See what's new and improved in ArcGIS Pro 2.6.

This video compilation was created by ArcGIS Pro development teams to highlight new functionality specific to this release.

Highlights

The highlights section includes featured functionality updates at this release.

Voxel layers Voxel layers are a new layer type that create 3D volumetric visualizations from netCDF data. Use them to understand complex, multidimensional data such as atmospheric data, oceanic data, and underground geology models. You can visualize voxel layers as surfaces or volumes. You can use slices to define an area of interest, and create horizontal or vertical sections to reveal valuable information such as aquifers across a subsurface profile, or methane distribution within a riverine water column. You can also visualize the distribution of a continuous variable—for example, a threshold value of a pollutant—as an isosurface. You can add a voxel layer to a local scene using this example dataset. To make your own volumetric data, use the GA Layer 3D To NetCDF tool or the Create Space Time Cube tool.

Trace networks You can now manage, analyze, and work with simple connectivity models such as rail or hydro in ArcGIS Pro using the new trace network. The trace network uses a set of connected edges, junctions, or both along with network attributes to model the flow of resources through the network. Trace networks can be created using existing feature classes in a feature dataset as source junctions and edges or through direct migration from a geometric network. Connectivity within the trace network is based on the geometric coincidence (x,y,z) of the source feature classes and is established when the network topology is enabled. The network topology provides the capability to perform advanced analytic functions such as tracing and creation of network diagrams, as well as validation, to discover and address errors in your data.

Interactive suitability analysis Identify the best site locations or areas to preserve using the new Suitability Modeler, which is available with a Spatial Analyst extension license. This dynamic, exploratory environment of interacting panes, plots, and maps allows you to create refined suitability models. Suitability models can determine the best location to build a shopping center, housing development, or ski resort. They can also find the best areas to set aside for parks, endangered wildlife habitat, or flood control. There are four main steps to creating a suitability model: Determine and prepare the criteria data. Transform the values of each criterion to a common suitability scale. Weight criteria relative to one another and combine them to create a suitability map. Locate the areas for siting or to preserve. Constructing a suitability model is a nonlinear, iterative process, and historically it has been a manual one. The Suitability Modeler guides you through the steps and provides immediate feedback, so what you learn in one step may influence your decisions in another. For example, seeing the interactions of a transformation you applied in step 2 with the weights you applied in step 3 and the patch size specified in step 4 helps you adjust the model to reach an optimal solution.

Graphics layers You can now add graphics layers to maps (and map frames in layouts) to expand the flexibility and usability of maps. Graphics layers are composed of graphic elements, such as points, lines, text, and pictures. You can manually create graphic elements, modify existing graphic elements, or convert feature labels into a graphics layer to adjust the placement of text. Graphics layers work in all scale ranges, have a spatial reference, and can use reference scales such as other layers to maintain their position across shared maps and layers. Maps can include multiple graphics layers interspersed with other layers in the drawing order. They can be saved as layer files or shared in web maps as feature collections. They are available in scenes, but only as 2D draped layers.

Parcel adjustment The parcel fabric now supports least-squares adjustments of parcel data. Run a least-squares adjustment on your parcels when you want to do the following: Check dimensions for mistakes when entering parcels from new records.

Evaluate how the addition of new parcels affects the spatial accuracy in the parcel fabric.

Update parcel fabric point coordinates to be more spatially accurate. Two new geoprocessing tools have been added to analyze and apply least-squares adjustments to parcel points and lines. The Analyze Parcels By Least Squares Adjustment tool checks parcel dimensions for mistakes and provides updated, more spatially accurate coordinates for parcel fabric points. Adjustment results are stored in new adjustment feature classes for display and analysis purposes. If results are acceptable, the Apply Parcel Least Squares Adjustment tool can be run to update parcel fabric point coordinates and lines. Results stored in an adjustment feature class can be symbolized for analysis purposes. Learn how to run a parcel adjustment

Link analysis Link analysis is a new interactive capability in ArcGIS Pro that is used to discover and evaluate relationships between entities. Link charts allow transformation from feature layers to entities and relationships without complicated scripts or schemas. The link analysis capability in ArcGIS Pro allows you to visualize and find clusters of connected entities, find their neighborhoods, and identify paths between key entities. Integrating spatial, temporal, and link analysis creates understanding for informed decisions, enabling the influence of location and events to be considered when analyzing a network. Common applications of link analysis include criminal investigations, intelligence, defense and security analysis, market research, and contact tracing in support of epidemiological response. For example, link analysis can be used in contact tracing to explore the relationships between known cases and places in impacted communities to identify high-risk areas and allocate resources.