[Obe and
Hzu, 2021] define tessellation as the process of 'dividing your polygon into
regions using shapes such as rectangles, hexagons, and triangles' [p.268].
Tessellation techniques have gained substantial momentum in Geographic
Information Systems to 'represent information about a land's surface within a
computer system rather than on the original paper maps' [Gold, 2016, p. 9].
The map
below displays Bayou Texar, a hydrologic feature located in east Pensacola,
Florida. A local high school's science department has placed four sampling
stations throughout the bayou, charged with taking water samples that measure
nitrogen and phosphorous levels, tide levels, and amounts of rain at each
station's respective location. Since it is impossible to take water samples at
every geographic point within the bayou, tessellation is a technique that can
be used as a precursor to interpolation or creating a 'continuous surface from
sampled point values' [ESRI, 2025].
Tessellation divides the area into discreet units that can be used in various calculations, such as nearest neighbor [Thiessen polygons], to determine estimated values for each unit of the tessellated grid. This process provides an approximated value for every area of the feature class, as opposed to confining the collected data to the sites of the sampling stations. Tessellation can also provide other insight to any areal unit within a GIS, such as systemizing optimal locations for future sampling stations or also creating a spatial "index" to create a frame of reference. The number of use-cases for tessellation is unquantifiable, but those mentioned in this discussion are among the most common for this function.
Sources:
ESRI. [2025]. An Overview of the Interpolation Toolset. Environmental Science Research Institute. <LINK>https://pro.arcgis.com/en/pro-app/latest/tool-reference/spatial-analyst/an-overview-of-the-interpolation-tools.htm
Gold, C. [2016]. Tessellations in GIS: Part I—putting it all together. Geo-spatial Information Science, 19[1], 9-25.
Obe, R., & Hsu, L. [2021]. PostGIS in Action. Simon and Schuster.
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