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Frequently Asked Questions

About the Bluesky Mapshop

What is the Bluesky Mapshop?

What products and services are available on the Bluesky Mapshop?

How do I search for my area of interest?

How do I purchase from the site?

I have forgotten my password.

Can I have a purchase data for Ireland?

Do you offer other services such as 3D building models or bespoke capture?

About the Products

How is the photograph taken?

What will I be able to see in my photo?

How up-to-date is the photo/data?

I require more recent data for my area. When will it be updated?

How geographically accurate are the photographs?

What is an orthorectified image?

What is a JPG/TIFF/ECW/ASCII/DXF Point? What format do I need?

Can I select a specific area for digital files?

I can see a join (marked colour change) in my photo preview.

What is height data?

What is a DTM?

What is a DSM?

How accurate is the height data?

Delivery & Returns Policy

I have placed an order. How am I informed when my data is ready?

Do you have a return policy?

Terms & Conditions

What are Bluesky’s terms of use?

What are Bluesky’s terms and conditions?

Payment

How much will it cost?

How do I pay?

Is using WorldPay to pay online secure?

Can I pay by invoice?

Can I have a VAT invoice?

Contact Details

What are your contact details?

About the Bluesky Mapshop

What is the Bluesky Mapshop?
The Bluesky Mapshop is a web portal managed and operated by Bluesky International Limited. Using this website allows you to purchase high quality, up-to-date geographical data, including aerial photography and height data. Other datasets and types of data are continually added to the website so it is always worth coming back to see what’s new.
What products and services are available on the Bluesky Mapshop?
The Bluesky Mapshop offers the ability to search and view your area of interest then purchase digital orthorectified Aerial Photography and Colour Infra-red imagery. It also offers digital height data in the form of Digital Terrain and Surface Models. All data will be delivered by email download.
How do I search for my area of interest?
The interface is simple to use, please follow the instructions and look out for text in the information box. You need to enter your area of interest in the search box; this can be a Town or OS grid reference. You can also upload either a Shapefile or KMZ. Once you press search, the area requested will appear in the map window. Use the controls to the left to zoom in and out and to pan across the image. You can change the view to alternative between Aerial Photo and Mapping using the buttons on the right.
How do I purchase from the site?
Once you have searched for your area of interest just change the size of the box using the controls to the left and press continue. The next page offers you a list of all the products available for that area. Please select as many products as you would like, the resolution and the formats, and then continue to the checkout. You will need to register before you can proceed with your purchase.
I have forgotten my password.
Easily done! Please press the “forgotten password” link at the log in page to receive a link to reset your password.
Can I have a purchase data for Ireland?
Please visit the Bluesky Ireland Mapshop: ireland.blueskymapshop.com
Do you offer other services such as 3D building models or bespoke capture?
Bluesky International Limited is a leading supplier of geographic data and products. If there is anything you require please call our sales team on 01530 518 518

About the Products

How is the photograph taken?
All of the photography on the Bluesky Mapshop is taken using state of the art digital survey cameras from aircraft.
What will I be able to see in my photo?
The detail in the photos is impressive. All of the photos are at a resolution of 25cm or greater (ie each pixel in the digital photo represents 25cm on the ground, this is often referred to the Ground Sampling Distance - GSD). The standard resolutions allow you to see street furniture and inspection covers.
How up-to-date is the photo/data?
We are continually updating all of our data and products. The oldest aerial photography we have in our standard layer was captured in 2006. We also sell older photography and Historical frames we call "Old Aerial photos". Look if any of these are available on the "Choose your products" page.
I require more recent data for my area. When will it be updated?
The Mapshop will always offer the most recent data available, but if you require very up-to-date data or your area is unavailable, this may be in our flying plan, or might require a special survey. Please call our sales team on 01530 518 518 for more details.
How geographically accurate are the photographs?
The Mapshop offers some of the most accurate aerial photography available, as it has been fully orthorectified. Independent tests have shown the accuracy is better then 1m RMSE across the entire dataset. In many areas it is even much better than this, as much as 20cm RMSE in some areas. All digital files are supplied with associated georeferencing information to allow you to view the images in GIS etc.
What is an orthorectified image?
The term orthorectified refers to an aerial photography that has been geographically referenced, placing each pixel in it’s correct geographic location, using a DTM. The process removes all errors caused by the camera lens and the undulating terrain, and involves the use of GPS information collected on the ground as well as in the aircraft. All data in the UK is referenced to the Ordnance Survey National grid system.
What is a JPG/TIFF/ECW/ASCII/DXF Point? What format do I need?
These are all data formats. JPG, TIFF and ECW are all image formats and ASCII and DXF Point are height data formats. JPG and TIFF can be read by many common software packages (they are the same as images from a digital camera). Both JPG and ECW are compressed formats, whereas TIFF is uncompressed. We would always recommend JPG as the file volume is much smaller, and the loss of data during compression is negligible. ASCII and DXF Point will need a GIS application to view the data.
Can I select a specific area for digital files?
Yes you can select any area and any size you require. Just use the tools to the left of the map window.
I can see a join (marked colour change) in my photo preview.
The aerial photography offered on the Bluesky Mapshop is made up of many hundreds of thousands of individual aerial photographs. There may be a time difference of several years between two photos, and they may have been taken at different times of the year. Our expert team do their utmost to minimise the visible join between two dates, using state of the art image processing software, but sometimes only so much is possible without causing damage to one or both of the photographs. If the join is extreme, please let us know and we might be able to improve it.
What is height data?
Height data is a digital file that depicts the height of the terrain and/or features on the terrain (DTM and DSM). It is in it simplest form a grid of points at a set spacing (5m for example), each with the height of the terrain or feature attached. This type of data allows the user to get a feel for the ‘lie of the land’. Only Professional users should use height data, as it is information rather than an image or a picture.
What is a DTM?
DTM stands for Digital Terrain Model. This is a form of height data that depicts only the surface of the earth, ignoring features such as trees and buildings.
What is a DSM?
DSM stands for Digital Surface Model. This is a form of height data that depicts the surface of the earth and features on it, including tress and buildings.
How accurate is the height data?
The accuracy of height data offered on the Bluesky Mapshop is better than 1.5m RMSE in the x, y and z.

Delivery & Returns Policy

I have placed an order. How am I informed when my data is ready?
Your order should be ready within minutes of you placing your order. You will be sent an email to your specified email address once the image is ready to download. This email will give you a link to the file on our secure server for you to download. The data will remain on the server for 7 days. Very large orders may take up to 3 working days to process but we will always endeavor to send you your data as soon as possible.
Do you have a return policy?
We make every effort to ensure your order reaches you as quickly as possible and to the highest possible standard. However in the unlikely event that you are unsatisfied with your order please see below for our returns policy. In the unlikely event that you are not completely satisfied with your data please contact us at mapshop.support@bluesky-world.com. You will also need to confirm that all copies of the data, including backup files, email attachments and printed versions, have been deleted or destroyed.

Terms & Conditions

What are Bluesky’s terms of use?
Our Terms of Use can be found at the bottom of all pages on the Mapshop.
What are Bluesky’s terms and conditions?
When you purchase data (including photographic or height data) from the Bluesky Mapshop you are purchasing a licence to use the data. You do not purchase rights in the data. All data offered for sale on the Bluesky Mapshop is copyrighted. Each ordered item has specific terms and conditions and you are licensed to use the data under the specific license terms. You will be asked to confirm acceptance of the terms and conditions before you proceed with your purchase. If you wish to use the data for anything that is not covered by these license terms you will need to obtain written authorisation. Please call us on 01530 518 518

Payment

How much will it cost?
The price payable for each data type that is available for your area is calculated once you have selected your area. The price is dependent on the type of data, resolution and size of area. The price displayed is excluding VAT, however this is added before you check out.
How do I pay?
You can pay by credit or debit card (all the major ones are accepted). WorldPay will handle the payment on our behalf. There is also an option to open a credit account with us (this is subject to credit checks), whereby we will invoice you monthly for the data downloaded that month. Please call 01530 518 518 for further details.
Is using WorldPay to pay online secure?
The Bluesky Mapshop uses WorldPay for the management of online payments. WorldPay is part The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, the fifth biggest banking group in the world. WorldPay payment solutions are trusted by thousands of businesses, big and small. The WorldPay payment system uses a combination of both established and innovative techniques to ensure the security and integrity of all sensitive data. Furthermore, Thawte, a public Certificate Authority, ensures that both the shopper and retailer can have confidence that nobody can impersonate WorldPay to obtain confidential information, certify the public web servers. During the transfer from Bluesky to WorldPay, the purchase details are encapsulated using an encrypted and digitally signed protocol. This uses a combination of standard methods such as PGP, RSA and MD5 to ensure that the information passed is secure and tamper-proof. Any communication between the shopper and WorldPay is also encrypted to the maximum strength supported by the shopper's browser using TLS or 128 Bit SSL. Shoppers are also protected from fraudulent use of their card in a "card not present" environment, by their card issuers. The card issuers provide the right for a shopper to dispute a transaction if the goods/services did not arrive or if the card was used fraudulently. The banking authorities regularly audit the data storage on WorldPay systems and the communication between WorldPay and the worldwide banking networks to ensure a secure transaction environment.
Can I pay by invoice?
Yes there is an option to have a credit account with us (this is subject to credit checks), whereby we will invoice you monthly for the data downloaded that month. Please call 01530 518 518 for further details.
Can I have a VAT invoice?
If you have a credit account with us and have paid by invoice, a VAT invoice will be sent via email to your designated email address once the data has been delivered. The invoice will contain full VAT details.

Contact Details

What are your contact details?
Bluesky International Limited.
The Station, Station Road, Ashby-De-La-Zouch, Leicestershire, UK LE65 2AS
Email: mapshop.support@bluesky-world.com
Phone: +44 (0)1530 518518

For technical support:
Email: mapshop.support@bluesky-world.com
Phone: +44 (0)1530 518558