Choosing a Spatial Reference System

I could say that an important part of my works can be done by using WGS84 EPSG 4326 CRS due to it gives more detailed information (Lat-Long, units decimal degrees). I’m a student who’s new at manipulating QGIS, but I guess both types of coordinates Latitude-Longitude as well as a projected coordinate system can be fit in many field works because they have a vary of uses and purposes.
I’d consider changing the SRS if the work requires other perspective or method.

Most of my work using QGIS is in the UK so I have defaulted the settings within QGIS so that every new project starts up with “British National Grid” as the project CRS. This is then compatible with the co-ordinates I am often given in a spreadsheet as “Eastings” and “Northings” given in metres (6 digitis for the easting and 6 digitis for the northing gives 1m precision on the co-ordinates given - how accurate these locations are is another matter !).
Where GIS work is elsewhere in the world, I will tend to use the appropriate UTM Zone for the area of the world I am working in, easily checked by just googling "UTM ZONE "

Answer to second question - “no”. :slight_smile: - I alter the CRS depending on project requirements.

In my limited experience in handling spatial data I have always used the latitude and longitude coordinates so far, and actually I have not collected these data myself, so I cannot really tell which reference system was used. Thanks to this module I have got to learn about the projected coordinate systems and, even though I think I have a fair theoretical understanding about them now, I will definitely need to look for additional resources to get a clearer idea about these types of coordinates and how I can use them from a practical point of view.

I want to congratulate you for this work!! Its absolutely amazing what you’ve done :smiley:. My respects :clap: :clap: :clap:

I’ve only used WGS84, and I’ve always found what I’m looking for. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Perhaps if I had to relate some old maps to current coordinates I’d have to delve into another spatial reference system. Until then: WGS84 all day erry day.

I’ve always used WGS84, so I learned something brand new today! Thank you!

Most of the data that i use is secondary data, and it is mostly in WGS84 projection. this projected has little distortion and matched GPS data format

We collect data in lat/long (decimal degrees) and use WGS84 EPSG 4326 CRS. I find these to be the easiest way for multiple people collecting data to understand the basic principles of coordinates. For the time being, I don’t think we will be changing the SRS system we are using, but it’s good to have an idea about how and when it might be needed.

In my fieldwork, I collect my data in lat/long (decimal degrees) and use WGS84 EPSG 4326 CRS.

To date, i have only used WGS84 and have not had the need to use any other SRS.

  1. In my fieldwork I am normally using Lat/Long coordinates for collecting data (elephants, poaching camps, etc), and this is usually overlaid onto an aviation sectional chart, which is typically a Lambert conformal projection in mid-latitudes (conical) or a mercator projection (cylindrical) near the equator. Therefore, I am using both Lat/Long and projections. Aviation charts use the WGS84 as a standard, so this is what I am accustomed to.

  2. I don’t think that I will change the SRS that I use based on what I learned in this module, however it was great to learn about the other types of SRSs and also how I might apply these in the future.

Ah, well all projected data is distorted in someway or other. The key is to have data that have the same level of distortion in the same way as each other !. Choosing different map projections for different projects in different locations undertaken at different scales can minimise the problems that this distortion has - it may be that the distoritions that are inherent within any map are “accepted” as a what the area should look like in a map, but there is still distortions within it - its an interesting philosphical area of cartographic study which even found its way into the US drama “West Wing” - this clip is well worth a look - .https://youtu.be/vVX-PrBRtTY

Hi All,

I think I have learnt something here in this module but I need to repeat this session several time for me to get exactly what I have done. I have been using WGS 84 but I did not have any idea of SRS and am still comprehending if CRS is same as SRS. But I got really good practical ideas of combing data and I feel good about. May be more of these practical need to be done here.

Hi! I am not currently carrying out any field data projects unfortunately so I cannot really answer these questions. I guess it would depend on how the data was provided here. I will find out which SRS is commonly used in Malta if there is one.

It was really interesting to learn about map projection although I do not understand why there are so many different options. Is it because different countries and organisations just choose different ways to project the map?

Zimbabwe is in between two zones, in some areas I use WGS 84/UTM zone 35S, then in some areas I use WGS 84 because the data will be between zones 35S and 36S

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The difference between two neighbouring UTM zones is not going to be too significant, so it may be better to stick with a single CRS for your project if it is including the whole of Zimbabwe (although if you are doing a set of smaller more geographically targetted projects, then choosing the CRS that the area of interest lies in is probably better. The national standard for Zimbabwe is to use UTM Zone 36S.

Guess i might be doing something wrong, because when i use the same CRS to plot layers that are in Manapools and Chewore, some will get lost.

I am still a newbie and have no current project in progress. But back at university we used Hand held GPS, which i suppose is CRS. I am learning from posts shared in here. Thank you guys.

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Hi,

I am still to use GIS, so I found Latitude and Longitude (X,Y) coordinates simpler to use and may be applicable to the kind of field work I will be representing on GIS. But it was very important to understand how I can merge two sources of data, which I think might be necessary in some occasions.

I have predominately used mapping in East and Southern Africa - we use WGS84 alongside lat/long. I think I have always been careful with spatial reference systems and making sure that I am using the right one for the area I am mapping in but the refreshment always helps - especially as I have not been mapping for a while now