6.7. GIS Book: Project a layer to another reference system

The Project tool allows you to project spatial data from one coordinate system to a different coordinate system.

Practice: A layer projected with the coordinate system “WGS 1984 UTM Zone 17S” is required to be projected with “Provisional South American Datum UTM Zone 17S”. Note that both systems have a different datum (WGS84 and PSAD56). Therefore, it is necessary to apply the corresponding transformations for each locality. The list of transformations can be found in the geographic_transformations.pdf file located in the ArcGIS “C:\Program Files\ArcGIS\Desktop10.x\Documentation ” installation folder (Figure 24).

Figure 24. Fragment of the “Geographic and Vertical Transformation Tables” document

To reproject, open the Project tool (Figure 25) and configure it as below in:

ArcToolbox > Data Management Tools > Projections and Transformations > Project

Figure 25. Projecting a layer to another coordinate system
  • Input Dataset or Feature Class: Select the layer to be projected.
  • Input Coordinate System: By default, the current layer coordinate system is displayed.
  • Output Dataset or Feature Class: Select the directory or geodatabase where the resulting file will be stored.
  • Output Coordinate System: Select the new coordinate system. In this case go to: Projected Coordinate Systems > UTM > South America > Provisional South American Datum UTM Zone 17S.
  • Geographic Transformation: Select the transformation from the list of the “Geographic and Vertical Transformation Tables” document. In this case “PSAD_1956_To_WGS_1984_14” because the layer to be projected is located in continental Ecuador. You could also select “PSAD_1956_To_WGS_1984_6”, but note that the accuracy will be lower, see Figure 24.

In versions prior to ArcGIS 10.3, the Project tool is usually located in Projections and Transformations > Features. To change the coordinate system in a raster file, use the Project Raster tool located in Projections and Transformations > Raster.

You want to learn an ArcGIS 10 Course following this manual + online + certificate = 15.99 USD

Discover more from GIS Crack

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading