Accreditation: accurately citing data sources

There is one final thing that most maps will need. If a map uses data that you didn’t create yourself, especially satellite imagery, you must reference it properly. If you use data that has strict copyright restrictions, you will need to find out from the data source what the terms of its use are, and how to cite it. All the sources we have used for this course are open access which means that accreditation guidelines are less strict.

The source of any data or imagery as well as the date (where applicable or possible) should be included with your map. For a multispectral satellite image, the band combination should also be included. For maps the mapping agency, map series name, sheet number and date should be included where possible. For an archaeological survey map, the publication should be referenced in full.

Accreditation examples

Dataset	Example
Sentinel-2	Sentinel-2 imagery from 21/03/2020, courtesy of the European Space Agency, 8/4/3 band combination.
Landsat	Landsat 5 imagery from 30/04/1990, courtesy of the US Geological Survey, 4/3/2 band combination.
SRTM	SRTM data courtesy of the US Geological Survey.
Corona	Corona imagery from 26/02/1972, courtesy of the US Geological Survey.
Historic map	AMS map, sheet 3454-I, series K737, 1964.
Archaeology map	Map 1 in Adams, M. 1981. Heartland of Cities. University of Chicago: Chicago, IL.

Accreditation can be included as part of the map’s caption or it can be integrated into the map itself.

_{In this example the accreditation has been integrated into the map.}