GIS Data Overview
Spatial information is collected in many format for a range of purposes. Collecting data is the first step to creating a map. Below is a set of annotated links, which will direct you to websites where you can find some of this information. If you are seeking spatial information that is not listed, please contact us at librarygis@pobox.upenn.edu.
Examples include anything that takes place in physical and cyberspace, such as:
- Recorded boundaries of a district (political maps)
- Transportation and social mobility (network analysis)
- Satellite images of the Earth (remote sensing, agriculture, environmental science)
- Locations of utilities such as electricity and sewers (civil and city planning)
- Locations of historical events and artifacts (archeology, history)
- Sociological and demographic data, such as census and crime data (economics, criminology, finance)
- Zoning and land use maps (civil engineering, environmental science)
- 3D renderings of land topography and buildings (urban studies, hydrology, geology)
- Disease transmission risks (epidemiology, public health)
Related Guides
- Open Geospatial Data and Visualization toolsLove Data Week 2021: Open Data Everywhere and Many Tools for Visualization
- Intro to ArcGIS tutorial 1Introductory GIS tutorial using ArcGIS/ArcMap.
- Intro to ArcGIS tutorial 2Introductory GIS tutorial using ArcGIS/ArcMap
- Exploring US Census Data: Basic ConceptsFrank Donnelly’s video tutorial on basic concepts for exploring census data.
- Search Strategies for data.census.govFrank Donnelley's video tutorial on searching for census data using the census.data.gov interface.
GIS data terms
- GeodatabaseA database designed to store, query, and manipulate geographic information.
- GPXGPS Exchange Format is an open markup format designed as a common GPS data format, often used to describe waypoints, tracks, and routes.
- GRIDGRID is a raster format.
- KML or KMZKeyhole Markup Language is for expressing geographic annotations and visualizations in Google Earth browsers.
- MIFA vector graphics format for MapInfo.
- ShapefileA shapefile is actually a collection of separate files that store the locations, the characteristics, and other information.
The following extensions are all associated with a shapefile:
.shp: Contains point features, line features, and polygon features
.shx: The index of features found in the .shp file
.dbf: A database file containing attributes in the .shp file
These associated files are usually stored in a .zip archive. - TIFF or GeoTIFFTIFF is a lossless (uncompressed) raster graphic format. Raster graphics are constructed using pixels on a grid. GeoTIFF is a TIFF with georeferenced data, often used for satellite imagery.
- WMS and WCSWeb map service, web content service.
Major Sources for GIS Data
U.S. Census Bureau census data
https://data.census.gov/
U.S. Census Bureau TIGER Lines Shapefiles
https://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/geo/shapefiles/index.php
U.S. Street Network Shapefiles, Node/Edge Lists, and GraphML Files
https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi:10.7910/DVN/CUWWYJ
Microsoft's AI generated building footprints for North America
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/maps/building-footprints
Google's Open Buildings, AI generated building footprints for Africa
https://sites.research.google/open-buildings/
National Renewable Energy Laboratory geospatial data and tools
https://www.nrel.gov/research/data-tools.html
Creating Geographic Estimates with the IPUMS CPS Online Data Analysis System
https://atcoordinates.info/category/census-data/
- GIS for Racial JusticeAn ongoing ESRI project which provides data layers, maps, applications, training resources, articles on best practices, solutions, and examples of how users are leveraging GIS to address racial inequity.
- GeoSeerA spatial data search engine.
- Geospatial Data Storefront U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development"The HUD-eGIS Storefront provides a one-stop shop where users can search for and discover HUD's geospatial datasets." This data can be accessed directly through ArcMap, by adding the ArcGIS service: https://services.arcgis.com/VTyQ9soqVukalItT/arcgis/rest/services/Location_Affordability_Index_2_0/FeatureServer/0/query?outFields=*&where=1%3D1
- Live OpenStreetMap data in ArcGISA guide from ESRI on setting up and working with live data streams from OpenStreetMap.
- Spatial Reserves blogContains up-to-date guides and information on acquiring and using public domain spatial data.
Philadelphia & Pennsylvania GIS Data
Social, Political, and Economic spatial information
- The Gridded Population of the World (GPW)Models the distribution of human population (counts and densities) on a continuous global raster surface.
- Integrated Public Use Microdata SeriesCensus microdata for social and economic research
- LandScan OverviewA webpage from Penn Libraries which provides an overview of the LandScan data. LandScan Global is a global raster dataset representing ambient population counts at 30 arc-second (1 KM) resolution.
- LandScan ViewerAn online webapp which displays LandScan HD, LandScan Global, and LandScan USA. This webapp also allows users to download these datasets for free.
- National Historical Geographic Information SystemsThe National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and present.
- Night Lights MapArchived data containing city and Urban lights at night. Can be used as a proxy for urbanization, density, and economic growth variables. This data is from 2012.
- PolicyMap (PennKey required)Public policy, housing, and a plethora of other data sets for the U.S.
- SimplyAnalytics (PennKey required)Marketing data and projections for the U.S.
- Social Explorer [PennKey required]U.S. demography and historical census data. Also includes U.S. election, Ireland religion, and U.K. 2011 census data. Use the tables feature to download data that can be joined to TIGER boundaries shapefiles.
- U.S. Census TIGER LinesBoundaries for states, counties, census tracts, and more.
Historical Geospatial Data
- United States Congressional Districts (1789- present)Shapefiles for each session of Congress
- National Historical Geographic Information SystemsThe National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States for years from 1790 through the present and for all levels of U.S. census geography, including states, counties, tracts, and blocks.
- IPUMSProvides census and survey data from around the world integrated across time and space. IPUMS integration and documentation makes it easy to study change, conduct comparative research, merge information across data types, and analyze individuals within family and community contexts. Data and services available free of charge.
- PhillyHistoryPhiladelphia City Archive is one of the country's largest municipal archives, with about 2 million photographs, dating from the late 1800's.
Environment & Climate
- Environmental Data ExplorerSource for data sets used by UNEP and its partners in the Global Environment Outlook (GEO) report and other integrated environment assessments.
- Environmental Protection AgencySuperfund sites, brownfields, air quality reports, etc.
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory"The National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Geospatial Data Science Team analyzes wind, solar, biomass, geothermal, and other energy resources and inputs the data into the GIS."
Imagery & Elevation
- ArcGIS Open DataData that can be freely used, re-used and redistributed by anyone.
- CGIAR Consortium for Spatial Information90m Digital Elevation Data for the entire world.
- Free Satellite Imagery sources9 free satellite data sources for 2022.
- Global Land Cover ProductsUSGS EROS Archive - Land Cover Products - Global Land Cover Characterization (GLCC)
- Google Earth EngineA platform for petabyte-scale scientific analysis and visualization of geospatial datasets, both for public benefit and for business and government users. Earth Engine is free to use for research, education, and nonprofit use.
- SRTM Digital Elevation Data 30mA void-filled version of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model at 1 arc-second (30m) resolution for the globe. Users may also want to check the CGIAR Consortium for Spatial Information (http://srtm.csi.cgiar.org/) for SRTM data.
- USGS EROS Archive - Sentinel-2The European Space Agency’s Multispectral Instrument on the Sentinel-2 satellite provides global (from 83 degrees north 56 degrees south latitude) 10-meter resolution, multispectral images every 10 days (2015-present)
Mapping & GIS Specialist
Geospatial and Mapping Fellow
Contact
RDDS Group
233 Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center
University of Pennsylvania
3420 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206
U.S.A.
University of Pennsylvania
3420 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206
U.S.A.