Chapter 5. Working with Geospatial Data in Python

In this chapter, we combine the Python libraries and geospatial data covered earlier to accomplish a variety of tasks. These tasks have been chosen to demonstrate various techniques for working with geospatial data in your Python programs; while in some cases there are quicker and easier ways to achieve these results (for example, using command-line utilities), we will create these solutions in Python so you can learn how to work with geospatial data in your own Python programs.

This chapter will cover:

• Reading and writing geospatial data in both vector and raster format

• Changing the datums and projections used by geospatial data

• Representing and storing geospatial data within your Python programs

• Performing geospatial calculations on points, lines, and polygons

• Converting and standardizing units of geometry and distance

This chapter is formatted like a cookbook, detailing various real-world tasks you might want to perform and providing "recipes...