Chihuahuan Desert Boundary

Metadata also available as

Metadata:

Identification_Information:
Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator:
Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Publication_Date: March 2006
Title: Chihuahuan Desert Boundary
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: vector digital data
Publication_Information:
Publication_Place: Las Cruces, NM USA
Publisher:
Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Online_Linkage: <http://jornada-www.nmsu.edu/gis/giscat.php>
Description:
Abstract:
GIS data layer representing the boundary of the Chihuahuan Desert based on teh work by Schmidt, 1979.
Purpose:
The purpose of the Chihuahuan Desert boundary map is to provide a broad-scale bioclimatic context in which to view the ecosystems of the Jornada Basin LTER site. The Chihuahuan Desert boundary provides a quantitative way to observe the effects that topography and regional location have on vegetation patterns. It also provides a context to explore how the boundary changed in the past and how it may expand in the future with global warming.
Supplemental_Information:
The Chihuahuan Desert boundary published by Schmidt was overlain on a topographical relief map composed of digital elevation models for the area within and surrounding the Chihuahuan Desert. The boundary was also overlain on a satellite map in which vegetation and other land features, such as playa lakes, agriculture, and cities, can be seen. Multiple boundaries have been drawn for the Chihuahuan Desert based on climate, vegetation, and animal distribution (Beck and Gibbens, 1999). The boundary that is probably most commonly used, and the one used by the Jornada Basin LTER program, is based on the de Martonne aridity index of 10 as described by Schmidt (1979). This aridity index (Ia) is calculated by dividing the mean annual precipitation in mm by the mean annual temperature in °C plus 10:

Ia = Pmm/(T°C + 10).

Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: 1979
Currentness_Reference: current
Status:
Progress: Complete
Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: None planned
Spatial_Domain:
Bounding_Coordinates:
West_Bounding_Coordinate: -110.487365
East_Bounding_Coordinate: -99.944030
North_Bounding_Coordinate: 34.982185
South_Bounding_Coordinate: 24.417135
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: none
Theme_Keyword: boundary
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: none
Place_Keyword: Jornada Basin LTER
Place_Keyword: Dona Ana County
Place_Keyword: New Mexico
Place_Keyword: NM
Place_Keyword: Chihuahuan Desert
Place_Keyword: Las Cruces
Place_Keyword: Southwest USA
Place_Keyword: Jornada Experimental Range
Place_Keyword: JER
Stratum:
Stratum_Keyword_Thesaurus: none
Temporal:
Temporal_Keyword_Thesaurus: none
Access_Constraints: none
Use_Constraints:
Please acknowledge dataset source using the following statement: This material is based upon work supported by the Jornada Basin Spatial Data Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range with funding by the USDA and the National Science Foundation Jornada Basin Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program (Grant DEB-0080412).
Point_of_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Person_Primary:
Contact_Person: GIS Administrator
Contact_Organization:
Jornada Basin Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing address
Address: New Mexico State University
Address: P.O. Box 30003, MSC JER
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: physical address
Address: 2995 Knox Street, Suite 200
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 505-646-4842
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 505-646-5889
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: gisdata@jornada.nmsu.edu
Hours_of_Service: 8am - 5pm MST M-F
Contact_Instructions: e-mail
Browse_Graphic:
Browse_Graphic_File_Name: chides_boundary.bmp
Browse_Graphic_File_Description: Graphic of shapefile
Browse_Graphic_File_Type: BMP
Data_Set_Credit: C. Monger and B. Nolen
Security_Information:
Security_Classification_System: none
Native_Data_Set_Environment:
Microsoft Windows XP Version 5.1 (Build 2600) Service Pack 2; ESRI ArcCatalog 9.1.0.722
Data_Quality_Information:
Logical_Consistency_Report: Topologically Clean
Completeness_Report: Complete
Positional_Accuracy:
Horizontal_Positional_Accuracy:
Lineage:
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
The boundary was drawn using a DEM and Landsat image as background and handdrawing the lines according to Schmidt. These lines were then screen digitized, edited, cleaned and built.
Process_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Person_Primary:
Contact_Person: GIS Administrator
Contact_Organization:
Jornada Basin Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing address
Address: New Mexico State University
Address: P.O. Box 30003, MSC JER
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: physical address
Address: 2995 Knox Street, Suite 200
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 505-646-4842
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 505-646-5889
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: gisdata@jornada.nmsu.edu
Hours_of_Service: 8am - 5pm MST M-F
Contact_Instructions: e-mail
Process_Step:
Process_Description: Metadata imported.
Source_Used_Citation_Abbreviation:
C:\Documents and Settings\bnolen\My Documents\shapefile_metadata_template.txt.xml
Spatial_Data_Organization_Information:
Direct_Spatial_Reference_Method: Vector
Point_and_Vector_Object_Information:
SDTS_Terms_Description:
SDTS_Point_and_Vector_Object_Type: G-polygon
Point_and_Vector_Object_Count: 2
Spatial_Reference_Information:
Horizontal_Coordinate_System_Definition:
Planar:
Grid_Coordinate_System:
Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
UTM_Zone_Number: 13
Transverse_Mercator:
Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.999600
Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -105.000000
Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0.000000
False_Easting: 500000.000000
False_Northing: 0.000000
Planar_Coordinate_Information:
Planar_Coordinate_Encoding_Method: coordinate pair
Coordinate_Representation:
Abscissa_Resolution: 0.002048
Ordinate_Resolution: 0.002048
Planar_Distance_Units: meters
Geodetic_Model:
Horizontal_Datum_Name: D_WGS_1984
Ellipsoid_Name: WGS_1984
Semi-major_Axis: 6378137.000000
Denominator_of_Flattening_Ratio: 298.257224
Entity_and_Attribute_Information:
Detailed_Description:
Entity_Type:
Entity_Type_Label: chides_boundary
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: FID
Attribute_Definition: Internal feature number.
Attribute_Definition_Source: ESRI
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Unrepresentable_Domain:
Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Shape
Attribute_Definition: Feature geometry.
Attribute_Definition_Source: ESRI
Attribute_Domain_Values:
Unrepresentable_Domain: Coordinates defining the features.
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Name
Attribute_Definition: CHIDES - Chihuahuan Desert
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Perimeter
Attribute_Definition: perimeter in meters
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Area
Attribute_Definition: area in square meters
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Acres
Attribute_Definition: area in acres
Attribute:
Attribute_Label: Hectares
Attribute_Definition: area in hectares
Distribution_Information:
Distributor:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Person_Primary:
Contact_Person: GIS Administrator
Contact_Organization:
Jornada Basin Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing address
Address: New Mexico State University
Address: P.O. Box 30003, MSC JER
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: physical address
Address: 2995 Knox Street, Suite 200
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 505-646-4842
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 505-646-5889
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: gisdata@jornada.nmsu.edu
Hours_of_Service: 8am - 5pm MST M-F
Contact_Instructions: e-mail
Resource_Description: Downloadable Data
Distribution_Liability:
Disclaimer and Legal Statement: This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant number DEB-0080412 and the U.S. Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service, Jornada Experimental Range. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in the material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation, New Mexico State University, USDA-ARS, or USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range.
Standard_Order_Process:
Digital_Form:
Digital_Transfer_Information:
Transfer_Size: 0.035
Custom_Order_Process: contact gisdata@jornada.nmsu.edu
Available_Time_Period:
Time_Period_Information:
Single_Date/Time:
Calendar_Date: February 2006
Metadata_Reference_Information:
Metadata_Date: 20060330
Metadata_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization:
Jornada Basin Spatial Data Laboratory, NSF Jornada Basin LTER/USDA ARS Jornada Experimental Range
Contact_Person: GIS Administrator
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: mailing address
Address: New Mexico State University
Address: P.O. Box 30003, MSC JER
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Address:
Address_Type: physical address
Address: 2995 Knox Street, Suite 200
City: Las Cruces
State_or_Province: NM
Postal_Code: 88003-8003
Country: USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone: 505-646-4842
Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 505-646-5889
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: gisdata@jornada.nmsu.edu
Hours_of_Service: 8am - 5pm MST M-F
Contact_Instructions: e-mail
Metadata_Standard_Name: FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata
Metadata_Standard_Version: FGDC-STD-001-1998
Metadata_Time_Convention: local time
Metadata_Access_Constraints: none
Metadata_Use_Constraints: none
Metadata_Extensions:
Online_Linkage: <http://www.esri.com/metadata/esriprof80.html>
Profile_Name: ESRI Metadata Profile
Generated by mp version 2.8.6 on Thu Mar 30 10:59:50 2006