Chapter 6. Spatial Databases

In this chapter, we will look at how you can use a PostGIS database to store and work with spatial data. In particular, we will cover:

  • The concept of a spatially enabled database
  • Spatial indexes and how they work
  • How PostGIS acts as an extension to the PostgreSQL relational database
  • How to install PostgreSQL, PostGIS, and the psycopg2 Python database adapter onto your computer
  • How to set up and configure a spatial database using PostGIS
  • How to use the psycopg2 database adapter to access a spatial database from your Python code
  • How to create, import, and query against spatial data using Python
  • Recommended best practices for storing spatial data in a database

This chapter is intended to be an introduction to using databases in ...

Get Python Geospatial Development - Third Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial