Etäisyysanalyysi

Etäisyysanalyysi, known in English as distance analysis or proximity analysis, is a fundamental geospatial operation used to determine the spatial relationships between different geographic features. It involves calculating distances from one or more features to a set of other features. This can be done in various ways depending on the context and the desired output.

The most common type of distance analysis is Euclidean distance, which measures the straight-line distance between two points. This is often represented as a raster layer where each cell's value indicates its distance to the nearest feature. Another important method is network distance, which calculates the shortest path along a defined network, such as roads or rivers. This is crucial for applications like travel time analysis or route planning.

Etäisyysanalyysi is widely used in diverse fields. In urban planning, it helps identify areas within a certain proximity to schools, hospitals, or public transport. Environmental scientists use it to assess the impact of pollution sources or to delineate buffer zones around sensitive habitats. For emergency services, it is vital for calculating response times and identifying the closest resources. Marketers might employ it to find customers within a specific radius of a store. The results of etäisyysanalyysi often inform decision-making by providing quantitative measures of spatial accessibility and influence.