Download GIS Data for Use in RoadRunner

When designing a scene based on a real-world location, you can use imported geographic information system (GIS) data as a visual reference. The process for importing the data into RoadRunner is the same as importing any other data, regardless of where the data was obtained.

RoadRunner supports several different formats. For lists of supported formats for each type of GIS data, refer to the GIS asset documentation:

• Elevation Map Assets

• Aerial Image Assets

• Vector Data Assets

• Point Cloud Assets

The most common file formats are:

• Raster data (satellite imagery and elevation), such as GeoTIFF and JPEG 2000

• Point cloud data, such as lidar data in LAZ and LAS formats

Choose USGS Interface for Downloading GIS Data

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) provides freely available GIS data for much of the United States. Coverage and quality varies depending on the data type and location.

This table shows the USGS interfaces from which you can access GIS data.

Interface Link	Interface Name
https://apps.nationalmap.gov/downloader/#/	The National Map (preferred)
https://apps.nationalmap.gov/viewer/	The National Map - Advanced Viewer
https://earthexplorer.usgs.gov/	EarthExplorer

Each USGS interface has a different user interface for selecting locations and data sets and can contain different data sets. When finding data for a specific project, best practice is to check all of the USGS interfaces.

Download GIS Data

This example shows how to download data from The National Map.

1. Find your area of interest by using the map interface.

2. In the Datasets pane, select one or more data sources. After you select a data source, you can click Show Availability to display the coverage of that data source. The table shows the recommended data sources to use for each type of GIS data.

   Type of GIS Data	Recommended Data Source
   Elevation data	Elevation Products One meter or 1/9 arc-second is recommended, but those options are not available in some locations.
   Lidar data	Elevation Source Data Select the lidar point cloud (LPC) option.
   Imagery data	Imagery - NAIP Plus

3. Click Search Products and, in the returned results, select the download link in a result to download that data.

4. Drag the downloaded data into the RoadRunner Library Browser to use as a visual reference when creating scenes. Some data might require downloading multiple tiles to cover your area of interest. For more details, see Create Roads Around Imported GIS Assets.