Map using ArcMap

The map was created as a part of my research conducted for the Geography Field Seminar course in Oregon. As was quickly understood, the vast majority of winegrapes are grown in the northwestern region of Oregon. One of the reasons for productive grapes is precipitation levels, so the map was created to see just how much rain is required to support an abundance of vineyards. This map displays the strong relationship with precipitation and vineyard location, which is especially evident in the Willamette Valley, which is in the northwestern portion of Oregon. The data obtained for the interpolation (precipitation) portion of the map were found within the National Climatic Data Center as an annual precipitation spreadsheet for each weather station in Oregon. The data were then run through a tool in ArcMap called IDW interpolation which creates the continuous precipitation pattern you see here. The number of vineyards per county data were obtained from the National Agricultural Statistics Service which has agricultural data for the number of vineyards in the US up to 2011. The data were added to ArcMap and were visually displayed using proportional symbols to create their respective size and location. The software used included: Microsoft Excel to procure the initial raw data into spreadsheet form; ESRI ArcMap to develop most of the visual presentation for the map including the interpolation and proportional symbols; Adobe Illustrator was used to create a more cartographically pleasing presentation of the map.