ExoGIS: An internet-based geographic information system in support of planetary science

Abstract

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) actively supports research projects in the field of planetary sciences that are carried out through the Canadian Analogue Research Network (CARN). CARNd projects provide the background data used in comparative studies of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. These studies require sophisticated tools for the visualization, manipulation, analysis, and interpretation of geospatial terrestrial and planetary databases. The large amount of data, gathered through current and future missions, must be managed for easy access by principal investigators, CSA staff, and stakeholders from government, universities, industry, and other space agencies. We are currently developing an internet-based geographic information system (WebGIS) that has three objectives: (i) to promote and facilitate research at analogue sites in Canada and other locations where CSA field deployments are carried out; (ii) to forge stronger links with the international Earth and planetary science community by sharing geospatial information; and (iii) to give visibility to the CSA in the field of analogue and planetary GIS. We propose building a WebGIS architecture according to the international standards developed by the Open Geospatial Consortium for terrestrial data, and the International Planetary Data Alliance for planetary bodies. To illustrate the versatility of WebGIS applications, we use an example based on the composition of lunar rocks produced from datasets acquired by Lunar Prospector and extracted from the Planetary Data System.