Technical Guide

Geoscape Tiles

Usage and lifecycle of Geoscape tile sources in SOC maps.

SOC uses Geoscape endpoints for contextual mapping and geocoding workflows through server-side proxy routes. Tiles are treated as contextual overlays, while authoritative project reference geometry is sourced from cached NSW datasets.

Integration pattern

Browser map requests flow through SvelteKit API endpoints.
The server proxy keeps provider API details and keys away from client code.
Tile/metadata responses are returned with cache headers suitable for CDN and browser reuse.

Caching strategy

Geoscape tiles are proxied and edge-cached for performance.
They are not persisted as canonical project geometry in PostGIS.
Error or empty responses use short TTL fallback behavior to recover quickly.

Data roles

Geoscape: contextual and search-supporting map services.
NSW Spatial Services cache: authoritative reference geometry used for assignment and validation workflows.

Attribution and licensing

Keep required attributions visible in map profiles and data displays.
Ensure data-currency context is available where source freshness matters.
Validate product-tier and API terms with account owners when plans change.

Failure and fallback behavior

On upstream failure, map UI should remain usable with other available layers.
Prefer graceful degradation over hard failure of entire map route.
Monitor proxy routes and cache hit behavior for repeated upstream issues.