What is the defining characteristic of a raster data model?

The defining characteristic of a raster data model is that it is composed of square grid cells, commonly referred to as pixels. Each cell within the grid represents a specific area of the geographic space and contains a value corresponding to a particular attribute, such as elevation, temperature, or land cover type. This grid structure allows for easy representation and manipulation of continuous data and is particularly beneficial for analyses involving imagery, surface modeling, and statistical operations.

Raster data models are highly effective in applications such as remote sensing and environmental modeling, where data forms a continuous surface. The uniformity of square grid cells simplifies data processing and analysis, as each cell can be easily manipulated through various computational methods. Raster data is commonly used in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for tasks like map layering, terrain analysis, and habitat modeling, supporting a wide range of scientific and practical applications.