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

FGDC Standard | Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata

This standard is intended to support the collection and processing of geospatial metadata. It is intended to be useable by all levels of government and the private sector. The standard is not intended to reflect an implementation design. An implementation design requires adapting the structure and form of the standard to meet application requirements. The standard was developed from the perspective of defining the information required by a prospective user to determine the availability of a set of geospatial data; to determine the fitness and the set of geospatial data for an intended use; to determine the means of accessing the set of geospatial data; and to successfully transfer the set of geospatial data. As such, the standard establishes the names of data elements and compound elements to be used for these purposes, definitions of these data elements and compound elements, and information about the values that are to be provided for the data elements. The standard does not specify the means by which this information is organized in a computer system or in a data transfer, nor the means by which this information is transmitted, communicated, or presented to the user.

 Contents

• Introduction
• Organization of the Standard
• 0 Metadata
• 1 Identification Information
• 2 Data Quality Information
• 3 Spatial Data Organization Information
• 4 Spatial Reference Information
• 5 Entity and Attribute Information
• 6 Distribution Information
• 7 Metadata Reference Information
• 8 Citation Information
• 9 Time Period Information
• 10 Contact Information

   

Appendixes

• A. Glossary
• B. Alphabetical List of Compound Elements and Data Elements
• C. References
• D. Guidelines for Creating Extended Elements in the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
• E. Guidelines for Creating a Profile for the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata

[Text Version] [PDF Version]

Metadata Ad Hoc Working Group
Federal Geographic Data Committee

Established by Office of Management and Budget Circular A-16, the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) promotes the coordinated development, use, sharing, and dissemination of geographic data.

The FGDC is composed of representatives from the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, the Interior, State, and Transportation; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Federal Emergency Management Agency; the Library of Congress; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; the National Archives and Records Administration; and the Tennessee Valley Authority. Additional Federal agencies participate on FGDC subcommittees and working groups. The Department of the Interior chairs the committee.

FGDC subcommittees work on issues related to data categories coordinated under the circular. Subcommittees establish and implement standards for data content, quality, and transfer; encourage the exchange of information and the transfer of data; and organize the collection of geographic data to reduce duplication of effort. Working groups are established for issues that transcend data categories.

For more information about the committee, or to be added to the committee's newsletter mailing list, please contact: 

Federal Geographic Data Committee Secretariat
c/o U.S. Geological Survey
590 National Center
Reston, Virginia 20192

Telephone: (703) 648-5514
Facsimile: (703) 648-5755
Internet (electronic mail): fgdc@fgdc.gov
WWW Home Page: http://www.fgdc.gov

The following is the recommended bibliographic citation for this publication: Federal Geographic Data Committee. FGDC-STD-001-1998. Content standard for digital geospatial metadata (revised June 1998). Federal Geographic Data Committee. Washington, D.C.