Géoportail

The Géoportail is a Portail Web having to give access public data localized, on the whole of the territory French, in a cartographic interface .

Reasons of the startup

Two main reasons pushed with the realization of such a site:

the first is the will to make available more and more of administrative resources on line. It is French political will (program ADELE), but such a European (directive INSPIRES: Infrastructure for space information in Europe ).
the second is the important success which the projects Google Maps and Google Earth met, which makes available of the photographs satellite of the near total of planet, like, for certain zones, of the road informations and tourist.

Actors of Géoportail

A " Charter of the gate of geographical information publique" defines a formal relation between a Maîtrise of work and a Maîtrise of work of the project.

The control of work of the project was entrusted to two actors:

for the part “visualization”, the national geographical Institute (IGN), which has the photographic and cartographic data being able to be used as a basis;
for the part “cataloguing and research”, the Office of geological and mining research (BRGM), which is a pioneer in this field thanks to his Infoterre site.

The whole of the data which will be available on Géoportail progressively of its evolution will be provided by the administrations which maintain them. For example, the Ministry for youth, the sports and community life could provide the sites of activities, and give information and bonds towards the Web sites their correspondent.

The owner building is the Head office of the modernization of the State (DGME).

History of the site

The project

The project is launched during the summer 2005 with the IGN. At this time, the expiry for the installation of Géoportail is 2007.

The January 6th 2006 with Metz, the president of the Republic, Jacques Chirac, wishes that Géoportail be set up during the year.

At the beginning of March 2006, the IGN launches a communication campaign around the creation of Géoportail.

Difficulties of launching

Launching took place the June 23rd 2006, the site being inaugurated by Jacques Chirac in company of Dominique Perben, Jean-François Cope and Nelly Olin.

As of the setting on line of the site, the requests for connection exceeded of five times the estimates of the persons in charge, generating a blocking of the waiters (the requests reached peaks of 600 a second). Following these problems, a page of excuses was installation time to multiply the waiters and the accesses, while making it possible approximately 3000 Net surfers per hour to reach the visualization of the photographs. One week later, the site was still not correctly accessible (very long response time and limited access, and often injoignable even in middle of the night). On the other hand, as from the July 2006, the response times become satisfactory and about on July 20th, 2006 the whole of the territory is correctly visible of maximum resolution (50 cm per pixel).

Version 1

In this first version, are displayable in 2D:

the Orthophotographie of France, including one most of DOM-TOM, with a numerical Resolution of 50 cm (for the most detailed places). The rural areas are for the moment on a maximum scale of 1:3 000;
the cartography with the 1:25 000 when it is available.

In August 2006, it becomes possible to sail on the scale 1:1 500.

The site is not however up to date in its forecasts. For example, he had announced that the visualization of the islands Saint-Paul and Amsterdam would be available in September but on October 1st they were still not visible.

In February 2007, the interface makes it possible to obtain in Metropolitan France of information on the common , the sites of the geodetic reference marks and the bench mark, as well as the sites of the air photographs of the IGN available to the sale. Certain departments allow the visualization of the Cadastre.

In April 2007, are added charts of localization of the phenomenon of Avalanche on part of the the Alps and the Pyrenees.

Version 2

May 24th, 2007, version 2 of Géoportail is accessible in beta release, with a new engine of navigation and a new ergonomics. The June 9th, the new engine was set up in an official way, with additional layers of data.

Several modes of visualization are available: “Discovered”, “Exploration” and “the Expert”, most complete being “Expert”. Among the new data, the orthophoto and the charts of the Information system of the Genevese territory was added following a partnership, the feature of coast with the hydrographic and oceanographical Service of the navy, etc

Version 3D

The technical project superintendent for four years of this phase is Atos Worldline, a subsidiary company of Atos Origin retained following a Invitation to tender. The warehouse of data and the diffusion are ensured by GeoConcept. Branch IGO of the company EEE is charged to adapt the data to the format TerraExplorer of the company Skyline.

Since August 2007, Géoportail proposes navigation 3D in beta test, but it should pass in official version to the re-entry 2007. The software of navigation is TerraExplorer of the american company Skyline Software Systems, which functions only under Windows. The only displayable layer is that of the air photographs, plated on the relief of the ground, without exaggeration of altitudes and the buildings.

Future

It is expected that with the beginning of the year 2008, the TerraExplorer software is proposed for Mac and Linux. The other improvements envisaged are the superposition of layers in the 3D, volumes of the buildings in 3D but without photographic preparing of the frontages, and the appartition of other sets of themes layers of institutional partners.

Comparison between Google and Géoportail

Like Google, Géoportail has an accessible version 2D on line via a Web interface (equivalent with Google Maps), and a version 3D since the summer 2007 for which it is necessary to install a software on the user station, which has however the advantage of allowing a fluid navigation on a connection high-flow (as for Google Earth).

Géoportail is accessible via a more static Web interface which suffers from an incompatibility with certain former navigators like the old men Opera or Internet Explorer in version former to the 6.0. It is possible to create mark-page to memorize its research through the use of favorite places or setting in favorites of the current geographical context.

The two sites (and thus their software) currently do not have the same goal. The purpose of Google Earth makes it possible to sail on the ground, communautairement to add pins, etc Géoportail is, in the long term, to place at the disposal of the French the whole of the data of the state having a relationship with a chart: photo sights of the sky, certainly, but also charts of IGN on all the scales, floodplains, zones of risk of avalanche, information INSEE on the communes, of the video extracts of geographically replaced INA on their place of turning, etc

Moreover, the satellite photographs and sights of Google and Géoportail are different by the fact that the first offer an unequal quality (resolution and colors) for the whole world, where Géoportail offers everywhere the same resolution and of the natural colors, but for the France only. Where Google uses only satellite photos, the resolution of the images is limited, contrary to the air photographs of the IGN which is more precise. However, on the principal agglomerations, Google Earth also uses air photographs, much more precise than on the interdepartmental site.

In November 2006, Le Figaro revealed that the photographs of the IGN were deformed compared to the original ones, and of less good quality that those presented on the site of the Yellow pages: thus right buildings have curves on Geoportail. The Head office of the modernization of the State (DGME) required so that version 2 of Géoportail not be attached any more thus.

In practice, in June 2006, Géoportail a precision (1/30 offered; 000) less than the Yellow pages (which also contain data of the IGN), but a interface offers more sophisticated (and thus more complicated) than at the same time the Yellow pages and Google. It is in particular possible to seek cities and villages, and to superimpose copies of relief, roads and of sight air, by regulating the level of transparency of the copies.

Images and charts

The images result generally from air photographs of the IGN. For part of the department of the Guyana and for certain territories of overseas other than the areas of overseas, only the charts, relief and roads are available.

The images available on Géoportail have a resolution such as a Pixel on the chart is equivalent to 50 cm on the ground. The available data are gone back to at more the 5 years according to the IGN, which corresponds to the rate/rhythm of update of the base of the air photographs. On the whole, they are 400 000 photographic stereotypes which are available, which represents 10 % of the photographic funds of the IGN.

Beside that, 3 668 charts of the IGN, on various scales (1: 25 000, 1:100 000 and 1:250 000) are also present on the site.

So agreements can be found, data belonging at other organizations could be added to those of the IGN, like the 550 000 sheets of the Land register.

Censure

Hot sites of the French territory, such certain military sites, for example, cannot be seen: their influence on the orthophotography until was recently masked of white. It from now on is floutée (like the Guianese Space center), i.e. the resolution of the ortho-images passes from 50 cm to 5 m, limiting beyond which the soldiers estimate that the photo-interpretation loses its interest. Some of these sites are nevertheless visible in Google Earth, sometimes of high-resolution, and of information can easily be obtained elsewhere, on the fabric or in the media. It is the case for example center of interceptions of DGSE to Domme in the Dordogne: it is masked in Géoportail, but is quite visible in Google Earth, and an emission even was devoted to him on France 3.

Zones related to National defense

the center of interception of DGSE to Dome in the Dordogne
the center of interception of DGSE to Mutzig, in the Low-Rhine
the center of and the command information systems of the National marine to Coals
command of the strategic air forces with Taverny
the Flight test center of Brétigny-sur-Orge, with Brétigny-sur-Orge
the technical and aeronautical Workshop of Rickenbach to Vernon
the Air base of Creil in the Oise
the air base ofÉvreux-Fauville in the the Eure
the air base of Cambric - Épinoy (BA 103) on the communes of Épinoy, Haynecourt and Sauchy-Lestrée
the air base 128 of Metz-Frescaty on the communes of Augny and Marly.
the air base 901 of Drachenbronn (the military camp of Drachenbronn and several zones in the mountain, of which the collar of Pfaffenschlick)
the Airport of Rheims Champagne
the military base of Perthes
the military arsenal of Toulon
the military arsenal of Cherbourg (Manche)
majority of the port and part of the town of Brest

Zones related to research on atomic energy

center of the Management of the soldiers application of the Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique to the limit between Ollainville and Heathers-the-Châtel
the old site of ECA of Bouchet, between Green-the-Small Itteville and
the research center of ECA of Pontfaverger-Moronvilliers with the machine of radiography of the nuclear phenomenon Airix
western basins of the port of Cherbourg-Octeville, intended for the nuclear submarines
the Long Island in the roads of Brest, home port of the nuclear submarines
the Plant reprocessing of La Hague
the center of seek ECA of Cadarache

Others

the Castle of Bity, with Sarran, property of Mr. and Mrs. Jacques Chirac, old President of the French Republic.
the hertzian station of the Top-Winds, with Tollevast (Handle).
surroundings of the national cemetery between Barcy and Chambry (Seine-et-Marne), because of a hertzian transmitter intended for the aeronautical radio guidance.
the photographic cover of the Guianese forest, where the importance of the clandestine Orpaillage appears, is inaccessible on the site.

Software

All the images and charts of the IGN (but not of the other partners) which is present on Géoportail are available to the sale right now on CD and DVD however, the reproduction as of these data is not free, from France.

Software like PhotoExploreur, CartoExploreur or CartoExploreur 3D makes it possible to sail through the resources of the IGN. This software functions only under Windows and Pocket PC.

Exemption from payment and paying zone

Two modes will exist:

free mode: for all the air photographs and the charts, including on the scale 1:25 000
paying mode: for certain personalized charts (ways, etc)

The delimitation of the border between these two modes gave place to rough discussions between the IGN and the political officials.

Notes and references of the article

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