Choosing your geospatial data source
If you need to obtain map data, images, elevations, or place names for use in your geospatial applications, the sources we have covered should give you everything you need. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list—other sources of data are available, and can be found online using a search engine or sites such as http://freegis.org.
The following table lists the various requirements you may have for geospatial data in your application development, and which data source(s) may be most appropriate in each case:
|
Requirement |
Suitable data sources |
|---|---|
|
Simple base map |
World Borders Dataset |
|
Shaded relief (pseudo-3D) maps |
GLOBE or NED data processed using |
|
Street map |
OpenStreetMap |
|
City outlines |
TIGER (US); Natural Earth urban areas |
|
Detailed country outlines |
GSHHS Level 1 |
|
Photorealistic images of the Earth |
Landsat |
|
City and place names |
GNIS (US) or Geonet Names Server (elsewhere) |
