Spatial functions
The previous section explained how we can combine multiple geospatial datasets in Amazon Athena, but you may be asking, “What does ST_ mean?” The abbreviation ST stands for Spatial Type, and it designates that the data function performs some kind of geospatial processing. Spatial functions can be used to convert from text to geometry and back again to meet the specific usage needs of each query.
The complete list of geospatial functions available in Amazon Athena can be found here: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/athena/latest/ug/geospatial-functions-list-v2.html. The list is extensive and is broken down into the following categories:
- Constructor functions: Used to get binary formats of geometries or convert binary into text
- Geospatial relationship functions: Used to determine location relationships by returning a Boolean value indicating whether the tested condition was satisfied
- Operation functions: Used to interrogate the geometry data...
