A Widened Scope of Activity

The latest phase in the history of the Office was the inclusion of the Swiss Federal Directorate of Cadastral Surveying (1999) and the Swiss Geological Survey (2006) within swisstopo; the Coordination, Geo-Information and Services (COGIS) Division was set up in 2000.

Federal Act on Geoinformation

In 2008, the Swiss Federal Geoinformation Act came into force. It aims to provide current geodata relating to the entire Swiss territory promptly, easily and sustainably for the administration, economy and population to use.

This legal mandate is expressed in the Swiss Federal Geoportal, established in 2009/2010. It provides the general public with relevant geoinformation from many Federal Offices. The coordinates of the new national survey (LV95) were used as a geodetic basis for this, replacing the 1903 national coordinates system (LV03) in 2007.

Since 2018, Switzerland can also be viewed in 3D on the Swiss Federal Geoportal.

The Topographic Landscape Model

In parallel to the structural changes, swisstopo’s work processes also changed. Digital geodata was no longer derived from the analogue maps but from the digital models.

The impetus for this transformation occurred in 2001 when digital cartography definitively replaced negative scribing on glass, which had been introduced in 1953. However, this relationship between maps and digital models was only applied in the Topographic Landscape Model, operated since 2008.

The 3D geodatabase is directly based on the data drawn from the topographical photos.

New National Maps

The “New National Maps” have been created on the basis of data from the digital cartographic models (DCM) since 2011, which are based, in turn, on the TLM. This increases flexibility, making it possible to optimise the new National Maps’ representation. This mainly makes them easier to read and adapts them to new customer requirements.

In 2016, the new flexibility of map production through TLM and DCM was made particularly clear: the National Maps were published for the first time to a scale of 1:10,000 and solely in digital form.
 

Incorporation of Federal Directorate of Cadastral Surveying into the Federal Office of Topography.

Introduction of COGIS (Coordination, Geo-Information and Services Division), which incorporates the INTERLIS competence centre.

Commencement of input of a digital terrain model for the cadastral survey with accuracy up to 1 metre (Utilised Agricultural Land project).

2001: Federal Strategy for Geoinformation

The Federal Council approves the Confederation's strategy for geoinformation and instructs the DDPS (COGIS) to implement it. The aim of the strategy is to ensure easy and cost-effective access to geoinformation for all interested institutions and individuals.

Under the designation swissNAMES, the database containing around 190,000 geographic names is made available to the general public.

As of the beginning of 2001, definitive replacement of the negative scribing process by digital cartography. Publication of the last map sheet (no. 39, Flüelapass) to be updated in analogue form.

Federal Council adopts the concept for the implementation of the federal geoinformation strategy formulated by COGIS. The aim of this concept is to develop a national geodata infrastructure. This results in a paradigm shift at swisstopo: the focus is now on benefits for the economy instead of on business considerations. 

Realisation of planned complete coverage of SWISSIMAGE. This means that every square metre of the country is now depicted in the form of a homogeneous orthophoto mosaic with a ground pixel resolution of 50 centimetres. 

Acquisition of a new digital aerial image camera (ADS40), immediately available for updating the SWISSIMAGE orthophoto mosaic as well as the national maps, following the changeover from analytical to digital photogrammetry for the topographic survey. Introduction of new flight schedules for recording aerial images for SWISSIMAGE with the ADS40 in order to take account of the new ground pixel resolutions of 25 centimetres (central plain, Jura, Alpine valleys) and 50 centimetres (mountain regions). 

swisstopo takes over management of the Mont Terri (canton of Jura) research programme and is now operator of the rock laboratory. Mont Terri is an international research project aimed at determining the hydrogeological, geochemical and geotechnical characteristics of an opalinus clay formation.

SWISSIMAGE, the orthophoto mosaic created from aerial photo strips, will be updated every 3 years instead of every 6 years as before.

Thanks to the implementation of the Federal Geoinformation Act, geodata are now available to everyone. swisstopo assists with the introduction of the federal geoportal. "Excellence publique" prize awarded to geo.admin.ch. Federal geoportal is the first unit of the Federal Administration to use cloud computing.

 Swiss Geological Survey publishes a new map in its GeoMaps 500 series: "Switzerland during the last glacial maximum".

Production of three new 3D datasets from the topographic landscape model: swissBUILDINGS3D (building volume excluding roof shape), SWISSIMAGE FCIR (false-colour infrared orthophotos) and swissBOUNDARIES3D (administrative units and boundaries in vector form), replacing GG25. 

New coordinates for the national maps.In order to clearly distinguish between the old and new coordinates, a seventh digit has been prefixed to the original six-digit coordinates: 1 for the north-south direction and 2 for the east-west direction. 

High-resolution digital height model (swissALTI3D) now covers the entire country, including regions higher than 2,000 metres above sea level. SwissMeteo made a major contribution towards the creation of this model (e.g. by enabling climate observation).

"Journey through time" viewer available online as of the beginning of the year. Users can now view almost 175 years of Switzerland's cartographic history. 

New LUBIS (aerial image information system) viewer available online as of April. Contains around 320,000 historical aerial images of all regions of the country. Earliest images date from the 1920s.

swisstopo revises and updates 1:25,000 national map, and in January publishes the first four sheets in the new generation of maps. Improvement of digital use of national maps, and further development of cartography. 

A joint project between Chad, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the UN was set up in 2012 to map Chad’s water resources. swisstopo is in charge of map design and production.

The annual subscription allows unlimited storage of maps on mobile devices for access even without a network.

Five pilot cantons (Bern, Neuchâtel, Nidwalden, Thurgau and Zurich) put their PLR cadastre online. The surveying sector of swisstopo coordinates the work necessary to set up this cadastre, grouping the restrictions in many laws, ordinances and regulations concerning land-use.

This data set categorizes over 300,000 geographical names and can be consulted free of charge on the Federal Geoportal or integrated into a variety of applications.

Certain data on the Federal Geoportal can now be displayed in partial 3D (2.5D). This application is a test version from which conclusions will be drawn to improve the range of data and the display quality for producing a final 3D version.

Stations in the AGNES network are now compatible with GPS (USA), GLONASS (Russia), Galileo (EU) and BeiDou (China) systems. This enhanced compatibility broadens the system’s development opportunities and increases the base of potential users.

swisstopo’s famous national map is now available at the new 1:10,000 scale, but only in digital format. It is also revolutionary in terms of design, since it is generated automatically based on the topographic landscape model and is updated each year.

The underground laboratory researching the storage of radioactive waste in deep Opalinus Clay layers celebrates its 20^th anniversary with an open day. Numerous visitors have an opportunity to view the installations that allow the 16 research partners to carry out 130 long-term experiments.

With the inauguration of the new Gotthard Base Tunnel, swisstopo publishes a new map showing extracts from historical and geological maps. It illustrates and documents the development of communication axes from the time of postal coach travel to the moment of becoming the longest railroad tunnel in the world.

2017: Awards for the Swiss Confederation’s geoportal

The federal geoportal received a total of 13 national and international awards between 2010 and 2017. These include the United Nations Public Service Award for "effectiveness, efficiency and quality" in public administration services. Further prizes were awarded to geo.admin.ch in the areas of "Open Source Software / Web", "e-Government" and "Cloud Computing".

The SWISSIMAGE mosaic of orthophotos now has a ground resolution of 10 cm in the lowlands (25 cm previously) and 25 cm in the mountains (50 cm previously). Updating the orthophotos to this new standard will take place gradually until its completion in 2019.

swisstopo published the orthophoto mosaic SWISSIMAGE HIST 1946, which provides unique insight into the country's past. The aerial photographs on which the product is based were taken shortly after the Second World War in 1946, when US aircraft flew over and photographed the Swiss Confederation with the permission of the Swiss government.

The initial development of the Topographic Landscape Model TLM, which began in 2008, was completed. The 3D geodatabase of Switzerland contains more than 25 million objects and not only serves as a basis for production of the national maps; it also enables numerous other spatial applications.

2020: mySwissMap – the customised national map

For the first time, swisstopo is offering customers the chance to create their own paper map using a section of their choice thanks to mySwissMap. Customers can customise their maps by choosing from various scales and opting for an innovative photographic map. They can also select their own map title and cover image.

2020: The new swisstopo app

swisstopo has a new map and geodata app. It was developed from scratch and combines Swiss national maps with information on a range of other topics such as hiking, cycling, snow sports and aviation – all on your smartphone or tablet. 

2021: Access to the PLR cadastre for all cantons

The cadastre of public-law restrictions on landownership (PLR cadastre) is available in all 26 Swiss cantons. It provides easy access to the restrictions on land ownership for small areas across the whole of Switzerland without the need to contact the authorities.

2021: swisstopo's digital geodata can now be accessed and used free of charge

swisstopo is making its official digital data and services available to access online free of charge. The previous access and usage fees no longer apply. Making data available in this way is part of the “strategy for open data from the federal administration in Switzerland 2019-2023” (Open Government Data, OGD) which was adopted by the Federal Council in November 2018.

2021: Milestone in digital transformation – the new national map is here

swisstopo has published the final data and pages for the new national map. This milestone marks the culmination of seven years of redevelopment, ushering in improvements in the digital use of the national map in particular. 

2022: A flight over Switzerland from 1946 to today

swisstopo has combined aerial photographs and image strips taken between 1946 and today to create comprehensive mosaics. This will allow individuals to select an area in Switzerland and observe the transformation of urban centres, as well as changes to the natural environment. This historical data is available free of charge via the Swiss government’s map and geodata view on map.geo.admin.ch.