FOSS4G GIS for Mining Monitoring
1.0 Introduction
This tutorial has been prepared as a short course focusing on the core on the job needs of the local government officials working at the aimags and sums in Mongolia responsible for mining monitoring and environmental and land use management. It does not focus on academic development. The FOSS4G GeoAcademy is introduced and users are encouraged to review and complete it if they would like certification. We will be using open source and free applications that are needed for the course. Only the key functions and processes needed will be demonstrated. Users are encouraged to review the applications other functions in more detail with the links provided.
2.0 Academic - FOSS4G GeoAcademy
The FOSS4G GeoAcademy course for GIS is based on QGIS, GRASS and Inkscape. We recommend training for aimags and sums to follow this cirriculum for consistency and online support. If possible the material will be translated into Mongolian.
FOSS4G GeoAcademy Curriculum
As a basic introduction to FOSS4G Academy the course can provide you with the following:
- 35 University level lectures and labs
- Lectures focus on vendor-agnostic theories and principles
- Labs focus on use of QGIS, GRASS and Inkscape
- Labs are free for you to use
- Aligned to Geospatial Technology Competency Model
As a basic introduction to FOSS4G Academy the course can provide you with the following:
- Introduction to Geospatial Technology
- Spatial Analysis with QGIS
- Data Acquisition with QGIS
- Cartographic Design with QGIS and Inkscape
- Introduction to Remote Sensing (QGIS and GRASS or Multispec)
We will be following some of the introductory curriculum with modifications to focus on on-the-job training (OTJ) approach.
Reference: SESMIM-QGIS presentation material
3.0 On The Job Training (OTJ) - GIS Short Course
This tutorial is taking an OTJ training approach because we are trying to provide basic knowledge and tools for the students to be able to use GIS on their day to day work on mine monitoring and environmental assessment. We will try to provide basic theory, concepts and techniques that you can use on your day to day work, however you will also be given links and references like the GeoAcademy to advance your knowledge and skills at your own pace.
4.0 GIS Tools
For this course we are focusing on FOSS4G open source application tool with QGIS and other free software like Google Earth and Microsoft's Image Composite Editor.
4.1 QGIS
Download and install QGIS for your operating system from this website:
Do not download QGIS version 3.2 because it does not have all the plugins you will need yet. Download version 2.18 instead.
4.2 Google Earth
Download and install Google Earth Pro from this website:
Download the desktop version for your workstation.
4.3 Image Composite Editior (ICE)
Download and install ICE from this website:
This is for the 64 bit version. If you need the 32 bit version use this link:
5.0 Understanding Map Projections
When we create maps for field work or reports we need to understand that we are creating a flat map from the earth which is curved. Unfortunately our earth is not a perfectly rounded sphere, it is not even a perfect ellipsoid. Consequently geodesists (scientists who study the science of the shape of the earth) have created and used many projections to best approximate the shape of the earth in their country.
In Mongolia the geodesists have, in the past, used the Gauss-Kruger projection to represent the ellipsoid of your country, with the Pulkovo1942 datum and height based on the Baltic sea level. The Mongolian GPS network, Monref97 was established in 1997-1998 and densified in 2003-2006. Today Mongolia has adopted the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) projection with the WGS84 ellipsoid and datum for the establishment of geographic coordinates for mapping.
The WGS84 datum has been selected because we are using the Global Navigation Satellite System or GNSS receivers to establish coordinate positions on the earth. Originally there was only the United States Global Positioning System (GPS), then the Russians added their Global Orbiting Navigation System (GLONASS) and now Europe has added Galileo to the GNSS network.
The GNSS satellites rotate around the earth's centre of gravity which is the WGS84 datum. For more information on WGS84 you can check the following link:
5.1 Whole Earth - sphere, ellipsoid
As we have described above the earth is not a perfect sphere it is an imperfect ellipsoid which is represented as an ellipsoid with the WGS84 datum.
Longitude is measured in degrees east and west of the Prime Meridian from 0-180 degrees East and 0-180 degrees West. Latitude is measured in degrees 0-90 North or South from the Equator. Ulaanbaatar is geographically located at 106.918556 degrees E and 47.921230 N.
Geographic Coordinate System - Longitude and Latitude
A geographic coordinate system is a system used in geography that enables us to locate a point on the curved earth we use longitude and latitude and elevation. Longitude is defined by the Prime Meridian which runs from the North Pole to the South Pole through the British Royal Observatory in Greenwich. Latitude is measured from the Equator of the earth.
5.2 Plane - maps
We cannot use geographic coordinates well on flat or planar maps. So we use projections to project points on the earth's surface (ellipsoid) to a flat plane. There are many projections that geodesists have used and one has to be cautious about transposing coordinates from one map to another. You need to make sure you have the metadata of projected maps and reference points you can use to verify the coordinates.
Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM)
It is believed that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers developed the UTM system for the publication of their topographic military maps in the early 1940s. The German Wehrmacht also had a similar system with a scale factor of 1.0 at the central meridian versus the U.S. with 0.9996.
The UTM uses conformal projection with a 2 dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. The UTM is not a single map projection. It divides the Earth into 60 zones, each zone representing a 6 degree band running north-south and it uses a secant transverse Mercator projection for each zone.
UTM Zones
Keeping the UTM zones at 6 degree longitude allows the mapping of a large north-south extent with low distortion. Each zone is segmented into 8 degree high bands and start at C at 80 degree S to X at 84 degree N.
Mongolia lies within the UTM zones 45 to 50 and bands T and U. This naming convention is used with the military reference system.
False Easting
6.0 Survey & Mapping
6.1 History of Mapping
Map making or cartography has been around for thousands of years. The earliest maps were of the stars dating back to 14,500 BC on cave walls. Maps in Ancient Babylon were made by accurate surveying techniques.
The first portable map from Babylon on a clay tablet.
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| Clay tablet map of Babylon city of Nippur (ca. 1400 BC) |
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| Yu Ji Tu Map of the Tracks of Yu Gong (carved in stone 1137 100 li grid) |
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| The four Khanates of the Mongol Empire (top); a map from the Encyclopedia of Yuan Dynasty Institutions (ca. 1330) |
Early example of a Chinese map of the Mongol Khanates in the fourteenth century.
6.2 Survey Instruments
Early cartographers probably used the sun and travel time to estimate orientation and distance. With the industrial revolution more precise optical survey and navigation instruments, and compass were available to surveyors and mappers to create more and more accurate maps.
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| A theodolite of 1851 |
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| A typical electronic theodolite Nikon DTM-520 |
Surveying equipment evolved from optical to electronic and laser based instruments with increasing accuracy and savings in time for large scale maps of small areas.
6.3 Aerial & Satellite Mapping
Aerial Mapping
Efficient creation of small scale maps of large areas was made feasible with aerial photography and mapping from manned aerial machines, or aircraft in WWI and onwards. 1:50,000 scale military topographic maps for entire countries were developed around 1940 as a result of WWII. The joining of small scale maps covering large areas resulted in the creation of the UTM projection. |
| Mosquito bomber used to create topographic maps of Canada after WWII |
Satellite mapping
Satellite imagery and mapping was a result of the cold war. Russia and the U.S. adapted satellites with photographic then digital cameras to spy on each other. |
| CORONA Satellite Film Camera |
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| First CORONA Photo |
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| CORONA Phtoto of airfield |
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| Capturing Film canister from CORONA satellite |
This was followed by LANDSAT 4 (1982) with added features like false colour, and higher resolution images.
Many commercial satellites followed like Digital Globe, Spot Image, etc. have been launched and their imagery are available for purchase for use in map creation.
6.4 Ground Control for Mapping
As technology improved and mapping larger areas became more practical with aerial photography and satellite imagery the need for geo-registration and ground control increased. The military adopted the UTM projection so that land with the 6 degree longitude strips can be mapped with the same Cartesian coordinate system.
So cartographers who have to convert land use features into vector from the raster images need to be able to match the feature location to a UTM projected coordinate. This geo-registration is made using ground control. For aerial maps surveyors can lay out control points pre or post flight. Flight lines are defined and locations are selected where control points are needed then markers are placed at the control points. For post survey recognizably features are identified on the images and the coordinates of those locations are captured by the surveyor.
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| Flight lines with control points locations |
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| Aerial photograph with feducial marks |
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| WILD A7 Stereoplotter |
Ground control is established by surveyors by tying their coordinates to a known control point or monument location or by using GNSS (GPS) receivers to locate the points.
7.0 GeoLocation - GNSS receivers
As the need for small scale mapping of large areas increased after WWII the need for a network for country wide survey monuments resulted in the creation of survey networks. The Mongolian Geodetic Network was established with the help of Russian specialists between 1940 to 1960. (Mongolian Geodetic Reference System, Enkhtuya Sodnom, Head of Geodesy and Cartographic Division, 20th UNRCC-AP, 4th UN-GGIM-AP, October 2015)
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| Triangulation network of Mongolia |
Surveyors could use the monuments from the triangulation network to get the coordinates for their control points. This traditional monument based method with total stations and levels is costly and time consuming.
7.1 Global Positioning System (GPS)
GPS, originally Navstar GPS is a satellite based navigation system owned by the U.S. government and operated by the U.S. Air Force. It was launched in 1973 by the DOD for use by the U.S. military and was fully operational in 1995. It was allowed for civilian use in the 1980s. During the 1990s it was degraded in a program called 'Selective Availability' (SA) but was discontinued in May 2000.
7.2 Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)
Today GPS has been superseded by GNSS by including the Russian Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) was develop at the same time with GPS, but suffered incomplete coverage globally till mid 2000 together with the European Galileo, Beidu from China and NAVIC from India and Quazi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) from Japan.
7.3 How GNSS (GPS) Works
GNSS satellites transmits radio waves to a receiver which computes the distance and location of the locked satellites to give you the position of your location. The number of satellites you can lock on to with your receiver is dependent on its hardware and antenna. Older receivers can only lock on to the GPS satellite network, newer receivers can also pick up the GLONASS and Beidu. The more satellites you can connect with the better your position can be computed.
Most hand held GNSS receivers are standard GPS that use the L1 band. The GPS single frequency has positional accuracy of 5 m by itself. High-Precision or survey grade, GPS receivers use both the L1 and L2 bands. There is now a third band L5 being proposed which will provide 30 cm accuracy.
7.3 GPS Network of Mongolia
 8.0 GeoData Types
In GIS vector and raster are two different ways of representing spatial data. A planimetric map showing roads, rivers, building footprints as lines is a vector map. A satellite image of the same area showing the same information is made of of photo pixels (cells) is a raster map. Raster and vector can be used to represent the same information in different ways.
8.1 Raster
A raster data model is a representation of the world as a surface divided into grid or cells. Raster models are useful for storing data that varies continuously as in an aerial photograph, a satellite image, a surface of concentration values, or an elevation surface. Examples include Google Earth, air photos and satellite images.
8.2 Vector
A vector model is a representation of the world using points, lines and polygons. Vector models are useful for storing data that have discrete boundaries, such as country borders, land parcels, streets and buildings. Examples include sketch plans, topographic and planimetric maps.
9.0 GeoData Sources |
9.1 Open Data (Internet)
Many countries around the world have adopted an open data policy for public information. In Canada the province of British Columbia is a good example of open data which includes geodata.
Another source of open geodata is Natural Resource Canada.
9.2 Mongolian Government
There are a number of government sources of geodata in Mongolia. The first is ALAGaC and the others are EIC and MRPAM.
9.3 Private/Public Sector
9.4 Open Street Maps (OSM)
Open street maps is an important geodata layer of vector data for users globally. It is community supported and its geodata is uploaded by contributors who have collected the data using GNSS/GPS receivers.
10.0 GeoData Collection
When you starts a GIS or mapping project the first thing you would do is to check for available geographic data. You would go to the internet, your government sources and public and private sources for baseline information. Generally there will be some geodata you could use. Some of it in digital format some in hardcopy. Most of the time there would be insufficient geodata that you need. So you will have to collect more information.
10.1 Field surveying - GNSS receivers
The first option is to go into the field with a GNSS receiver to collect points and lines of your project site.
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| Survey grade and hand held receivers, laptop and mobile phone. |
You can use survey grade receivers to hand held and mobile phones. You should select the GNSS receivers based on the accuracy you need to collect the vector information with.
Survey Grade receivers
Survey dual frequency (L1, L2) grade receivers (Trimbel, etc.) can usually achieve sub-metre accuracy as a standalone and cm accuracy with a base station and post processing. With drone technology increasing single frequency receivers with a base station (Reach) can achieve better than sub-metre accuracy.
Hand held receivers
Hand held receivers can get 2 - 5 m accuracy. This would include Garmin receivers and mobile phones with tablets.
10.2 Drone mapping
For larger or more complex areas that need mapping then using a drone is a more effective way of getting the locations identified. Today some recreational drones like the DJI family of quadcopters are a cost effective tool that could be used for land mapping.
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