USGS Home
Contact USGS
Search USGS

Additional USGS Geoscience data can be found by geographic location or by publication series.

Undivided Upper Cretaceous deposits in the Kaiparowits Plateau, southern Utah

Frequently-anticipated questions:

• What does this data set describe?
  1. How should 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 should this data set be cited?

   U.S. Geological Survey, Central Energy Resources Team, Hettinger, R.D., Roberts, L.N.R., Biewick, L.R.H., and Kirschbaum, M.A., 2000, Undivided Upper Cretaceous deposits in the Kaiparowits Plateau, southern Utah: U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO.

   Online Links:

   • <http://energy.cr.usgs.gov/coal/nca/cpgis.htm>

   Other_Citation_Details:

   in subdir: 125k (defines appropriate maximum scale for data use)
   chap. T, Geologic overview and resource assessment of coal in the Kaiparowits Plateau, southern Utah

   This is part of the following larger work.

   Kirschbaum, M.A., Roberts, L.N.R., and Biewick, L.R.H., 2000, Geologic Assessment of Coal in the Colorado Plateau: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1625-B, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO.

2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

   West_Bounding_Coordinate: -112.001

   East_Bounding_Coordinate: -111.000

   North_Bounding_Coordinate: 37.964

   South_Bounding_Coordinate: 37.

3. What does it look like?

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

   Calendar_Date: 2000

   Currentness_Reference: publication date

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

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):

      • Label Point (26)
      • String (53)
      • GT-polygon composed of chains (27)

   2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 12 meters (approx.). Longitudes are given to the nearest 12 meters (approx.). Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal Degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1927.
      The ellipsoid used is Clarke 1866.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378206.4.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/294.98.
      

7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

   KAI_BKD.PAT

   Polygon attribute table (Source: Sargent and Hansen (1982))

   Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:

   Items in the Polygon Attribute Table
   AREA Area of poly/region in square coverage units Computed Positive real numbers
   PERIMETER Perimeter of poly/region in coverage units Computed Positive real numbers
   KAI_BKD# Internal feature number Computed Sequential unique positive integer
   KAI_BKD-ID User-assigned feature number User-defined Integer

   Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: this document

   KAI_BKD.AAT

   Arc attribute table (Source: ARC/INFO)

   Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:

   Items in the Arc Attribute Table
   FNODE# Internal number of from-node Computed Sequential unique positive integer
   TNODE# Internal number of to-node Computed Sequential unique
   LPOLY# Internal number of poly to left of arc Computed Sequential unique positive integer
   RPOLY# Internal number of poly to right of arc Computed Sequential unique positive integer
   LENGTH Length of arc in coverage units Computed Positive real numbers
   KAI_BKD# Internal feature number Computed Sequential unique positive integer
   KAI_BKD-ID User-assigned feature number User-defined Integer Integer
   LTYPE line type (dash, plat or quad) Each line is identified by a character string that describes the boundary type:
   Value Description ------- ------------------------------------ dash northern boundary where the Kaiparowits Plateau merges with the Aquarius Plateau. plat The Kaiparowits Plateau is delineated by the base of Upper Cretaceous rocks.

   Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: this document

Who produced the data set?

1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
   • U.S. Geological Survey, Central Energy Resources Team
   • Hettinger, R.D.
   • Roberts, L.N.R.
   • Biewick, L.R.H.
   • Kirschbaum, M.A.

2. Who also contributed to the data set?

   Dale Teeters, former U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) digitized the outcrop lines in PC ARC/INFO from a paper copy of the 1:125,000-scale geologic map of the Kaiparowits Plateau (Sargent and Hansen, 1982).

3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
   U.S. Geological Survey
   c/o Robert D. Hettinger
   P.O. Box 25046, MS 939
   Denver, CO 80225
   USA
   

   (303)236-7770 (voice)
   rhettinger@usgs.gov
   

Why was the data set created?

The Nation's coal resources are being assessed by the USGS. A fundamental component of this assessment work is to compile digital geologic and geographic data into a Geographic Information System (GIS). Use of this GIS allowed for the spatial integration of data layers. This resulted in the ability to display, analyze, and query data to answer complex geo-spatial questions concerning coal resource occurrence.
This data set is intended as a basemap layer for GIS applications at a scale of 1:125,000 or less.

How was the data set created?

1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

   Sargent and Hansen (1982) (source 1 of 1)

   Sargent, K.A., and Hansen, D.E., 1982, Bedrock geologic map of the Kaiparowits coal-basin area, Utah: U.S. Geological Survey Miscellaneous Investigations Series Map Map I-1033-I.

   Type_of_Source_Media: paper map

   Source_Scale_Denominator: 125,000

   Source_Contribution: geologic map

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

   Date: unknown (process 1 of 1)

   The outcrop lines were originally digitized in PC Arc/Info by the former USBM (Dale Teeters) from a paper copy of the 1:125,000-scale geologic map of the Kaiparowits Plateau (Sargent and Hansen, 1982). The lines were converted from table coordinates to Lambert with the following parameters:
   Units METERS Spheroid CLARKE1866 Parameters: 1st standard parallel 33 0 0.000 2nd standard parallel 45 0 0.000 central meridian -111 30 0.00 latitude of projection's origin 0 0 0.000 false easting (meters) 0.00000 false northing (meters) 0.00000
   The data were later projected to UTM 12, the projection used in the coal resource calculations. This coverage was subsequently projected to geographic decimal degrees for graphic display with coverages in geographic areas that would normally be viewed in projections other than UTM 12. Projections can be set on the fly in ArcView provided the coverages are in geographic decimal degrees.

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?

   captured at 1:125,000 scale

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?

   Polygon and chain-node topology present

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: accurate at 1:125,000 scale or less

1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)
   U.S. Geological Survey, Central Energy Resources Team
   P.O. Box 25046, MS 939
   Denver, CO 80225
   USA
   

   (303)236-7773 (voice)
   

2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

   Disclaimer: Any use of trade, product, or company names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey, no warranty expressed or implied is made by the USGS regarding the utility of the data on any other system, or the accuracy and functioning of the data and related program material, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS in connection therewith.

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

     Data format:	ARC/INFO coverage, export file and shapefile (version ARC/INFO 7.0.4, ArcView 2.1)
     Network links:	<http://energy.cr.usgs.gov/coal/nca/cpgis.htm>
     Media you can order:	CD-ROM (format ISO 9660)

   • Cost to order the data: none

5. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?

   need ARC/INFO 7.0.4 or greater and/or ArcView 2.1 or greater and/or ArcExplorer (which can be downloaded free from <URL:http://www.esri.com>) and/or other software that can read ARC/INFO coverages, ARC/INFO export files or shapefiles
   

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:

Last modified: 22-Oct-1997

Metadata author:

U.S. Geological Survey, GD, Central Energy Resources Team
P.O. Box 25046, MS 939
Denver, CO 80225
USA

(303)236-7773 (voice)

Metadata standard:

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