Quantitative Geomorphometrics for Terrain Characterization

Abstract

The relationship between geology and landforms has long been established with quantitative analysis dating back more than 100 years. The surface expression of various subsurface lithologies motivates our effort to develop an automated terrain classification algorithm based solely on topographic information. The nexus of several factors has recently provided the opportunity to advance our understanding of the relationship between topography and geology within a rigorous quantitative framework, including recent advances in the field of geomorphometrics (the science of quantitative land surface analysis), the availability of very high resolution (sub meter) digital elevation models, and increasing sophisticated geomorphology and image analysis techniques. In the present study, the geological and geomorphological units in an exemplar study area located in Western U.S. (southern Nevada) have been delineated through an evaluation of a high resolution (1-meter and 0.25-meter) digital elevation model. The morphological aspects of these features obtained from DEMs generated from different sources are compared. Our analysis demonstrates that a 1-meter DEM can provide a terrain characterization that can differentiate underlying lithological types and a very high resolution DEM (0.25 meter) can be used to evaluate fracture patterns.

Multi-Resolution Landslide Susceptibility Analysis Using a DEM and Random Forest

“…Different intrinsic and extrinsic parameters are used to analyze LS, and many of them such as geology, soil depth, soil type, and land use usually have limitations of availability and scale [19]. Therefore, LS evaluation solely based on a digital elevation model (DEM) has been conducted assuming that topography reflects other factors such as geology and land use [20]- [22]. Increased availability of high-resolution global DEMs (e.g., SRTM 1 Arc-Second Global and ASTER GDEM) and recent advances in DEM acquisition techniques encourage this approach.…”

Identifying Spatio-Temporal Landslide Hotspots on North Island, New Zealand, by Analyzing Historical and Recent Aerial Photography

“…While visual interpretation is still the most common procedure for landslide mapping, recently, there has been a trend towards semi-automated landslide mapping approaches based on remote sensing data [15]. Efficient image analysis techniques have opened a new era, particularly for studying denied-access, difficult-access, or remote sites [16], but also for performing retrospective analysis based on historical images. Current approaches can basically be split into pixel-based and object-based categories [12,17].…”

Revised Geologic Site Characterization of the North Korean Test Site at Punggye-ri

“…One way to address this shortcoming is by integrating terrain analysis and pattern recognition techniques into a methodology for improving the surface geologic characterization. 1 The central thesis of this approach is that the surface topography and nature of the underlying bedrock geology are intimately related. Early work by NASA at the Pisgah Crater test area ( Figure 1) has been extensively used for correlating the relationship between the topography and underlying geology.…”