GISciences & Remote Sensing
(ISSN 1548-1603)

Information for Authors

Aims and Scope. The journal GIScience & Remote Sensing (formerly Mapping Sciences & Remote Sensing) publishes original, peer-reviewed articles associated with geographic information systems (GIS), cartography, remote sensing of the environment, geocomputation, and geographical and environmental modeling. Basic and applied research may be submitted for publication.

Manuscript Submission. Manuscripts will be accepted on the understanding that their content is unpublished and not submitted for publication elsewhere. All manuscripts are subject to peer review. Submissions must be typed (word-processed) with 1 inch margins on all sides. Number text pages consecutively. Abstract, tables, figure captions, acknowledgments, references and notes (if used) must be typed on individual pages separate from the text. The first page of the manuscript should include the paper's title, author(s), affiliation(s) and complete addresses. Please submit the digital manuscript to:

John R. Jensen
Department of Geography
University of South Carolina
Calcott Social Sciences Building
709 Bull Street Main Office, Room 327a
Columbia, SC 29208
Telephone: (803) 777-5790

Manuscript Style Rules. Please follow the style rules listed below when preparing a manuscript:

Abstract: The abstract should be no more than 100 words in length.

Headings: The manuscript should be organized using no more than 3 heading levels

Tables: Table should be numbered using Arabic numerals and cited consecutively in the text. Each table must have a brief title. Footnotes to information in the table should be indicated in lower case roman letters and placed directly below the table. Source notes should follow information footnotes, should be indicated by the word Source in italics, and should use the same citation format as the text, except without parentheses.

Figures: Drawings, maps, graphs, diagrams, and remotely sensed images are referenced in the text as figures. They must be of professional quality and be produced according to the following specifications:

  1. Figures should be submitted electronically. The following IBM-pc compatible graphics file formats are acceptable:
    1. Drawing programs (preferred): Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, CorelDraw, Macromedia Freehand
    2. Visual presentation formats (do not work well in a professional publishing environment but can be utilized): Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint.
    3. Output formats: *.pdf (Adobe Acrobat) and .eps (encapsulated postscript).
    4. Graphic Image formats (listed in order of preference but are only used as a last resort and must be modified to the exact standards of the journal as discussed below): *.tif, *.bmp, *.jpg or *.gif. Graphics at 300 dots per inch are acceptable; however, 600 dpi is preferred. Graphics may be provided for review at lower resolutions (e.g., 150 dpi). The author must provide the publisher with high resolution graphics (e.g., 600 dpi) upon acceptance for publication.
  2. Figures should be created at scale. That is, they should be generated at the same size they will appear in the journal.
    1. Horizontal (portrait) positioning is preferred and means that the illustration is to be read in the same manner as the text. For a full-page illustration, width is not to exceed 43/4 inches; maximum length is 71/2 inches if figure caption is to occupy one line only. Smaller sizes are encouraged. In measuring length, allow 1/8 of an inch for each additional line of figure caption.
    2. Vertical (broadside or landscape) positioning is acceptable but requires a 90º shift of the publication to be read and is therefore discouraged. Such illustrations usually occupy a full page. For a full-page illustration, the figure's short axis is not to exceed 43/4 inches, and its long axis is to be 71/2 inches or less. Smaller sizes are encouraged. In measuring the short axis, if figure caption is more than one line, allow 1/8 of an inch for each additional line.
  3. Type all figure captions (including source, if applicable) on a separate page (double-spaced) and insert this page at the end of the manuscript.
  4. On maps, figure-ground relationship can be enhanced by applying a dot screen or stipple to water areas. Use italicized letters for identifying water features.
  5. Six-point type is the smallest that should be used on at-scale figures; larger type is preferred.
  6. There are no manuscript page charges for standard black and white articles.
  7. Color figures may be published, but at the author's expense. Contact the publisher for to determine the cost.

References: Contributors are asked to separate references (bibliographic entries) from notes. All references cited in the text should be listed alphabetically by first author at the end of the paper under the heading References. If a manuscript requires explanatory endnotes, superscript numbers should be inserted in the text and the entries arranged numerically and under the heading Notes immediately preceding the references. Both Notes and References should be double-spaced and begun on a new sheet of paper.

Citations in text: Use the author-date system as follows:

  • Jensen (2000) suggested that...
  • Jensen and Cowen (2000) found...
  • ...as summarized in Richards and Jia (1999).

Multiple authorship citations in the text: Use the full citation for up to two authors but abbreviate to et al. for three or more authors:

  • Narumalani et al. (2002) investigated
  • Hodgson et al. (2003) concluded that...

Abbreviated citations must appear in full in the reference list.

Direct quotations in the text: Should be page-referenced:

  • (Jensen, 2000, p. 45)

Reference list: The editor assumes that all references are complete and correct. If authors appear more than once, arrange entries chronologically and substitute the a 3-em dash for the name after the first entry. Do not number entries. Do not abbreviate journal names. Books and journal articles in foreign languages should be cited in their original languages. Use the following entries as a guide:

Journal articles:

One Author:
Jensen, J. R., 1995, "Issues Involving the Creation of Digital Elevation Models and Terrain Corrected Orthoimagery Using Soft-Copy Photogrammetry," Geocarto International, 10(1):1-17.
Two authors:
Jensen, J. R. and D. C. Cowen, 1999, "Remote Sensing of Urban/Suburban Infrastructure and Socio-economic Attributes," Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 65(5):611-622.
More than two authors:
Hodgson, M. E., Jensen, J. R., Tullis, J. A. Riordan, K. D. and C. M. Archer, 2003, "Synergistic Use of Lidar and Color Aerial Photography for Mapping Urban Parcel Imperviousness," Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 69(9):973-980

Books:

One Author:
Jensen, J. R., 2000, Remote Sensing of the Environment: An Earth Resource Perspective, Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall, 544 p.
Two authors:
Richards, J. A. and X. Jia, 1999, Remote Sensing Digital Image Analysis: An Introduction, Berlin: Springer, 363 p.
More than two authors:
Jensen, J. R., Botchwey, K., Brennan-Galvin, E., Johannsen, C. J., Juma, C., Mabogunje, A. L., Miller, R. B., Price, K. P., Reining, P. A. C., Skole, D. L., Stancioff, A. and D. R. F. Taylor, 2002, Down To Earth: Geographic Information for Sustainable Development in Africa, Washington: National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, 155 p.

Chapters in Books:

One Author:
Jensen, J. R., 2000, "Processing Remotely Sensed Data: Hardware and Software Considerations," in Remote Sensing in Hydrology and Water Management, Schultz, G. A. and E. T. Engman (Eds.), Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 49-59.
Two authors:
Buttenfield, B. P. and D. M. Mark, 1991, "Expert Systems in Cartographic Design," in Geographic Information Systems, The Microcomputer and Modern Cartography, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 129-150.
More than two authors:
Narumalani, S., Hlady, J. T., and J. R. Jensen, 2002, "Information Extraction from Remotely Sensed Data," in Manual of Geospatial Science and Technology, London: Taylor & Francis, 288-324.

Copyright. All papers accepted for publication in GIScience & Remote Sensing will be copyrighted by Bellwether Publishing, Ltd. Accordingly, no papers can be published elsewhere, in any language, without the written consent of the publisher. Although reproduction or translation of any part of such paper beyond that permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S. Copyright Law without the publisher's permission is unlawful, consent for limited reproduction by the author(s) for restricted (e.g., classroom) use will not be withheld. In other instances the consent of Bellwether Publishing, Ltd. must be secured


For additional guidance on any matters not specifically addressed in the above listed instructions and examples, please consult Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition.