Element Description

The Spatial Information element stores information about the reference frame from which horizontal and vertical spatial domains are measured. The horizontal reference frame includes fields for Geodetic Model, Geographic Coordinates, and Local Coordinates. The Vertical reference frame includes fields for altitudes (elevations) and depths.


Best Practices

Providing Spatial Information is optional, but encouraged. This element can be used to provide horizontal and/or vertical coordinate system information. 

The Spatial Coverage Type field is required for Spatial Information. 

Spatial Coverage Type: Denotes the type of spatial coverage of the collection. While this field is not currently controlled, recommend providing one of the spatial coverage type enumeration values: EARTH/GLOBAL, HORIZONTAL, VERTICAL, ORBITAL, HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL, ORBITAL_VERTICAL, HORIZONTAL_ORBITAL, HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL_ORBITAL, LUNAR

Vertical Spatial Information

The following sub-elements can be used to describe Vertical Coordinate Systems.

There are 2 categories for Vertical Coordinate Systems including:

(1) Altitude System Definition 

Altitude System Definition should be used to describe data with a vertical component that is above-ground. Sub-elements under Altitude System Definition are summarized below:

      • Datum Name: The name of the vertical datum the data is encoded in. Vertical datums define a level reference surface from which vertical measurements are compared. There are many standard vertical datums. If a standard vertical datum is used, it is recommended that the EPSG vertical datum name be provided. 
      • Distance Units: The units in which altitude measurements are recorded. This field is controlled and must be selected from one of the following values: HectoPascals, Kilometers, Millibars
      • Resolutions: The minimum distance possible between two adjacent values, expressed in distance units of measure for the collection.

(2) Depth System Definition

Depth System Definition should be used to describe data with a vertical component that is below-ground. Sub-elements under Depth System Definition are summarized below:

      • Datum Name: The name of the vertical datum the data is encoded in. Vertical datums define a level reference surface from which vertical measurements are compared. There are many standard vertical datums. If a standard vertical datum is used, it is recommended that the EPSG vertical datum name be provided.
      • Distance Units: The units in which depth measurements are recorded. This field is controlled and must be selected from one of the following values: Fathoms, Feet, HectoPascals, Meters, Millibars
      • Resolutions: The minimum distance possible between two adjacent values, expressed in distance units of measure for the collection.

Element Specification

Providing Spatial Information is optional (Cardinality: 0..1)









ModelElementTypeUsable Valid ValuesConstraintsRequired?CardinalityNotes
UMM-CSpatialInformation/SpatialCoverageTypeString

EARTH/GLOBAL, HORIZONTAL, VERTICAL, ORBITAL, HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL, ORBITAL_VERTICAL, HORIZONTAL_ORBITAL, HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL_ORBITAL, LUNAR

1 - 80 characters

Yes, if applicable1


UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DatumNameStringn/a

1 - 80 characters

No0..1Recommend providing EPSG vertical datum names
UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DistanceUnitsEnumeration

HectoPascals

Kilometers

Millibars

n/a

No0..1
UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/ResolutionsNumbern/an/aNo0..*
UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DatumNameStringn/a1 - 80 charactersNo0..1Recommend providing EPSG vertical datum names
UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DistanceUnitsEnumeration

Fathoms

Feet

HectoPascals

Meters

Millibars

n/a


No0..1
UMM-CSpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/ResolutionsNumbern/an/aNo0..*



Metadata Validation and QA/QC

All metadata entering the CMR goes through the below process to ensure metadata quality requirements are met. All records undergo CMR validation before entering the system. The process of QA/QC is slightly different for NASA and non-NASA data providers. Non-NASA providers include interagency and international data providers and are referred to as the International Directory Network (IDN).

Please see the expandable sections below for flowchart details.


  • Manual Review
    • Identify errors, discrepancies or omissions.
    • Proof all content for conciseness and readability.

None

ARC Priority Matrix

Priority CategorizationJustification

Red = High Priority Finding

This element is categorized as highest priority when:

  • Spatial Information is provided but the required 'Spatial Information Type' field is not included.
  • An invalid value is provided for 'Distance Units' ('DistanceUnits' must be selected from an enumeration list).
  • An invalid value is provided for 'GeographicCoordinateUnits' ('GeographicCoordinateUnits' must be selected from an enumeration list).
  • The information provided is incorrect for the dataset.

Yellow = Medium Priority Finding

Not Applicable

Blue = Low Priority Finding

This element is categorized as low priority when:

  • A recommendation is made to provide any additional information to existing Spatial Information provided in the metadata.

Green = No Findings/Issues

The element is provided and follows all applicable criteria specified in the best practices section above.

ARC Automated Checks

ARC uses the pyQuARC library for automated metadata checks. Please see the pyQuARC GitHub for more information. 

Dialect Mappings

DIF 10

Providing Spatial_Info is optional in DIF 10 (Cardinality: 0..1).

Note: There are no Vertical Coordinate System fields in DIF 10 - vertical information can be provided in the Vertical_Spatial_Info element. For details on Vertical_Spatial_Info please see the Spatial Extent wiki page.

DIF 10 also supports an element called Data_Resolution which does not currently map to the UMM, however, there are plans to support it in the future.

UMM-C ElementDIF 10 PathTypeConstraintsRequired in DIF 10?CardinalityNotes
SpatialInformation/SpatialCoverageType
Spatial_Coverage/Spatial_Info/Spatial_Coverage_TypeEnumeration

Earth/Global, Horizontal, Vertical, Orbit, HorizontalVertical, Orbital_Vertical, Horizontal_Orbital, Horizontal_Vertical_Orbital, Lunar

Yes, if applicable1Horizon&Vert has been deprecated, use HorizontalVertical instead
n/aData_Resolution/Vertical_ResolutionString


No0..1
n/aData_Resolution/ Vertical_Resolution_UnitString
No0..1
n/aData_Resolution/Vertical_Resolution_RangeStringKMS controlledNo0..1Recommend selecting a value from the GCMD Vertical Data Resolution keywords to populate this field
n/aData_Resolution/Temporal_ResolutionString
No0..1Note: this field does not map to any other metadata elements and is unique to DIF 10.
n/aData_Resolution/Temporal_Resolution_Range StringKMS controlledNo0..1

Recommend selecting a value from the GCMD Vertical Data Resolution keywords to populate this field

Note: this field does not map to any other metadata elements and is unique to DIF 10.


Enumeration Mapping

DIF 10Translation DirectionUMM

Earth/Global

↔

EARTH/GLOBAL

Horizontal

↔

HORIZONTAL

HorizontalVertical↔HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL
Orbit↔ORBITAL
Vertical↔VERTICAL
Horizon&Vert→HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL
Orbital_Vertical↔ORBITAL_VERTICAL
Horizontal_Orbital↔HORIZONTAL_ORBITAL
Horizontal_Vertical_Orbital↔HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL_ORBITAL
Lunar↔LUNAR


Example Mapping

DIF 10

<Spatial_Coverage> 
  <Spatial_Info>
    <Spatial_Coverage_Type>Horizontal</Spatial_Coverage_Type>
  </Spatial_Info>
</Spatial_Coverage>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<Data_Resolution>
  <Temporal_Resolution>Hourly - < Daily</Temporal_Resolution>
</Data_Resolution>

UMM

"SpatialInformation": [
  {
    "SpatialCoverageType": "HORIZONTAL",
  }
]

ECHO 10

Providing the Spatial Info element is optional in ECHO 10 (Cardinality: 0..1)

UMM-C ElementECHO 10 PathTypeConstraintsRequired in ECHO10?CardinalityNote
SpatialInformation/SpatialCoverageTypeSpatialInfo/SpatialCoverageTypeString

1 - 80 characters

Yes, if applicable1

This attribute denotes whether the collection's spatial coverage requires horizontal, vertical, or both in the spatial domain and coordinate system definitions. This field is not controlled in ECHO 10, however, it is recommended that one of the UMM SpatialCoverageType enumeration values be provided in order to reduce translation errors (HORIZONTAL, VERTICAL, ORBITAL, HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL, ORBITAL_VERTICAL)

SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DatumName
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DatumNameString

1 - 80 characters

No0..1Recommend providing EPSG vertical datum names
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DistanceUnits
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/DistanceUnitsString

1 - 80 characters

No0..1
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/EncodingMethod
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/EncodingMethodString

1 - 2048 characters

No0..1

The means used to encode measurements.

SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/Resolutions
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/AltitudeSystemDefinition/Resolutions/ResolutionDecimaln/aNo0..*

This entity stores the minimum distance possible between two adjacent values, expressed in the distance units of measure for collection.

A list of vertical resolutions may be provided here.
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DatumName
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DatumNameString

1 - 80 characters

No0..1Recommend providing EPSG vertical datum names
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DistanceUnits
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/DistanceUnitsString

1 - 80 characters

No0..1
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/EncodingMethod
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/EncodingMethodString

1 - 2048 characters

No0..1The means used to encode measurements.
SpatialInformation/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/Resolutions
SpatialInfo/VerticalCoordinateSystem/DepthSystemDefinition/Resolutions/ResolutionDecimaln/aNo0..*

This entity stores the minimum distance possible between two adjacent values, expressed in the distance units of measure for collection.

A list of vertical resolutions may be provided here.


Example Mapping

ECHO 10

<SpatialInfo>
  <SpatialCoverageType>HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL</SpatialCoverageType>
  <VerticalCoordinateSystem> 
    <AltitudeSystemDefinition> 
      <DatumName>North American Vertical Datum 1988</DatumName>
      <DistanceUnits>Kilometers</DistanceUnits>
      <Resolutions>
	    <Resolution>10</Resolution>
      </Resolutions>
    </AltitudeSystemDefinition>
  </VerticalCoordinateSystem>
</SpatialInfo>

UMM

"SpatialInformation": {
  "SpatialCoverageType": "HORIZONTAL_VERTICAL",
  "VerticalCoordinateSystem": {
    "AltitudeSystemDefinition": [
      {
        "DatumName": "North American Vertical Datum 1988",
        "DistanceUnits": "Kilometers",
        "Resolutions": "10"
      }
    ]
  }
}

UMM Migration

N/A

History

UMM Versioning

VersionDateWhat Changed
1.18.02024-03-18Updated Spatial Coverage Type enumeration list for 1.18.0
1.15.52020-12-03No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.15.4 to 1.15.5
1.15.42020-09-18No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.15.3 to 1.15.4
1.15.32020-07-01No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.15.2 to 1.15.3
1.15.22020-05-20No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.15.1 to 1.15.2
1.15.12020-03-25No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.15.0 to 1.15.1
1.15.02020-02-26No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.14.0 to 1.15.0
1.14.02019-10-21The Horizontal Coordinate System element and all supporting elements were either removed or renamed and moved to the SpatialExtent element.
1.13.02019-04-11No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.12.0 to 1.13.0
1.12.02019-01-22No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.11.0 to 1.12.0.
1.11.02018-11-28No changes were made for Spatial Information during the transition from version 1.10.0 to 1.11.0.
1.10.02018-05-02

During the transition from version 1.9.0 to 1.10.0:

  • The sub element 'GeographicCoordinateUnits' was added and enumerated
  • The sub element 'EncodingMethod' was removed from both 'AltitudeSystemDefinitionType' and 'DepthSystemDefinitionType'
  • 'VerticalSystemDefinitionType' was replaced with both 'AltitudeSystemDefinitionType' and 'DepthSystemDefinitionType'
  • Free text strings were changed to enumeration for the following sub elements within 'AltitudeSystemDefinitionType' and 'DepthSystemDefinitionType': 'AltitudeDistanceUnitsEnum' and 'DepthSystemDefinitionType.'

ARC Documentation

VersionDateWhat ChangedAuthor
1.02019-02-15Recommendations/priority matrix transferred from internal ARC documentation to wiki space

Jeanne' le Roux

Ingrid Garcia-Solera

  • No labels

1 Comment

  1. Samuel Ayers

    Recommend changing "sub element" to "sub-element" in the following:

    "The sub element 'GeographicCoordinateUnits' was added and enumerated"