G-2
Glossary
A-Train another term for the Afternoon Constellation.
attribute table a spreadsheet-style form where the
rows consist of individual objects and the columns are
the attributes associated with those objects.
attributes the non-spatial data that can be associated
with a spatial location.
Aura an important EOS satellite dedicated to
monitoring Earth’s atmospheric chemistry.
band a narrow range of wavelengths being measured
by a remote sensing device.
base heights the elevation values assigned to the
terrain upon which the objects will be placed.
batch geocoding matching a group of addresses
together at once.
block a flat polygon object that has been extruded.
blue band the range of wavelengths between 0.4 and
0.5 micrometers.
Blue Marble a composite MODIS image of the entire
Earth from space.
Boolean operator one of the four connectors (AND,
OR, NOT, XOR) used in building a compound query.
brightness values the energy measured at a single
pixel according to a pre-determined scale. Also
referred to as Digital Numbers (DNs).
buffer a polygon of spatial proximity built around a
feature.
C/A code the digital code broadcast on the L1
frequency, which is accessible by all GPS receivers.
cartography the art and science of creating and
designing maps.
Catalog the component of ArcGIS used for managing
data (which contains the functionality of the previous
ArcCatalog).
CERES the Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System
instruments onboard Terra and Aqua.
CGIS the Canadian Geographic Information
System—a large land inventory system used in Canada
and the first time the name “GIS” was utilized for this
type of system.
channels the number of satellite signals a GPS unit
can receive.
choropleth map a type of thematic map in which
data is displayed according to one of several different
classifications.
CIR photo color infrared photo—a photo where
infrared reflection is shown in shades of red, red
reflection is shown in shades of green, and green
reflection is shown in shades of blue.
cloud a computer structure wherein data, resources,
or applications are kept at another location and made
available to the user over the Internet.
CMYK a color scheme based on using the colors cyan,
magenta, yellow, and black.
collar the white information-filled border around a
topographic map.
color composite an image formed by placing a band
of imagery into each of the three color guns (red,
green, and blue) to view a color image rather than a
grayscale one.
color gun equipment used to display a color pixel on
a screen through the use of the colors red, green, and
blue.
color ramp a range of colors that are applied to the
thematic data on a map.
Compass China’s GNSS, currently in development.
components pre-designed (or user-designed) objects
in Google SketchUp.
compound query a query that contains more than
one operator.
connectivity the linkages between edges and
junctions of a network.
constellation the full complement of satellites
comprising a GNSS.
continuous field view the conceptualization of
the world that all items vary across Earth’s surface
as constant fields, and values are available at all
locations along the field.
contour interval the vertical difference between
contour lines drawn on a map.
contour an imaginary line drawn on a map to
connect points of common elevation.
control points point locations where the coordinates
are known—these are used in aligning the
unreferenced image to the source.
control segment one of the three segments of GPS,
consisting of the control stations that monitor the
signals from the GPS satellites.
Corona a United States government satellite
remote sensing program utilizing film-based camera
equipment, which was in operation from 1960–1972.
Glossary
A-Train another term for the Afternoon Constellation.
attribute table a spreadsheet-style form where the
rows consist of individual objects and the columns are
the attributes associated with those objects.
attributes the non-spatial data that can be associated
with a spatial location.
Aura an important EOS satellite dedicated to
monitoring Earth’s atmospheric chemistry.
band a narrow range of wavelengths being measured
by a remote sensing device.
base heights the elevation values assigned to the
terrain upon which the objects will be placed.
batch geocoding matching a group of addresses
together at once.
block a flat polygon object that has been extruded.
blue band the range of wavelengths between 0.4 and
0.5 micrometers.
Blue Marble a composite MODIS image of the entire
Earth from space.
Boolean operator one of the four connectors (AND,
OR, NOT, XOR) used in building a compound query.
brightness values the energy measured at a single
pixel according to a pre-determined scale. Also
referred to as Digital Numbers (DNs).
buffer a polygon of spatial proximity built around a
feature.
C/A code the digital code broadcast on the L1
frequency, which is accessible by all GPS receivers.
cartography the art and science of creating and
designing maps.
Catalog the component of ArcGIS used for managing
data (which contains the functionality of the previous
ArcCatalog).
CERES the Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System
instruments onboard Terra and Aqua.
CGIS the Canadian Geographic Information
System—a large land inventory system used in Canada
and the first time the name “GIS” was utilized for this
type of system.
channels the number of satellite signals a GPS unit
can receive.
choropleth map a type of thematic map in which
data is displayed according to one of several different
classifications.
CIR photo color infrared photo—a photo where
infrared reflection is shown in shades of red, red
reflection is shown in shades of green, and green
reflection is shown in shades of blue.
cloud a computer structure wherein data, resources,
or applications are kept at another location and made
available to the user over the Internet.
CMYK a color scheme based on using the colors cyan,
magenta, yellow, and black.
collar the white information-filled border around a
topographic map.
color composite an image formed by placing a band
of imagery into each of the three color guns (red,
green, and blue) to view a color image rather than a
grayscale one.
color gun equipment used to display a color pixel on
a screen through the use of the colors red, green, and
blue.
color ramp a range of colors that are applied to the
thematic data on a map.
Compass China’s GNSS, currently in development.
components pre-designed (or user-designed) objects
in Google SketchUp.
compound query a query that contains more than
one operator.
connectivity the linkages between edges and
junctions of a network.
constellation the full complement of satellites
comprising a GNSS.
continuous field view the conceptualization of
the world that all items vary across Earth’s surface
as constant fields, and values are available at all
locations along the field.
contour interval the vertical difference between
contour lines drawn on a map.
contour an imaginary line drawn on a map to
connect points of common elevation.
control points point locations where the coordinates
are known—these are used in aligning the
unreferenced image to the source.
control segment one of the three segments of GPS,
consisting of the control stations that monitor the
signals from the GPS satellites.
Corona a United States government satellite
remote sensing program utilizing film-based camera
equipment, which was in operation from 1960–1972.