MRU Library Website: Geography: Spatial Data

GIS Software

ArcGIS Pro
Use the Find Software in the Library tool to find computers in the Library that have ArcGIS Pro installed.
ArcGIS Online
Sign in using your MRU credentials to access ArcGIS Online tools, including the popular StoryMaps app.
QGIS
Widely used, open source alternative to ArcGIS
Google Earth and Earth Pro
Online or desktop tools for simple geospatial analysis.

Open Spatial Data

City of Calgary Open Data Portal
View and download data on topics including city, ward, and neighbourhood boundaries, environment, transportation, demographics, business, recreation, and others.
AltaLIS Open Data
Includes natural and manmade vector data (base), digital elevation models, municipal boundaries, and ATS files. Not all AltaLIS data is freely available. Contact MRU's data librarian to inquire about purchasing proprietary data.
GeoDiscover Alberta
Provincial government platform for spatial data related to geology, environment, boundaries, wildlife, and other topics.
ABMI Data
The Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute data portal provides extensive data on species, habitats, human footprint, historical imagery, and more.
Alberta Geological Survey Open Data Portal
Features open geological data including surficial maps, bedrock mapping, geological modelling, groundwater, and natural resources.
Agricultural Regions of Alberta Soil Inventory Database
Spatial database of soils for Alberta's agricultural area.
Alberta Parks Downloadable Data
Spatial and numeric data related to Alberta's provincial parks
Open Data Areas Alberta
Provides free spatial data for Beaver Hills, Fort McMurray, Fox Creek, RMH Sylvan, Taber, and Utikuma Lake.

GEO.ca
Centralized search platform for geospatial data from provincial, territorial, and federal government departments.
NRCAN Topographic Tools and Data
Search for and download Natural Resources Canada's maps and spatial data. Use the Geospatial Data Extraction tool to download vector and elevation data from predefined or customizable areas.
NRCAN Download Directory
Directory of Natural Resources Canada's geospatial products available via FTP download.
National Soil Database
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's collection of landscape, soil, and climate geospatial datasets.
Scholars GeoPortal
Database of maps and vector data provided by the Ontario Council of University Libraries. Select the 'Downloadable content only' box to view open access content.
Census Geography
View and download interactive and static maps and boundary files related to the 2021 Canadian census.

Data from DMTI Spatial includes the CanMapContent Suite, a series of shapefiles depicting human-made and natural features across Canada, as well as the Postal Code Suite, which contains postal codes, address points, and various boundaries. Available upon request by members of the MRU community.

ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World
Maps and data available via ArcGIS services on a wide variety of topics. Sign in ArcGIS Online to view and analyze data.
US Data.gov Geospatial Data
Large collection of geospatial data from all levels of US government and American universities
US Geoplatform
Central repository of open spatial data across US federal government departments.
US Geological Survey Data Delivery
Series of services providing topographic maps as well as GIS data related to elevation, hydrography, orthoimagery, transportation, land cover, and more.
US Energy Information Administration Energy Atlas
Contains spatial data files related to US energy production and climate.
USDA Geospatial Data Gateway
Contains orthoimagery and elevation data, soils, hydrography, and climate data.
DIVA-GIS
Download free spatial data including political boundary files, climate, species, and agricultural data
Natural Earth
Open maps featuring integrated vector and raster data at 1:10m, 1:50m, and 1:110m scales
Global Administrative Areas
Provides administrative boundaries at the national and sub-national level for all countries.
Open Topography
Free access to topographical and bathymetric data from the University of California San Diego.

Aerial and Satellite Imagery

USGS EarthExplorer
Contains a wide variety of downloadable data including Landsat data
GloVis
USGS supplied tool for viewing and downloading Landsat data.
Sentinal Hub Open Data
View imagery, land cover, elevation models, and other data from the Sentinal-2 program
Calgary Imagery
View current and historic air photos of the City of Calgary. Use the layers filter to view orthophotos dating to 1924
Alberta Aerial Photographic Record System
Provides access to indexes of aerial photos held by Alberta Environment and Parks. Select an area on the map and choose from the available indexes. Using information from the index, you can order photos at a cost.
University of Lethbridge Digital Air Photo Mosaics
View mosaics of air photos taken in Alberta primarily between 1949 and 1951.
Canada National Air Photo Library
National Air Photo Library managed by Natural Resources Canada. Use the Earth Observation Data Management System to view metadata and order photos.

National Topographic System and Alberta Township System

The National Topographic System (NTS) and Alberta Township System (ATS) are grid or land parcel systems commonly used to classify GIS data by geographic location. The NTS is primarily used for national data, while ATS is an Alberta provincial system. Knowing the NTS or ATS identification of your area of interest can simplify your search process. Use the following tools to help identify NTS and ATS numbers.

Atlas of Canada Toporama
Select the Get Coordinates from Map tool and select an area on the map to view location information, including NTS mapsheet.
Grid Atlas
Zoom in and select an area to view the ATS number.
GeoDiscover Alberta
Select the Alberta Township System map layer to view ATS parcels.

Obtaining Data

If you are unable to locate or download any spatial data products, please contact:

Brian Jackson
Librarian
403-440-5032

Postal Code Conversion File

The Postal Code Conversion File is an indispensable tool for mapping social and business data. It links every postal code in Canada to corresponding census geographies. Other conversion files are available to link postal codes, census geographies, federal ridings, and health regions.

Use the contact information above to access the file.

Geography | Spatial Data