Landslide initiation locations in Tucurú quadrangle, Guatemala

Frequently anticipated questions:

• What does this data set describe?
  1. How might this data set be cited?
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
• Who produced the data set?
  1. Who are the originators of the data set?
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
• Why was the data set created?
• How was the data set created?
  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?
  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?
  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?
• How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?
  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the data, including topology?
• How can someone get a copy of the data set?
  1. Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
  2. Who distributes the data?
  3. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  4. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
  5. How can I download or order the data?
• Who wrote the metadata?

What does this data set describe?

1. How might this data set be cited?
   Bucknam, Robert C., Coe, Jeffrey A., and Mota, Manuel Antonio, 2001, Landslide initiation locations in Tucurú quadrangle, Guatemala: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-443, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO.

   Online Links:

   • http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2001/ofr-01-0443/

   This is part of the following larger work.
   Bucknam, Robert C., Coe, Jeffrey A., Mota, Manuel Antonio, Godt, Jonathan W., Tarr, Arthur C., Bradley, Lee-Ann, Rafferty, Sharon, Hancock, Dean, Dart, Richard L., and Johnson, Margo L., 2001, Landslides Triggered by Hurricane Mitch in Guatemala - Inventory and Discussion: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-443, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, Colorado.

   Online Links:

   • http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2001/ofr-01-0443/

2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

   West_Bounding_Coordinate: -90.248379
   East_Bounding_Coordinate: -90.002799
   North_Bounding_Coordinate: 15.331799
   South_Bounding_Coordinate: 15.183922
   

3. What does it look like?

   http://geo-nsdi.er.usgs.gov/metadata/open-file/01-443/01-443.png (PNG)

   Index map showing general area of landslide assessment, 462x476 pixels, 9k bytes.

4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

   Beginning_Date: Oct-1998

   Ending_Date: Nov-1998

   Currentness_Reference:

   ground condition

5. What is the general form of this data set?

   Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
   

6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
   1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):
      • Entity point (196)
      • Point (4)
      • GT-polygon composed of chains (220)
      • Point (4)
   2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      The map projection used is Transverse Mercator.
      

      Projection parameters:

      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 1.000000
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -90.125000
      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 15.166667
      False_Easting: 0.000000
      False_Northing: 0.000000
      

      Planar coordinates are encoded using coordinate pair
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.000064
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.000064
      Planar coordinates are specified in meters
      The horizontal datum used is D_WGS_1984.
      The ellipsoid used is WGS_1984.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378137.000000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/298.257224.
      
7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

   Landslide

   Polygon delineating the planimetric area of a landslide found in coverages whose names begin with ls, ols, or yls

   LS

   Some regions within landslides were apparently unaffected by the landslide (that is, they represent areas bypassed by the landslide but are within its outer boundaries) This attribute is used to distinguish those areas from the landslide itself.

   Value	Definition
   1	Landslide polygon
   0	Unaffected region within landslide polygon

   Mapped area

   Polygon in the mm coverages, used to indicate the method by which landslides were identified, found in coverages whose names begin with mm.

   MM

   Mapping method

   Value	Definition
   mirror	landslide features mapped with a mirror stereoscope
   plotter	the landslide features within the polygon were mapped with a photogrammetric stereoplotter
   notmap	polygon falls outside the defined study area

Who produced the data set?

1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
   • Robert C. Bucknam
   • Jeffrey A. Coe
   • Manuel Antonio Mota
2. Who also contributed to the data set?

   This report is based on a cooperative study by the U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, Colorado and the Instituto Nacional de Sismologia, Vulcanologia, Meteorologia e Hidrologia, Guatemala City, Guatemala. Work funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development's Hurricane Mitch Reconstruction Program.

3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
   Jeffrey A Coe

   U.S. Geological Survey, CR

   Hydrologist

   Mail Stop 966

   P.O. Box 25046

   Lakewood, CO
   

   USA

   303-273-8606 (voice)

   303-273-8600 (FAX)

   jcoe@usgs.gov

Why was the data set created?

The cover shows the distribution of slope failures formed during Hurricane Mitch in one of twenty 1:50,000-scale maps within a large study area adjacent to the Motagua and Polochic Rivers.

How was the data set created?

1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

   (source 1 of 1)

   Type_of_Source_Media: aerial photographs
   Source_Scale_Denominator: 40000
   

2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

   (process 1 of 2)

   Most landslides were mapped using 1:40,000-scale aerial photographs and a Kern PG-2 photogrammetric plotter at 4X and 8X magnifications. The photographs were scaled and oriented to the topographic base map using prominent topographic landmarks and plotted on a transparent polyester overlay registered to the topographic base maps at a scale of 1:50,000 or 1:25,000. In areas where landslides were very sparse, the aerial photographs were scanned with a mirror stereoscope at 4X magnification, and landslide locations were transferred to base maps by inspection. The mapped landslides were digitized manually or by an optical scanner, and the data were then digitally registered to a digital version of the base map in ArcInfo. Person who carried out this activity:
   

   Jonathan W. Godt

   U.S. Geological Survey

   (303) 273-8626 (voice)

   (303) 273-8600 (FAX)

   jgodt@usgs.gov

   Hours_of_Service: 0800 - 1630 Mountain Time M-F
   Contact_Instructions: E-mail is preferred
   

   Date: 04-Jan-2002 (process 2 of 2)

   Creation of original metadata record Person who carried out this activity:
   

   Jonathan W Godt

   U.S. Geological Survey, CR

   Mail Stop 966

   P.O. Box 25046

   Lakewood, CO
   

   USA

   303-273-8626 (voice)

   303-273-8600 (FAX)

   jgodt@usgs.gov

3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

1. How well have the observations been checked?
   
2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
   The linework was digitized manually or by an optical scanner. Landslide locations mapped using the photogrammetric plotter are estimated accurate to within 50-100 m. Locations of landslides mapped using a mirror stereoscope are estimated to be accurate to within approximately 200 m.
3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
   
4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
   
5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
   

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None
Use_Constraints:

These maps are inventory maps, not hazard maps, and should not be enlarged to a scale larger than 1:50,000.

1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
   
   USGS Information Services

   Box 25286 Denver Federal Center

   Denver, CO
   

   USA

   1-888-ASK-USGS (voice)

   303-202-4693 (FAX)

   ask@usgs.gov
2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set? USGS Open-File Report 01-443
3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

   This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with U.S.Geological Survey editorial standards nor with the North American Stratigraphic Code.Any use of trade names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S.Government.

4. How can I download or order the data?
   • Availability in digital form:

     Data format:	Landslide initiation locations in format ARCE (version 8.1)
     Network links:	http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2001/ofr-01-0443/EXPORT/ip21611.e00

   • Cost to order the data: none

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:

Last modified: 23-Feb-2015

Metadata author:

Peter N Schweitzer

USGS Midwest Area

Collection manager, USGS Geoscience Data Clearinghouse, http://geo-nsdi.er.usgs.gov/

Mail Stop 954

12201 Sunrise Valley Dr

Reston, VA

USA

703-648-6533 (voice)

703-648-6252 (FAX)

pschweitzer@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:

FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)