Estimating vertical error of SRTM and map-based DEMs using ICESat altimetry data in the eastern Tibetan Plateau

The Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS) instrument onboard the Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) provides elevation data with very high accuracy which can be used as ground data to evaluate the vertical accuracy of an existing Digital Elevation Model (DEM). In this article, we examine the differences between ICESat elevation data (from the 1064 nm channel) and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM of 3 arcsec resolution (90 m) and map-based DEMs in the Qinghai-Tibet (or Tibetan) Plateau, China. Both DEMs are linearly correlated with ICESat elevation for different land covers and the SRTM DEM shows a stronger correlation with ICESat elevations than the map-based DEM on all land-cover types. The statistics indicate that land cover, surface slope and roughness influence the vertical accuracy of the two DEMs. The standard deviation of the elevation differences between the two DEMs and the ICESat elevation gradually increases as the vegetation stands, terrain slope or surface roughness increase. The SRTM DEM consistently shows a smaller vertical error than the map-based DEM. The overall means and standard deviations of the elevation differences between ICESat and SRTM DEM and between ICESat and the map-based DEM over the study area are 1.03 ± 15.20 and 4.58 ± 26.01 m, respectively. Our results suggest that the SRTM DEM has a higher accuracy than the map-based DEM of the region. It is found that ICESat elevation increases when snow is falling and decreases during snow or glacier melting, while the SRTM DEM gives a relative stable elevation of the snow/land interface or a glacier elevation where the C-band can penetrate through or reach it. Therefore, this makes the SRTM DEM a promising dataset (baseline) for monitoring glacier volume change since 2000.     

Evaluating Shuttle radar and interpolated DEMs for slope gradient and soil erosion estimation in low relief terrain

The error in slope gradient estimates provided by digital elevation models propagates to spatial modelling of erosion and other environmental attributes, potentially impacting land management priorities. This study compared the slope estimates of Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) DEMs with those generated by interpolation of topographic contours, at two grid cell resolutions. The magnitude and spatial patterns of error in DEM slope, and derived erosion estimates using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), were evaluated at three sites in eastern Australia. The sites have low-relief terrain and slope gradients less than 15%, characteristics which dominate the global land surface by area and are often highly utilised. Relative to a reference DEM resampled to the same resolution (a measure of DEM ‘quality’), the 90 m (3-s) SRTM DEM provided the best estimates of slopes, being within 20% for each 5% slope class outside alluvial floodplains where it over-predicted by up to 220%. Relative to a hillslope scale 10 m reference DEM, the 30 m (1-s) SRTM-derived DEM-S, provided slope gradient estimates slightly less biased towards under-prediction than the 90 m SRTM and significantly less biased on alluvial floodplains. In contrast, the 20 m vertical contour intervals underpinning the interpolated DEMs resulted in under-prediction of slope gradient by more than a factor of 5 over large contiguous areas (>1 km²). The 30 m DEM-S product provided the best estimate of hillslope erosion, being 3–4% better than the 90 m SRTM. The slope errors in the interpolated DEMs translated into generally poorer and less consistent erosion estimates than SRTM. From this study it is concluded that the SRTM DEM products, in particular the 30 m SRTM-derived DEM-S, provide estimates of slope gradient and erosion which are more accurate, and more consistent within and between low relief study sites, than interpolated DEMs.     

Evaluation of TanDEM-X 90 m Digital Elevation Model

German Aerospace Center (DLR), EADS Astrium GmbH and Infoterra GmbH alliance came up with the idea of taking DTED-2 (Digital terrain elevation data, level-2) specifications to even higher standard of HRTE-3 (High resolution terrain elevation, level-3) in 2006, as a result TDX (TerraSAR-X, TanDEM-X) constellation was born. The mission was geared to create a rather sensitive, high precision 3 dimensional map of the entire Earth in seamless and very high quality. After Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) in 2000 and its derivatives, along with numerous prior and subsequent other similar data, have practically set the standard for defining the topographical surfaces in global scale, the twin satellites acquired all of Earth’s land surfaces numerous times to produce varying resolution digital elevation models (DEM) between 2011 and late 2015. DEMs are widely used in many planning, decision making and engineering related projects. They provide sound backing for mankind’s endeavors. Ground resolution is the most sought after feature of any DEM. Finer resolution is usually associated with a better surface definition. Recently, an entirely new global DEM has been released DLR. The 90 m DEM is the latest variant derived from such an undertaking. This study aimed to examine the overall effectiveness of this alleged new data in four previously surveyed locations and against the performances of finer SRTM 1- and comparable SRTM 3 arc second data. The results showed that TanDEM-X 90 m data overestimated. They seemed to be rather accurate in flat to slightly undulating terrain, but overestimated in broken to treacherous terrain than both SRTMs. Root Mean Square Error was greater in site one and site four, and lower in site two and site three compared to both SRTM 1 and SRTM 3 arc second data.     

Assessment of Digital Elevation Model (DEM) aggregation methods for hydrological modeling: Lake Chad basin,Africa

Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) are used to compute the hydro-geomorphological variables required by distributed hydrological models. However, the resolution of the most precise DEMs is too fine to run these models over regional watersheds. DEMs therefore need to be aggregated to coarser resolutions, affecting both the representation of the land surface and the hydrological simulations. In the present paper, six algorithms (mean, median, mode, nearest neighbour, maximum and minimum) are used to aggregate the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) DEM from 3″ (90 m) to 5′ (10 km) in order to simulate the water balance of the Lake Chad basin (2.5 Mkm²). Each of these methods is assessed with respect to selected hydro-geomorphological properties that influence Terrestrial Hydrology Model with Biogeochemistry (THMB) simulations, namely the drainage network, the Lake Chad bottom topography and the floodplain extent.The results show that mean and median methods produce a smoother representation of the topography. This smoothing involves the removing of the depressions governing the floodplain dynamics (floodplain area<5000 km²) but it eliminates the spikes and wells responsible for deviations regarding the drainage network. By contrast, using other aggregation methods, a rougher relief representation enables the simulation of a higher floodplain area (>14,000 km² with the maximum or nearest neighbour) but results in anomalies concerning the drainage network. An aggregation procedure based on a variographic analysis of the SRTM data is therefore suggested. This consists of preliminary filtering of the 3″ DEM in order to smooth spikes and wells, then resampling to 5′ via the nearest neighbour method so as to preserve the representation of depressions. With the resulting DEM, the drainage network, the Lake Chad bathymetric curves and the simulated floodplain hydrology are consistent with the observations (3% underestimation for simulated evaporation volumes).     

SRTM DEM accuracy assessment over vegetated areas in Norway

Results from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) are presented. The SRTM C‐band and X‐band digital elevation models (DEMs) are evaluated with regard to elevation accuracies over agricultural fields, forest areas and man‐made features in Norway. High‐resolution digital maps and satellite images are used as background data. In general, many terrain details can be observed in the SRTM elevation datasets. The elevation accuracy (90% confidence level) of the two SRTM systems is estimated to less than 6.5 m for open agricultural fields and less than 11 m considering all land surface covers. This is better than specifications. Analysis of dense Norwegian forest stands shows that the SRTM system will produce elevation data that are as much as 15 m higher than the ground surface. The SRTM DEM products will therefore partly indicate canopy elevations in forested areas. We also show that SRTM data can be used to update older DEMs obtained from other sources, as well as estimating the volume of rock removed from large man‐made gravel pits.     

低山丘陵区多源数字高程模型误差分析北大核心CSCD

作为多学科交叉与渗透产物的数字高程模型(DEM)已在诸多学科和领域及实际应用中发挥了重要作用,但目前能够免费获取的高分辨全球DEM在不同区域仍存在很大的不确定性,应用之前进行质量评估至关重要。以烟台市为实验区,以大比例尺地形图(1∶10 000)生成的DEM为参照,结合坡度、坡向和土地覆被类型等地学因子,定量分析了目前广泛应用的两个版本ASTER GDEM(先进星载热辐射和反射辐射计全球数字高程模型)ASTETR 1和ASTER 2及不同空间分辨率SRTM DEM(航天飞机雷达地形测绘任务)(SRTM 1:～30m和SRTM 3:～90m)在低山丘陵区高程、坡度及坡向误差。结果表明:在研究区域内,ASTER 1、ASTER 2、SRTM 3、SRTM 1总体高程均方根误差分别为8.7m、6.3m、3.7m和2.9m。ASTER与SRTM的高程精度不同程度地受坡度、坡向以及土地覆被类型等地学因子的影响,DEM误差随坡度增加而增大,其中SRTM 3精度对该因子最敏感。尽管坡向对DEM精度影响不明显(4种DEM在不同坡向上的均方根误差波动范围均不超过2m),但是不同土地覆被类型下这4种DEM精度差异显著。此外,分析4种DEM提取的坡度可知,SRTM 1的均方根坡度误差最低(2.5°)、ASTER 1与ASTER 2的坡度的均方根误差大致相同(3.6°、3.9°)、SRTM 3的坡度均方根误差最高(4.3°)。坡向的精度SRTM 1最高,ASTER 1与ASTER 2次之,SRTM 3最低。研究结果对我国低山丘陵区ASTER GDEM与SRTM DEM的应用与精度评估具有一定的借鉴作用。     

An assessment of shuttle radar topography mission digital elevation data for studies of volcano morphology

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission has provided high spatial resolution digital topographic data for most of Earth's volcanoes. Although these data were acquired with a nominal spatial resolution of 30 m, such data are only available for volcanoes located within the U.S.A. and its Territories. For the overwhelming majority of Earth's volcanoes not contained within this subset, DEMs are available in the form of a re-sampled 90 m product. This has prompted us to perform an assessment of the extent to which volcano-morphologic information present in the raw 30 m SRTM product is retained in the degraded 90 m product. To this end, we have (a) applied a simple metric, the so called dissection index (di), to summarize the shapes of volcanic edifices as encoded in a DEM and (b) using this metric, evaluated the extent to which this topographic information is lost as the spatial resolution of the data is reduced. Calculating di as a function of elevation (a di profile) allows us to quantitatively summarize the morphology of a volcano. Our results indicate that although the re-sampling of the 30 m SRTM data obviously results in a loss of morphological information, this loss is not catastrophic. Analysis of a group of six Alaskan volcanoes indicates that differences in di profiles calculated from the 30 m SRTM product are largely preserved in the 90 m product. This analysis of resolution effects on the preservation of topographic information has implications for research that relies on understanding volcanoes through the analysis of topographic datasets of similar spatial resolutions produced by other remote sensing techniques (e.g., repeat-pass interferometric SAR; optical stereometry).     

Applying SRTM digital elevation model to unravel Quaternary drainage in forested areas of Northeastern Amazonia

There has been an increasing number of articles stressing the advantage of applying remote sensing products of synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) for rapidly enhancing the volume of geological data in Amazonian areas, where forest cover is dense and high, clouds are abundant and accessibility is limited. The majority of these studies has emphasized geomorphology as a tool for both discussing tectonic reactivations during the Cenozoic and reconstructing Quaternary paleolandscapes. This work applies Digital Elevation Model (DEM) derived from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) for delineating past morphological features under dense rainforest in an Amazonian lowland area. Previous use of this tool in southwestern Marajó Island (northern Brazil) helped to delineate, with exceptional precision, a paleochannel network hidden under the rainforest, which would be barely detected with other available remote sensing products. Fieldwork revealed that these paleochannels are related to palimpsest drainage systems developed mostly during the last 40,000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. Measured altitudes acquired during topographic surveys attested that paleochannel areas are slightly higher than adjacent floodplains. This fact determined the successful application of SRTM–DEM for mapping paleochannels in Marajó Island. Integration of SRTM data with sedimentological information collected during fieldwork suggests paleoflows derived from continental areas located to south of the study area. This paleodrainage was active when the island was still connected to mainland. With island detachment due to reactivation of tectonic faults, the channels became abandoned and were progressively forested. The results obtained in the present study indicate that SRTM–DEM has high potential for unraveling similar morphological features from many other Amazonian areas with low topography and a dense forest cover.     

利用星载InSAR技术提取镇江地区DEM及其精度分析

InSAR技术是目前获取高精度数字高程模型（DEM）的一种新方法。为了分析InSAR技术提取DEM的精度,首先介绍了美国航天飞机雷达SRTM DEM的精度和数据结构,然后以江苏镇江地区作为试验区,采用ERS1/2卫星影像来提取DEM,并对星载SAR提取的DEM与SRTM 3弧秒分辨率DEM的精度作了比较。 结果表明,利用星载SAR提取的DEM分辨率与SRTM 3弧秒分辨率的DEM相当,能很好地显示出地形起伏（如山脉、沟谷）的纹理特征。进一步的研究还表明,利用InSAR技术提取DEM的精度与SRTM 3 DEM之间存在5米左右的系统误差,并对产生这一系统误差的原因作了详细分析。     

Phytoplankton biomass distribution and identification of productive habitats within the Galapagos Marine Reserve by MODIS, a surface acquisition system, and in-situ measurements

The Galapagos Marine Reserve (GMR) is one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. Phytoplankton are the base of the ecosystem food chain for many higher trophic organisms, so identifying phytoplankton biomass distribution is the first step in understanding the dynamic environment for effective management of the GMR. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and hyperspectral surface acquisition system derived chlorophyll, in-situ chlorophyll fluorescence, nitrate, salinity, and temperature were collected from March 2005 to the onset of a mild El Niño in November 2006. Islands in the eastern GMR, such as San Cristobal and Espanola, are the first to experience impacts of El Niño and southern migration of the Equatorial Front. Productive habitats were defined as surface waters with salinities > 34, temperatures < 24 °C, and chlorophyll a > 0.4 mg m^− 3. Six temporally variable productive habitats identified were: west of Isabela Island, southwest of Floreana Island, south of Santa Cruz, between Santiago and Santa Cruz Islands, and on the eastern side near San Cristobal Island. Model results coupled with surface acquisition system derived chlorophyll indicated productive habitats may also occur for short periods and at a distance from islands such as when the Equatorial Undercurrent (EUC) and South Equatorial Current (SEC) collide over the seamounts north of Isabela Island. All productive habitats were related to topographic upwelling from the EUC into surface waters.     

Accuracy assessment of the ASTER GDEM and SRTM3 DEM: an example in the Loess Plateau and North China Plain of China

The digital elevation model (DEM) produced by the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) has provided important fundamental data for topographic analysis in many fields. The recently released global digital elevation model (GDEM) produced by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) has higher spatial resolution and wider coverage than the SRTM3 DEM, and thus may be of more value to researchers. Taking two typical study areas—the Loess Plateau and the North China Plain of China—as an example, this article assesses the accuracy of the SRTM3 DEM and ASTER GDEM by collecting ground control points from topographical maps. It is found that both the SRTM3 DEM and the ASTER GDEM are far more accurate for the North China Plain than for the Loess Plateau. For the Loess Plateau, the accuracy of the ASTER GDEM is similar to that of the SRTM3 DEM; whereas for the North China Plain, it is much worse than that of the SRTM3 DEM. Considering the negative bias of the ASTER GDEM for flat or gentle regions, we improve its accuracy by adding the difference of the mean value between the SRTM3 DEM and ASTER GDEM for the North China Plain; then, the root mean square error (RMSE) of ±7.95 m from the original ASTER GDEM is improved to ±5.26 m, which demonstrates that it is a simple but useful way to improve the accuracy of the ASTER GDEM in flat or gentle regions.     

Effect of SRTM resolution on morphometric feature identification using neural network—self organizing map

In this study, we present a semi-automatic procedure using Neural Networks—Self Organizing Map—and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission DEMs to characterize morphometric features of the landscape in the Man and Biosphere Reserve “Eastern Carpathians”. We investigate specially the effect of two resolutions, SIR-C with 3 arc seconds and X-SAR with 1 arc second for morphometric feature identification. Specifically we investigate how the SRTM/C band data with 30 m interpolated grid, corresponding to SRTM/X band 30 m, affect the morphometric characterization and topography derivatives. To reduce misregistration between the DEMs, spatial co-registration was performed and a RMSE of 0.48 pixel was achieved. Morphometric parameters such as slope, maximum curvature, minimum curvature and cross-sectional curvature are derived using a bivariate quadratic approximation on 90 m, 30 m and interpolated 30 m DEMs. Self Organizing Map (SOM) is used for the classification of morphometric parameters into ten exclusive and exhaustive classes. These classes were analyzed as morphometric features such as ridge, channel, crest line and planar for all data sets based on feature space (scatter plot), morphometric signatures and 3D inspection of the area. The map quality is analyzed by oblique views with contour lines overlaid. Using the X band DEM with 30 m grid as benchmark, a change detection technique was used to quantify differences in morphometric features and to assess the scale effect going from a 90 m (C-band) DEM to an interpolated 30 m DEM. The same procedure is used to study the effect of different resolutions on morphometric features. Morphometric parameters were computed by a moving window size 5 × 5 (corresponding to 450 m on the ground) over SRTM- 90 m. To cover the same ground area, a moving window size of 15 × 15 is used for the 30 m DEM. The change analysis showed the amount of resolution dependency of morphometric features. Overall, the results showed that the introduced method is very useful for identification of morphometric features based on SRTM resolution. Decreasing the grid size from 90 m to 30 m reveals considerably more detailed information emphasizing local conditions. Comparison between results from DEM-30 m as reference data set and interpolated 30 m, showed a rate of change of 31.5% which is negligible. About 17% of this rate correspond to classes with mean slope > 10°. Of the morphometric parameters, the cross sectional curvature is most sensitive to DEM resolution. Increasing spatial resolution reduces the main constrains for morphometric analysis with SRTM 90 m data, such as unrealistic features and isolated single elements in the output map. So in case of lack of high resolution data, the SRTM 90 m data could be interpolated and used for further geomorphic analysis.     

SPOT5-HRS digital elevation models and the monitoring of glacier elevation changes in North-West Canada and South-East Alaska

Monitoring the response of land ice to climate change requires accurate and repeatable topographic surveys. The SPOT5-HRS (High Resolution Stereoscopic) instrument covers up to 120 km by 600 km in a single pass and has the potential to accurately map the poorly known topography of most glaciers and ice caps. The acquisition of a large HRS archive over ice-covered regions is planned by the French Space Agency (CNES) and Spotimage, France during the 2007–2008 International Polar Year (IPY). Here, we report on the accuracy and value of HRS digital elevation model (DEM) over ice and snow surfaces.

A DEM is generated by combining tools available from CNES with the PCI Orthoengine^SE software, using HRS images acquired in May 2004 over South-East Alaska (USA) and northern British Columbia (Canada). The DEM is evaluated through comparison with shuttle radar topographic mission (SRTM) DEM and ICESAT data, on and around the glaciers. A horizontal shift of 50 m is found between the HRS and SRTM DEMs and is attributed to errors in the SRTM DEM. Over ice-free areas, HRS elevations are 7 m higher than those of SRTM, with a standard deviation of ± 25 m for the difference between the two DEMs. The 7-m difference is partly attributed to the differential penetration of the electromagnetic waves (visible for HRS; microwave for SRTM) in snow and vegetation.

We also report on the application of sequential DEMs (SRTM DEM in February 2000 and HRS DEM in May 2004) for the monitoring of glacier elevation changes. We map the topographic changes induced by a surge of one tributary of Ferris Glacier. Maximum surface lowering of 42 (± 10) m and rising of 77 (± 10) m are observed in the 4 years time interval. Thinning rates up to 10 (± 2.5) m/yr are observed at low altitudes and confirm the ongoing wastage of glaciers in South-East Alaska.     

ASTER-GDEM与SRTM3数据质量精度对比分析

ASTER-GDEM是最新的全球数字高程模型,具有较高的分辨率;SRTM3是目前研究人员广泛应用的地形数据。结合实测数据、矢量化地形图,从高程精度、位置精度和坡度因子3方面对比分析两种数据精度。结果表明:ASTER-GDEM数据高程精度低于SRTM3数据,而水平位置精度较高,二者各级坡度百分率近似,与国家1∶5万数字地形图生成的DEM差异较大。     

Map of deep seated gravitational slope deformations susceptibility in central Italy derived from SRTM DEM and spectral mixing analysis of the Landsat ETM+ data

Considerable enhancement for morphometric interpretation can be obtained by means of the integration of spectral data with Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) Digital Elevation Model (DEM). The effectiveness of topography classification with SRTM DEM is enhanced by the use of optical remote sensing data such as Landsat ETM+ that has undergone Spectral Mixing Analysis (SMA). The SMA uses a linear mixture model to provide a physical basis for a more detailed representation of land surface reflectance as mixture of endmembers. In this work we use these data for deep seated gravitational slope deformation (DSGSD) topography characterization to identify slopes whose morphology is indicative of deep seated phenomena. The final results indicate that when incorporated with optical SMA of the Landsat ETM+, the SRTM analysis should improve our capacity for mapping and identifying DSGSD in specific landscapes.     

Digital terrain analysis using Landsat‐7 ETM+ imagery and SRTM DEM: a case study of Nevsehir province (Cappadocia), Turkey

A three‐dimensional (3D) model of land‐use/land‐cover (LULC) and a digital terrain model of Nevsehir province (Cappadocia), Turkey, were generated and analysed using a Landsat‐7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) multispectral image set and a Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model (DEM). Stream drainage patterns, lineaments and structural‐geological features (landforms) were extracted and analysed. In the process of analysing and interpreting the multispectral images of geological features, criteria such as colour and colour tones, topography and stream drainage patterns were used to acquire information about the geological structures of the land, including as geomorphological, topographic and tectonic structures. Landsat‐7 ETM+ multispectral imagery and an SRTM DEM of the study region were used experimentally for classification and analysis of a digital terrain model. Using the multispectral image data, the LULC types were classified as: settlement (1.2%); agricultural land (70.1%); forest (scrubland, orchard and grassland) (2.9%); bare ground (25.5%); and water bodies (lakes and rivers) (0.3%) of the study area (5434 km²). The results of the DEM classification in the study area were: river flood plain (11.3%); plateau (52.3%); high plateau (28.4%); mountain (7.6%); and high mountain (0.3%). Lineament analysis revealed that the central Kizilirmak River divides the region into two nearly equal parts: the Kirsehir Plateau in the north and the Nevsehir Plateau in the south. In terms of the danger of catastrophe, the settlements of Kozakli, Hacibektas and Acigol were found to be at less risk of earthquake and/or flooding than those of Avanos, Gulsehir, Urgup, Nevsehir, Gumuskent and Derinkuyu, which are located on river flood plains and/or the main stream drainage channels, particularly stream beds, where the lineaments are deep valleys or fracture or fault‐line indicators.     

Modeling the effects of elevation data resolution on the performance of topography-based watershed runoff simulation

The spatial uncertainty of a topography based rainfall runoff model (TOPMODEL) is addressed in this study to assess its variability in simulating watershed hydrologic response with regards to the change of digital elevation model (DEM) resolution. Twelve DEM realizations of different grid sizes ranging from 30 m to 3000 m for each of two case watersheds are used for comparative examinations. The study shows that DEM grid size has significant influence on the topographic index distribution which represents the effect of topography on watershed hydrology in TOPMODEL. The smoothing effect of grid size increase may result in deteriorated topographic index distributions at coarse resolutions as the ratio of grid cell area to watershed area gets larger. The simulated discharges and model efficiencies using a same set of TOPMODEL parameters are sensitive to DEM grid size especially at coarse resolutions. This sensitivity, however, can be moderated by parameter calibrations as the optimization runs show that fairly equal efficiencies can be preserved by the compensation effect of transmissivity parameter T₀ within a large extent of DEM resolution for each watershed. The interaction between T₀ and the topographic index distribution with respect to TOPMDOEL model performance is also examined. It is found that both study watersheds demonstrate a similar pattern of change in model performance along with the increase of the grid-to-watershed ratio. The analysis reveals that the ratio poses an important factor in controlling the effect of DEM grid size on TOPMODEL performance. A ratio of less than 5% is suggested in DEM resolution selection for TOPMODEL applications based on the results of this study.     

SRTM vs ASTER elevation products. Comparison for two regions in Crete,Greece

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) collected elevation data over 80% of earth's land area during an 11‐day Space Shuttle mission. With a horizontal resolution of 3 arc sec, SRTM represents the best quality, freely available digital elevation models (DEMs) worldwide. Since the SRTM elevation data are unedited, they contain occasional voids, or gaps, where the terrain lay in the radar beam's shadow or in areas of extremely low radar backscatter, such as sea, dams, lakes and virtually any water‐covered surface. In contrast to the short duration of the SRTM mission, the ongoing Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) is continuously collecting elevation information with a horizontal resolution of 15 m. In this paper we compared DEM products created from SRTM data with respective products created from ASTER stereo‐pairs. The study areas were located in Crete, Greece. Absolute DEMs produced photogrammetricaly from ASTER using differentially corrected GPS measurements provided the benchmark to infer vertical and planimetric accuracy of the 3 arc sec finished SRTM product. Spatial filters were used to detect and remove the voids, as well as to interpolate the missing values in DEMs. Comparison between SRTM‐ and ASTER‐derived DEMs allowed a qualitative assessment of the horizontal and vertical component of the error, while statistical measures were used to estimate their vertical accuracy. Elevation difference between SRTM and ASTER products was evaluated using the root mean square error (RMSE), which was found to be less than 50 m.     

Combination of SRTM3 and repeat ASTER data for deriving alpine glacier flow velocities in the Bhutan Himalaya

The present study evaluates the fusion of DEMs from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument and the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM). The study area consists of high elevation glaciers draining through the rough topography of the Bhutan Himalayas. It turns out that the ASTER-derived and SRTM3 DEMs have similar accuracy over the study area, but the SRTM3 DEM contains less gross errors. However, for rough topography large sections of the SRTM3 DEM contain no data. We therefore compile a combined SRTM3-ASTER DEM. From this final composite-master DEM, we produce repeat ASTER orthoimages from which we evaluate the DEM quality and derive glacier surface velocities through image matching. The glacier tongues north of the Himalayan main ridge, which enter the Tibet plateau, show maximum surface velocities in the order of 100-200 m year⁻¹. In contrast, the ice within the glacier tongues south of the main ridge flows with a few tens of meters per year. These findings have a number of implications, among others for glacier dynamics, glacier response to climate change, glacier lake development, or glacial erosion. The study indicates that space-based remote sensing can provide new insights into the magnitude of selected surface processes and feedback mechanisms that govern mountain geodynamics.