Imagery and raster data contains invaluable information that can be used to identify patterns, find features, and understand change across landscapes. To extract useful information from imagery, you often need to process and analyze your data. For example, you may need to calculate a vegetation index to get an understanding of vegetation coverage from a multiband image, or you may want to find suitable locations to build solar power plants using statewide elevation and land cover raster data.
To run raster analysis tools, you must have privileges to create and publish content, and to perform Raster Analysis.
If you're a developer, you can access these tools through ArcGIS REST API and ArcGIS API for Python.
Summarize Data
These tools allow you to use one dataset to define areas you want to summarize from the values of another dataset.
| Tool | Description |
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This tool summarizes a raster based on areas (zones) defined by the first input layer. | |
This tool summarizes the values of a raster within the zones of another dataset and reports the results to a table. |
Analyze Patterns
These tools allow you to explore spatial patterns in your data.
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
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This tool creates a density map from point or line features by spreading known quantities of some phenomenon (represented as attributes of the points or lines) across the map. The result is a layer of areas classified from least dense to most dense. | |
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This tool allows you to predict values at new locations based on measurements from a collection of points. The tool takes point data with values at each point and returns a raster of predicted values. |
Use Proximity
These tools allow you to perform analysis based on proximity and to find optimal paths to get to a destination.
Analyze Image
These tools allow you to analyze multispectral imagery.
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
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This tool performs an arithmetic operation on the bands of a multiband raster layer to reveal vegetation coverage information of the study area. |
Analyze Terrain
These tools calculate slope, aspect, and viewshed surfaces from digital elevation models (DEM).
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
This tool creates a surface that shows the slope of the input elevation data. Slope represents the rate of change of elevation for each digital elevation model (DEM) cell. | |
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This tool identifies the areas an observer can see, accounting for surface topography. The input point locations can represent either observers (such as people on the ground or lookouts in a fire tower), or observed objects (such as wind turbines, water towers, vehicles, or other people). The results define the areas that can be seen from the observer locations. | |
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This tool creates an aspect map from an elevation data source. Aspect identifies the downslope direction of the maximum rate of change in value from each cell to its neighbors. Aspect can be thought of as the slope direction. The values of the output raster will be the compass direction of the aspect. | |
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This tool determines the contributing area above a set of cells in a raster. |
Manage Data
These tools are used to manage image data, which includes clipping and masking, remapping pixel values, and converting to and from feature data.
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
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This tool converts features to a raster dataset. | |
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This tool converts a raster to a feature dataset as points, lines, or polygons. | |
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This tool can clip a raster to a boundary, either to a rectangular area or to a shape you define interactively on the screen. You can clip to the extent of the area you currently have displayed on your map or by the study area defined by a polygon. | |
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This tool allows you to change or reclassify the pixel values of the raster data. Pixel values are remapped by specifying a range of pixel values to map to an output pixel value. The output pixel value can be a valid value or a NoData value, which are pixels that do not have a known value associated with them. | |
Deep Learning
These tools allow you to detect specific features in an image or classify pixels in a raster dataset using deep learning inference tools.
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
This tool runs a trained deep learning model on an input raster and an optional feature class to produce a feature class or table in which each input object has an assigned class label. | |
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This tool runs a trained deep learning model on an input raster to produce a classified raster, and each valid pixel has an assigned class label. | |
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This tool runs a trained deep learning model on an input raster to produce a feature class containing the objects it finds. The features can be bounding boxes or polygons around the objects found, or points at the centers of the objects. |
Multidimensional Analysis
These tools allow you to explore temporal patterns in time series imagery and raster data.
Raster functions
In addition to raster analysis tools, you can use raster functions to perform complex image and raster processing workflows. You can use individual raster functions, or you can use the Raster Function Editor to combine multiple raster functions into processing chains, or raster function templates, using the visual programming tools. Raster function templates can be edited, saved, and shared with other members of your organization.
In the Map Viewer, open the Raster Analysis pane and click the Raster Function Editor button 
to open the raster function editor window. The raster function editor contains a large gallery of raster functions.
To access a previously saved raster function template, or to use one of the built-in raster functions, click the Browse Raster Function Templates button 
in the Raster Analysis pane.
Access raster analysis tools and functions
There are several ways to access raster analysis tools and functions.
Access from Map Viewer
If you have the required privileges to perform raster analysis, you can access the tools and functions from Map Viewer.
To open the raster analysis tools, click Analysis, then click Raster Analysis.
To open the raster analysis functions, click Analysis, then click the Raster Analysis pane and click either the Browse Raster Function Templates button or the Raster Function Editor button .
Access from ArcGIS Pro
In addition to the raster analysis capabilities listed above, a number of imagery and raster geoprocessing tools and raster functions are available in ArcGIS Pro. For details, see Get started with image and raster processing.
Access from ArcGIS REST API
In addition to the user interface clients ArcGIS Pro and Map Viewer, raster analysis services are also accessible through ArcGIS REST API.
Distributed raster analysis can be performed using a large suite of individual raster service tasks such as image services, raster analysis tasks, and ortho mapping tasks. The image processing tasks can be executed and results persisted by using the Generate Raster analysis task. This task uses a well-defined raster function JSON object as input and performs analysis based on the function definition. You can either directly use the system's built-in raster function supported by ArcGIS REST API or create your own custom raster models.
Developers can use raster function objects for distributed raster analysis processing and storage of distributed output.
Access from ArcGIS API for Python
ArcGIS API for Python allows you to query, visualize, analyze, and transform your spatial data using the raster analysis tools available in your organization. To learn more about the analysis capabilities of the API, see the ArcGIS API for Python documentation.
The raster analysis tools can be accessed through the arcgis.raster.analytics module. The raster analysis functions can be accessed through the arcgis.raster.functions module and the arcgis.raster.functions.gbl module modules. To work with raster function templates, use the arcgis.raster.functions.RFT module. The ortho mapping tasks can be accessed through the arcgis.raster.orthomapping module.