall under the umbrella of 3D digital surface and terrain modelling. We work with raw digital elevation or surface model data to process and derive various value-added data products. These models have multiple uses, from watershed delineation and hydrological flow modelling, to visibility analysis, to 3D printing, and others.

Depending on existing departmental resources, the Map and Geospatial Hub designs and produces custom cartographic products for ASU faculty, students, and staff. These map projects are typically completed for publication in scholarly journal articles or book chapters and involve a range of tasks, including data compilation, creation, editing, and reformatting, and tackling the classic cartographic design challenges of layout, symbology, and typography.

Resilience Down to the Streets is an analysis and visualization project addressing the pedestrian safety crisis in metro Phoenix. The project was supported by a 2019 fellowship through the ASU Knowledge Exchange for Resilience (KER). It examines a robust dataset of over 22,000 pedestrian crash incidents occurring in metro Phoenix over a 20-year period (2000-2019). It also offers design, planning, and policy insights meant to help unlock the power of mobility for a more resilient metro Phoenix.

Mapping Grand Canyon is a transdisciplinary research initiative examining various cartographic histories of the greater Grand Canyon region. The initiative was kickstarted with a 2018 seed grant from the ASU Institute for Humanities Research (IHR). It has resulted in a major conference event (the Mapping Grand Canyon Conference), academic publication, multiple public speaking events, and continues to generate interrelated projects, including Visualizing the Survey, Dutton's Atlas, and others.

Dutton’s Atlas is a 2022 project supported by the Arizona Humanities. It centers on a 19th century book and companion atlas authored by Clarence Dutton, the Tertiary History of the Grand Cañon District (1882). It provided the world’s first comprehensive treatment of Grand Canyon geology while also delivering an unprecedented combination of literature, art, and cartography. Dutton’s Atlas curates these works while celebrating their foundation for Grand Canyon cartography.

AZ ADOT Highway and Interstates is a collection of aerial photographs acquired on behalf of the Arizona Department of Transportation between the late 1950s and early 1960s. The collection includes over 3,400 photos of Arizona highway corridors at various stages of development and construction. AZ ADOT Highways and Interstates is indexed on ASU GeoData.

AZ USGS Orthophotography is a collection of aerial photographs created by the United States Geological Survey from 1971-1973. Photos in this collection cover the entire state of Arizona. AZ USGS Orthophotography is indexed on ASU GeoData.

The "Navajo Project" is a collection of aerial photographs consisting of imagery covering large swaths of northeastern Arizona and the Four Corners region, which includes Navajo Nation and Hopi Reservation lands. Acquisition flights were flown between 1937 and 1951 by various agencies. "Navajo Project" imagery is indexed on ASU GeoData.