NASA Langley Research Center Geographic Information
Systems (GIS) Team
The
NASA Langley
GIS Team is dedicated to providing geospatial data management solutions
for our home center and for our customers within NASA and in other
agencies. We have considerable experience and expertise in
facilities management through applied GIS, as well as geodetic control
and surveying with state-of-the-art GPS (Global Positioning System) and
optical technologies. In addition to custom web and database
application development and on-site surveying, we provide training and
consultation services.
We have a student
internship program
available in conjunction with the Virginia Space Grant Consortium at
Old Dominion University. Students, high school and higher, become guest
researchers at NASA Langley Research Center and gain experience working
with with GIS and related fields.
The following major projects are available to the public.
The NASA Langley Research Center
Masterplan Cultural Resource is an overview of the historic significance
of the center and its facilities.
Educational resources for lessons
about the training behind the Mercury and Apollo missions are available for
students and teachers. These lessons highlight the types and locations of
the training used by the astronauts to prepare for their missions.
The Mid-Atlantic Chesapeake Bay Osprey tracking project
tracks the movement and nesting of Osprey which may impact the flight operations
at Langley Air Force Base. The project has tracked Osprey as the migrate from
Northern Canada to South America.
Additionally, the GIS Team at NASA LaRC is developing Space Optimization
tools to support more objective planning and use of the center's limited
and extremely valuable office and technical space. The decision support
capability leverages LaRC's long term maintenance of building interior data
(room level details) in GIS. For a more in-depth explanation, please view
(high bandwidth version) this video presentation on Space
Allocation Optimization.
Alternatively, you can view a lower bandwidth presentation here
.
Langley has developed the most detailed and advanced GIS of any NASA
Center and is recognized as a leader in this technology within the
agency and the Federal Government. The LaRC GIS Team frequently
supports requests from NASA HQ, other Centers (e.g. Wallops Flight
Facility (WFF), White Sands Test Facility (WSTF)) and outside agencies
(e.g. US Air Force, Smithsonian Institution, US Geological Survey
(USGS)) for assistance both with specific projects and general guidance
in the use of spatial analysis technology.
The current LaRC GIS architecture is based on industry standard,
Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software with custom applications and
extensions. The system consists of GIS software (Environmental
Systems Research Institute or ESRI ArcGIS), Relational Database
Management System (RDBMS) software (Oracle), and open-standard,
open-source programming languages (Perl, Python, PHP). This
approach leverages technological advances in GIS, databases, and web
applications, and aligns well with evolving Enterprise Resource Product
(ERP) solutions such as SAP for IFM / IAM integration.
Spatial data is accessible through the online Master Plan using
standard web browsers. Maps generated from the GIS allow user
interaction, providing links to narratives, photographs, and
databases. The GIS architecture links building floor plans and
center-level maps to databases including Facilities and Related Service
Activities (F&RSA), Space Utilization, Real Property, and
Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS), enabling complex
queries and reports.
Flood Impact
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Space Utilization / Move Planning
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GPS
Surveying
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Optical Surveying
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Classroom Training
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Field
Training
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