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Physical Location
Data Set Info
Support Roles
Extents
Spatial Info
Access Info
Distribution Info
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Data Quality
Data Management
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Catalog Details

Summary

Short Citation
OCM Partners, 2025: 2019 USGS Lidar: North Alabama, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/72737.
Full Citation Examples

Abstract

Product: Classified LAS 1.4 USGS NGTOC task order 140G0219F0286 required Fall 2019/Spring 2020 LiDAR survey to be collected over 1,094 square miles covering part or all of 5 counties in Alabama. These counties are Limestone, Madison, Jackson, Morgan, and Marshall. Aerial LiDAR data for this task order was planned, acquired, processed and produced at an aggregate nominal pulse spacing (ANPS) of less than or equal to 0.5 meters and in compliance with USGS National Geospatial Program LiDAR Base Specification version 1.3.

This metadata supports the data entry in the NOAA Digital Coast Data Access Viewer (DAV). For this data set, the DAV is leveraging the Entwine Point Tiles (EPT) hosted by USGS on Amazon Web Services.

Distribution Information

  • Create custom data files by choosing data area, product type, map projection, file format, datum, etc. A new metadata will be produced to reflect your request using this record as a base. Change to an orthometric vertical datum is one of the many options.

  • LAS/LAZ - LASer

    Bulk download of data files in LAZ format, based on a horizontal datum/projection of Albers Conic, NAD83(2011), meters (EPSG: 6350) and a vertical datum of NAVD88 (GEOID12B) and units in meters (EPSG: 5703).

Access Constraints:

No restrictions apply to this data. The data represented is the result of data collection and processing per contract specifications and indicates the general existing conditions at the time of the data collection. As such, it is only valid for its intended use, content, time, and accuracy specifications. The user is responsible for the results of any application of the data for other than its intended purpose.

Use Constraints:

None. However, users should be aware that temporal changes may have occurred since this dataset was collected and that some parts of these data may no longer represent actual surface conditions. Users should not use these data for critical applications without a full awareness of the limitations of the data. Acknowledgment of owner would be appreciated for products derived from these data. The data represented is the result of data collection and processing per contract specifications and indicates the general existing conditions at the time of the data collection. As such, it is only valid for its intended use, content, time, and accuracy specifications. The user is responsible for the results of any application of the data for other than its intended purpose.

Controlled Theme Keywords

elevation, TERRAIN ELEVATION

Child Items

No Child Items for this record.

Contact Information

Point of Contact
NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
coastal.info@noaa.gov
(843) 740-1202
https://coast.noaa.gov

Metadata Contact
NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
coastal.info@noaa.gov
(843) 740-1202
https://coast.noaa.gov

Extents

Geographic Area 1

-86.95° W, -86.22° E, 35.01° N, 34.4° S

Time Frame 1
2019-12-04 - 2019-12-30

Dates of collection

Item Identification

Title: 2019 USGS Lidar: North Alabama
Short Name: al2019_north_al_m10126_metadata
Status: Completed
Creation Date: 2019
Publication Date: 2021
Abstract:

Product: Classified LAS 1.4 USGS NGTOC task order 140G0219F0286 required Fall 2019/Spring 2020 LiDAR survey to be collected over 1,094 square miles covering part or all of 5 counties in Alabama. These counties are Limestone, Madison, Jackson, Morgan, and Marshall. Aerial LiDAR data for this task order was planned, acquired, processed and produced at an aggregate nominal pulse spacing (ANPS) of less than or equal to 0.5 meters and in compliance with USGS National Geospatial Program LiDAR Base Specification version 1.3.

This metadata supports the data entry in the NOAA Digital Coast Data Access Viewer (DAV). For this data set, the DAV is leveraging the Entwine Point Tiles (EPT) hosted by USGS on Amazon Web Services.

Purpose:

This task order is for planning, acquisition, processing, and derivative products of lidar data to be collected at an aggregate nominal pulse spacing of 0.5 meters, including overlap and an aggregate nominal pulse density of no less than 2 points per square meter. Lidar data and derivative products produced in compliance with this task order are based on the National Geospatial Program Lidar Base Specification Version 1.3. This data will be used to generate Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) for the use in dam safety assessments, engineering design and design reviews, conservation planning, research, delivery, floodplain mapping, and hydrologic modeling utilizing lidar technology for partners including: the Tennessee Valley Authority, Huntsville Utilities, City of Huntsville, and Madison County Tax Assessor's Office; it will also support the 3DEP mission.

Supplemental Information:

Prime Contractor: The Atlantic Group, LLC. Lidar data were acquired and calibrated by The Atlantic Group. All follow-on processing was completed by the prime contractor.

The following are the USGS lidar fields in JSON:

{

"ldrinfo" : {

"ldrspec" : "Base Specifications 1.3",

"ldrsens" : "Teledyne Optech Galaxy Prime",

"ldrmaxnr" : "8",

"ldrnps" : "0.4350",

Keywords

Theme Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords
EARTH SCIENCE > LAND SURFACE > TOPOGRAPHY > TERRAIN ELEVATION
ISO 19115 Topic Category
elevation

Spatial Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
CONTINENT
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
CONTINENT > NORTH AMERICA > UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
CONTINENT > NORTH AMERICA > UNITED STATES OF AMERICA > ALABAMA
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
VERTICAL LOCATION > LAND SURFACE

Instrument Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
LIDAR > Light Detection and Ranging

Platform Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Platform Keywords
Airplane > Airplane

Physical Location

Organization: Office for Coastal Management
City: Charleston
State/Province: SC

Data Set Information

Data Set Scope Code: Data Set
Data Set Type: Elevation
Maintenance Frequency: Unknown
Data Presentation Form: Model (digital)
Distribution Liability:

No restrictions apply to this data. The data represented is the result of data collection and processing per contract specifications and indicates the general existing conditions at the time of the data collection. As such, it is only valid for its intended use, content, time, and accuracy specifications. The user is responsible for the results of any application of the data for other than its intended purpose. Any conclusions drawn from the analysis of this information are not the responsibility of NOAA, the Office for Coastal Management or its partners.

Data Set Credit: The Atlantic Group, LLC, USGS

Support Roles

Data Steward

CC ID: 1335914
Date Effective From: 2024
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
Address: 2234 South Hobson Ave
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
Email Address: coastal.info@noaa.gov
Phone: (843) 740-1202
URL: https://coast.noaa.gov

Distributor

CC ID: 1335913
Date Effective From: 2024
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
Address: 2234 South Hobson Ave
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
Email Address: coastal.info@noaa.gov
Phone: (843) 740-1202
URL: https://coast.noaa.gov

Distributor

CC ID: 1335917
Date Effective From: 2021
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): U.S. Geological Survey
Address: 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive
Reston, VA 20191
USA
URL: USGS Home

Metadata Contact

CC ID: 1335915
Date Effective From: 2024
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
Address: 2234 South Hobson Ave
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
Email Address: coastal.info@noaa.gov
Phone: (843) 740-1202
URL: https://coast.noaa.gov

Point of Contact

CC ID: 1335916
Date Effective From: 2024
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM)
Address: 2234 South Hobson Ave
Charleston, SC 29405-2413
Email Address: coastal.info@noaa.gov
Phone: (843) 740-1202
URL: https://coast.noaa.gov

Extents

Currentness Reference: Ground Condition

Extent Group 1

Extent Group 1 / Geographic Area 1

CC ID: 1335963
W° Bound: -86.95
E° Bound: -86.22
N° Bound: 35.01
S° Bound: 34.4

Extent Group 1 / Time Frame 1

CC ID: 1335962
Time Frame Type: Range
Start: 2019-12-04
End: 2019-12-30
Description:

Dates of collection

Spatial Information

Spatial Representation

Representations Used

Grid: No
Vector: Yes
Text / Table: No
TIN: No
Stereo Model: No
Video: No

Reference Systems

Reference System 1

CC ID: 1335940

Coordinate Reference System

CRS Type: Projected
EPSG Code: EPSG:3857
EPSG Name: WGS 84 / Pseudo-Mercator
See Full Coordinate Reference System Information

Reference System 2

CC ID: 1335941

Coordinate Reference System

CRS Type: Vertical
EPSG Code: EPSG:5703
EPSG Name: NAVD88 height
See Full Coordinate Reference System Information

Access Information

Security Class: Unclassified
Data Access Procedure:

Data is available online for bulk and custom downloads.

Data Access Constraints:

No restrictions apply to this data. The data represented is the result of data collection and processing per contract specifications and indicates the general existing conditions at the time of the data collection. As such, it is only valid for its intended use, content, time, and accuracy specifications. The user is responsible for the results of any application of the data for other than its intended purpose.

Data Use Constraints:

None. However, users should be aware that temporal changes may have occurred since this dataset was collected and that some parts of these data may no longer represent actual surface conditions. Users should not use these data for critical applications without a full awareness of the limitations of the data. Acknowledgment of owner would be appreciated for products derived from these data. The data represented is the result of data collection and processing per contract specifications and indicates the general existing conditions at the time of the data collection. As such, it is only valid for its intended use, content, time, and accuracy specifications. The user is responsible for the results of any application of the data for other than its intended purpose.

Distribution Information

Distribution 1

CC ID: 1335918
Start Date: 2022-05-19
End Date: Present
Download URL: https://coast.noaa.gov/dataviewer/#/lidar/search/where:ID=10126/details/10126
Distributor: NOAA Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM) (2024 - Present)
File Name: Customized Download
Description:

Create custom data files by choosing data area, product type, map projection, file format, datum, etc. A new metadata will be produced to reflect your request using this record as a base. Change to an orthometric vertical datum is one of the many options.

File Type (Deprecated): Zip
Compression: Zip

Distribution 2

CC ID: 1335919
Start Date: 2021
End Date: Present
Download URL: https://rockyweb.usgs.gov/vdelivery/Datasets/Staged/Elevation/LPC/Projects/AL_NorthAL_2019_B19/AL_NorthAL_2019/LAZ/
Distributor: U.S. Geological Survey (2021 - Present)
File Name: Bulk Download
Description:

Bulk download of data files in LAZ format, based on a horizontal datum/projection of Albers Conic, NAD83(2011), meters (EPSG: 6350) and a vertical datum of NAVD88 (GEOID12B) and units in meters (EPSG: 5703).

File Type (Deprecated): LAZ
Distribution Format: LAS/LAZ - LASer

URLs

URL 1

CC ID: 1335920
URL: https://coast.noaa.gov/dataviewer/
Name: NOAA's Office for Coastal Management (OCM) Data Access Viewer (DAV)
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: HTML
Description:

The Data Access Viewer (DAV) allows a user to search for and download elevation, imagery, and land cover data for the coastal U.S. and its territories. The data, hosted by the NOAA Office for Coastal Management, can be customized and requested for free download through a checkout interface. An email provides a link to the customized data, while the original data set is available through a link within the viewer.

URL 2

CC ID: 1335921
URL: https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/usgs-lidar-public/AL_NorthAL_2019/ept.json
Name: Entwine Point Tiles (EPT)
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: json
Description:

Entwine Point Tile (EPT) is a simple and flexible octree-based storage format for point cloud data. The data is organized in such a way that the data can be reasonably streamed over the internet, pulling only the points you need. EPT files can be queried to return a subset of the points that give you a representation of the area. As you zoom further in, you are requesting higher and higher densities. A dataset in EPT will contain a lot of files, however, the ept.json file describes all the rest. The EPT file can be used in Potree and QGIS to view the point cloud.

URL 3

CC ID: 1335924
URL: https://usgs.entwine.io/data/view.html?r=%22https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/usgs-lidar-public/AL_NorthAL_2019%22
Name: USGS Potree 3D View
URL Type:
Online Resource
Description:

Link to view the point cloud (using the Entwine Point Tile (EPT) format) in the 3D Potree viewer.

URL 4

CC ID: 1335925
URL: https://rockyweb.usgs.gov/vdelivery/Datasets/Staged/Elevation/metadata/AL_NorthAL_2019_B19/AL_NorthAL_2019/
Name: USGS Additional Info
URL Type:
Online Resource
Description:

Link to the additional information available for this data set from the USGS. This information includes reports, tile index shapefiles, and hydro breaklines.

URL 5

CC ID: 1335926
URL: https://rockyweb.usgs.gov/vdelivery/Datasets/Staged/Elevation/metadata/AL_NorthAL_2019_B19/AL_NorthAL_2019_B19_WP_Report.pdf
Name: USGS Project Report
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: pdf
Description:

Link to the USGS project report that provides project information, vertical accuracy results, classifications used, sensors used, and work unit information.

URL 6

CC ID: 1337654
URL: https://rockyweb.usgs.gov/vdelivery/Datasets/Staged/Elevation/metadata/AL_NorthAL_2019_B19/AL_NorthAL_2019/reports/North%20Alabama%20Project%20Report.pdf
Name: Lidar Report
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: pdf
Description:

Link to the lidar report.

Data Quality

Vertical Positional Accuracy:

This data set was produced to meet ASPRS Positional Accuracy Standard for Digital Geospatial Data (2014) for a 10-cm RMSEz Vertical Accuracy Class.

USGS Determined Vertical Accuracy

Non-Vegetated Vertical Accuracy (NVA) = 3.9 cm RMSE

Vegetated Vertical Accuracy (VVA) = 11.31 cm at the 95th Percentile

Completeness Report:

Area of interest covers project area. A visual qualitative assessment was performed to ensure data completeness. No void areas or missing data exist. The raw point cloud is of good quality and data passes NVA specifications. Void areas (i.e., areas outside the project boundary but within the tiling scheme) are coded using a unique NODATA value. This value is identified in the appropriate location within the file header.

Conceptual Consistency:

All lidar data and lidar derived data covers the entire area of interest. All lidar point cloud tiles show no edge artifacts or mismatches from tile to tile. Void areas (i.e. areas outside the project boundary but within the tiling scheme) are coded using a unique NODATA value. This value is identified in the appropriate location within the file header. Data cover the entire area specified for this project.

Data Management

Have Resources for Management of these Data Been Identified?: Yes
Approximate Percentage of Budget for these Data Devoted to Data Management: Unknown
Do these Data Comply with the Data Access Directive?: Yes
Actual or Planned Long-Term Data Archive Location: NCEI-CO
How Will the Data Be Protected from Accidental or Malicious Modification or Deletion Prior to Receipt by the Archive?:

Data is backed up to tape and to cloud storage.

Lineage

Lineage Statement:

The NOAA Office for Coastal Management (OCM) ingested references to the USGS Entwine Point Tiles (EPT) hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS) into the Digital Coast Data Access Viewer (DAV). The DAV accesses the point cloud as it resides on AWS under the usgs-lidar-public-container.

Sources

USGS AWS Entwine Point Tile (EPT)

CC ID: 1335942
Contact Role Type: Publisher
Contact Type: Organization
Contact Name: USGS
Citation URL: https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/usgs-lidar-public/AL_NorthAL_2019/ept.json
Citation URL Name: USGS Entwine Point Tile (EPT)

Process Steps

Process Step 1

CC ID: 1335943
Description:

Aircraft and Sensor Information and Flight Plan Execution

Atlantic acquired 54 passes of the AOI as a series of perpendicular and/or adjacent flight-lines executed in 5 flight missions conducted between December 4, 2019 and December 30, 2019. Onboard differential Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) unit(s) recorded sample aircraft positions at 2 hertz (Hz) or more frequency. LiDAR data was only acquired when a minimum of six (6) satellites were in view.

Process Date/Time: 2019-10-30 00:00:00

Process Step 2

CC ID: 1335944
Description:

Ground Control Survey

A total of 161 ground survey points were collected in support of this project, including 32 LiDAR Control Points (LCP), 69 Non-vegetated Vertical Accuracy (NVA) and 60 Vegetated Vertical Accuracy (VVA). Point cloud data accuracy was tested against a Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) constructed from LiDAR points in clear and open areas. A clear and open area can be characterized with respect to topographic and ground cover variation such that a minimum of five (5) times the Nominal Pulse Spacing (NPS) exists with less than 1/3 of the RMSEZ deviation from a low-slope plane. Slopes that exceed ten (10) percent were avoided. Each land cover type representing ten (10) percent or more of the total project area were tested and reported with a VVA. In land cover categories other than dense urban areas, the tested points did not have obstructions forty-five (45) degrees above the horizon to ensure a satisfactory TIN surface. The VVA value is provided as a target. It is understood that in areas of dense vegetation, swamps, or extremely difficult terrain, this value may be exceeded. The NVA value is a requirement that must be met, regardless of any allowed “busts” in the VVA(s) for individual land cover types within the project. Checkpoints for each assessment (NVA and VVA) are required to be well-distributed throughout the land cover type, for the entire project area.

Process Date/Time: 2019-10-30 00:00:00

Process Step 3

CC ID: 1337655
Description:

LiDAR Point Cloud Generation

Atlantic used Leica software products to download the IPAS ABGNSS/IMU data and raw laser scan files from the airborne system. Waypoint Inertial Explorer is used to extract the raw IPAS ABGNSS/IMU data, which is further processed in combination with controlled base stations to provide the final Smoothed Best Estimate Trajectory (SBET) for each mission. The SBETs are combined with the raw laser scan files to export the LiDAR ASCII Standard (*.las) formatted swath point clouds.

Process Date/Time: 2020-12-03 00:00:00

Process Step 4

CC ID: 1335945
Description:

LiDAR Calibration

Using a combination of GeoCue, TerraScan and TerraMatch; overlapping swath point clouds are corrected for any orientation or linear deviations to obtain the best fit swath-to-swath calibration. Relative calibration was evaluated using advanced plane-matching analysis and parameter corrections derived. This process was repeated interactively until residual errors between overlapping swaths, across all project missions, was reduced to ≤2cm. A final analysis of the calibrated lidar is preformed using a TerraMatch tie line report for an overall statistical model of the project area. Upon completion of the data calibration, a complete set of elevation difference intensity rasters (dZ Orthos) are produced. A user-defined color ramp is applied depicting the offsets between overlapping swaths based on project specifications. The dZ orthos provide an opportunity to review the data calibration in a qualitative manner. Atlantic assigns green to all offset values that fall below the required RMSDz requirement of the project. A yellow color is assigned for offsets that fall between the RMSDz value and 1.5x of that value. Finally, red values are assigned to all values that fall beyond 1.5x of the RMSDz requirements of the project.

Process Date/Time: 2020-12-03 00:00:00

Process Step 4

CC ID: 1335946
Description:

LiDAR Classification

Multiple automated filtering routines are applied to the calibrated LiDAR point cloud identifying and extracting bare-earth and above ground features. GeoCue, TerraScan, and TerraModeler software was used for the initial batch processing, visual inspection and any manual editing of the LiDAR point clouds. Atlantic utilized collected breakline data to preform classification for classes 9 (Water) and 20 (Ignored Ground). 1 Processed, but unclassified 2 Bare-earth ground 7 Low Noise 9 Water 17 Bridge Decks 18 High Noise 20 Ignored Ground (breakline proximity).

Process Date/Time: 2020-12-03 00:00:00

Process Step 5

CC ID: 1335948
Description:

Original point clouds in LAS/LAZ format were restructured as Entwine Point Tiles and stored on Amazon Web Services. The data were re-projected horizontally to WGS84 Web Mercator (EPSG 3857). Vertically, no changes were made to the vertical datum (NAVD88 GEOID12B; EPSG 5703).

Process Contact: U.S. Geological Survey

Process Step 6

CC ID: 1335949
Description:

References to the entwine point tiles and data reports were ingested into the Digital Coast Data Access Viewer. No changes to the data were made at this point. The Data Access Viewer will access the point cloud as it resides on AWS under the usgs-lidar-public container.

Process Date/Time: 2024-06-03 00:00:00
Process Contact: Office for Coastal Management (OCM)

Catalog Details

Catalog Item ID: 72737
GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:72737
Metadata Record Created By: Rebecca Mataosky
Metadata Record Created: 2024-06-03 20:54+0000
Metadata Record Last Modified By: Rebecca Mataosky
Metadata Record Last Modified: 2024-06-07 19:49+0000
Metadata Record Published: 2024-06-04
Owner Org: OCMP
Metadata Publication Status: Published Externally
Do Not Publish?: N
Metadata Last Review Date: 2022-05-20
Metadata Review Frequency: 1 Year
Metadata Next Review Date: 2023-05-20