8.4

Spatial Data

Data that represents the physical location and characteristics of objects in a defined space.

Geometric Data

Data embedded in a two-dimensional or three-dimensional coordinate system.

Cartesian Coordinate System

A coordinate system defined by a flat plane or a cube, used to describe geometric data.

Spatial Reference Systems

Systems used to describe how coordinates relate to actual geographic locations.

Well Known Text (WKT)

A text markup language used to represent geometric objects on a coordinate plane.

LineString

A geometric object that consists of one or more line segments.

Polygon

A geometric object that describes a two-dimensional surface or area.

Minimum Bounding Rectangle (MBR)

The smallest rectangle that contains a geometric shape or spatial value.

R-tree Index

A tree data structure used to index multi-dimensional information such as spatial data.

Quadratic Split Algorithm

An algorithm used to organize spatial information in an R-tree index by grouping rectangles into smaller units.

Spatial Functions

Functions that manipulate and perform calculations on spatial data, such as determining area or distance.

SRID

Spatial Reference System Identifier, a unique identifier for a spatial reference system.

ST_Union

A spatial function that merges two spatial values into one.

ST_Contains

A spatial function that checks if one spatial value contains another spatial value.

Distance Function

A function that computes the distance between two spatial values.

MBR Overlaps

A function that determines if two minimum bounding rectangles overlap.