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Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies

University of Arkansas

Cartography/Mapping

Home » Research » Geoinformatics (GIS/RS) » Cartography/Mapping

Cartography serves as the communication medium for “discussions” of a geographic or spatial nature. While complex analyses of spatial data can be conducted using GIS or other spatial technology, effective dissemination of the results of such efforts requires cartography. The field of cartography is one with an extensive and distinguished past and a well developed body of methods and approaches.

CAST works closely with the Department of Geosciences faculty in cartography (Dr. Tom Paradise) and other partners in deploying high quality mapping products. While modern software developments have dramatically improved the cartographic capabilities for many geospatial and remote sensing systems, the final effective communication requires the skills and talents of the cartographer. Just like a great word processing package does not make a writer, a powerful GIS does not make a cartographer. At the same time, the dynamic and interactive tools provided by the integration of cartography, GIS and web tools provide exciting new opportunities.  

 Mapping and data viewing projects at CAST have been focusing on a variety of subjects and information from natural resources such as developing data and mapping for soil surveys to economic development or mapping legislative districts.

 Mapping wetland information was designed to help land stewards in making better decisions and offer them with a broader view on "where and what is there?". Economic development of  Arkansas has also been the focus of a project meant to map infrastructure and economic variables on a county basis in the Arkansas Economic Atlas.

The Arkansas Legislative Data Update project of 1991 offered a valuable needs assessment for the Arkansas Secretary of State Office.

Map services providing the latest aerial imagery at high resolution for the Northwest Arkansas were also received with great interest ,as well as the Satellite Mallard Tracking viewer which had more than  92,000 registered users from all over the world.