A ________________ analysis creates polygons around input features to a specified distanceGroup of answer choicesBufferUnionIntersectClip

The correct answer is Buffer.

A buffer analysis is a spatial operation in geographic information system (GIS) applications that creates polygons around input features at a specified distance. This technique is useful for various applications such as environmental studies, urban planning, and resource management because it helps to visualize the area that falls within a particular distance from a feature, such as roads, bodies of water, or specific points of interest.

In contrast, the other options serve different purposes:

• Union combines multiple shapefiles into a single shapefile while maintaining all features.
• Intersect identifies the overlapping areas between different datasets.
• Clip cuts out a portion of one feature using another feature as a boundary.

Thus, if you're looking to create polygons around locations based on a distance, buffer analysis is the appropriate method.