Geoportal of planetary data: Concept, methods and implementations

• Published in: Planetary Remote Sensing and Mapping pp. 315 - 329
• Main Authors: Karachevtseva, I. P., Garov, A. S., Zubarev, A. E., Matveev, E. V., Kokhanov, A. A., Zharkova, A. Yu
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: CRC Press 2019
• Edition: 1
• Subjects: TCP; Grail; RPC; Software Architecture; Html Markup; High Resolution DEM; EDP Science; Russian Space Program; RFM; Spacecraft Orbit; Morphometric Parameters; MS SQL Server; PDS; Planetary Research; Gravitational Perturbations; Planetary Information; Digital Terrain Models; Planetary Data; Lunar Data; OGC; Planetary Geology; Mercury’s Surface; Vector Layers; Server Back End; Virtual Observatories
• ISBN: 9781138584150; 1138584150
• DOI: 10.1201/9780429505997-21

To store results of planetary image processing and spatial surface analysis we are creating a Geoportal of Planetary Data. The first pilot version of the information system as a 2D WebGIS was based on Phobos data processed in frame of preparation for Phobos-Grunt mission. Starting firstly with a small Martian satellite, we have extended our system and now it is being developed as geodetic and cartographic node that collects scientific spatial products for the Moon, Mercury, Mars, Enceladus (Saturn system) and Jupiter’s Galilean satellites Io, Europe, Ganymede and Calisto (http://cartsrv.mexlab.ru/geoportal/). In a huge data flow, it becomes impossible to exploit the whole obtained data for scientific research. To solve this problem, it is proposed to update the current version of Geoportal with new possibilities. New Geoportal will allow full and effective exploitation of data for planetary research with web access and interactive online tools for high-level analysis of planetary data. The web platform is organized as an online 3D WebGIS portal. The web portal and applications have a unified basic interface, implemented using HTML markup. Based on the new software architecture several cross-platform solutions are developed that can be applied for information system “Digital Moon” proposed to integrate various collections of lunar data. It is of great importance because the Moon is a main focus of the Russian space program. The proposed system is related to the possibility of the comprehensive use of lunar data in a unified software environment, providing a qualitatively new level of planetary research where expert analysis and automated data processing complement each other. Some executable applications that have been created using new software architecture and developed infrastructure are presented. To update the current version of Geoportal, this chapter utilizes the developed unified distributed communication software architecture for processing of spatial data which integrates web-, desktop- and mobile platforms and combines volunteer computing model and public cloud possibilities. Mapping functionality of Geoportal with new tools will provide data presentation with cartographic quality: multi-scale visualization of planetary data and labels on-demand, extended cartographic design, support of various types of cartographic projections. Image shooting planning is part of mission preparation to provide requirements for further stereo processing and the creation of digital terrain models for topographic mapping. The Moon exploration is essential for the Russian space program. Processing and analysis of such data requires specialized approaches, including online processing, various methods of categorizing and data integration, as well as joint analysis of heterogeneous information obtained from different sources.