scholarly journals A GIS-Based Water Balance Approach Using a LiDAR-Derived DEM Captures Fine-Scale Vegetation Patterns

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (20) ◽  
pp. 2385 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. Dyer
Keyword(s):  
Water Balance ◽  
Vegetation Patterns ◽  
Fine Scale ◽  
Individual Tree ◽  
Annual Variations ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Climatic Water Deficit ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Fine Resolution ◽  
Strong Control

Topography exerts strong control on microclimate, resulting in distinctive vegetation patterns in areas of moderate to high relief. Using the Thornthwaite approach to account for hydrologic cycle components, a GIS-based Water Balance Toolset is presented as a means to address fine-scale species–site relationships. For each pixel within a study area, the toolset assesses inter-annual variations in moisture demand (governed by temperature and radiation) and availability (precipitation, soil storage). These in turn enable computation of climatic water deficit, the amount by which available moisture fails to meet demand. Summer deficit computed by the model correlates highly with the Standardized Precipitation–Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) for drought at several sites across the eastern U.S. Yet the strength of the approach is its ability to model fine-scale patterns. For a 25-ha study site in central Indiana, individual tree locations were linked to summer deficit under different historical conditions: using average monthly climatic variables for 1998–2017, and for the drought year of 2012. In addition, future baseline and drought-year projections were modeled based on downscaled GCM data for 2071–2100. Although small deficits are observed under average conditions (historical or future), strong patterns linked to topography emerge during drought years. The modeled moisture patterns capture vegetation distributions described for the region, with beech and maple preferentially occurring in low-deficit settings, and oak and hickory dominating more xeric positions. End-of-century projections suggest severe deficit, which should favor oak and hickory over more mesic species. Pockets of smaller deficit persist on the landscape, but only when a fine-resolution Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)-derived Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is used; a coarse-resolution DEM masks fine-scale variability and compresses the range of observed values. Identification of mesic habitat microrefugia has important implications for retreating species under altered climate. Using readily available data to evaluate fine-scale patterns of moisture demand and availability, the Water Balance Toolset provides a useful approach to explore species–environment linkages.

scholarly journals Morpho–Sedimentary Monitoring in a Coastal Area, from 1D to 2.5D, Using Airborne Drone Imagery

Drones ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoine Mury ◽  
Antoine Collin ◽  
Dorothée James
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Global Changes ◽  
Sea Levels ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Reduced Costs ◽  
Rising Sea Levels ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Fine Resolution ◽  
State Of The Science ◽  
Very High

Coastal areas are among the most endangered places in the world, due to their exposure to both marine and terrestrial hazards. Coastal areas host more than two-thirds of the world’s population, and will become increasingly affected by global changes, in particular, rising sea levels. Monitoring and protecting the coastlines have impelled scientists to develop adequate tools and methods to spatially monitor morpho-sedimentary coastal areas. This paper presents the capabilities of the aerial drone, as an “all-in-one” technology, to drive accurate morpho-sedimentary investigations in 1D, 2D and 2.5D at very high resolution. Our results show that drone-related fine-resolution, high accuracies and point density outperform the state-of-the-science manned airborne passive and active methods for shoreline position tracking, digital elevation model as well as point cloud creation. We further discuss the reduced costs per acquisition campaign, the increased spatial and temporal resolution, and demonstrate the potentialities to carry out diachronic and volumetric analyses, bringing new perspectives for coastal scientists and managers.

scholarly journals Contribution of glacier melt to stream runoff: if the climatically extreme summer of 2003 had happened in 1979…

2007 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 303-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gernot R. Koboltschnig ◽  
Wolfgang Schöner ◽  
Massimiliano Zappa ◽  
Hubert Holzmann
Keyword(s):  
Water Balance ◽  
Catchment Area ◽  
Meteorological Data ◽  
Snow Accumulation ◽  
Balance Model ◽  
High Temporal Resolution ◽  
Ice Melt ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
Elevation Model

AbstractThis paper presents a comparative study at a small and highly glacierized catchment area in the Austrian Alps, where runoff under the extreme hot and dry conditions of summer 2003 was simulated based on two different glacier extents: the 2003 glacier extent and the 29% larger 1979 extent. Runoff was simulated applying the hydrological water balance model PREVAH at a high temporal resolution. For this purpose, the catchment area was subdivided into hydrological response units based on digital elevation model and land-cover data. The model was driven by meteorological data from the observatory at Hoher Sonnblick, situated at the highest point of the catchment area (3106ma.s.l.). We were interested in the effect the change in glacier extent would have on the annual and monthly water balance and the hydrograph of hourly discharges. Results of the 2003 and the hypothetical 1979 simulation show main differences in runoff for the period July–August depending on a higher ice-melt contribution. Due to the same meteorological input, both simulations calculate the same snow accumulation and snowmelt. Annual discharge in 1979 would have been 12% higher and hourly runoff up to 35% higher than in 2003.

scholarly journals UAV-Derived Himalayan Topography: Hazard Assessments and Comparison with Global DEM Products

Drones ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Watson ◽  
Jeffrey Kargel ◽  
Babulal Tiruwa
Keyword(s):  
Mass Movement ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Lake Area ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
2015 Gorkha Earthquake ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Hazard Assessments ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Terrain Elevation ◽  
Fine Resolution

Topography derived using human-portable unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and structure from motion photogrammetry offers an order of magnitude improvement in spatial resolution and uncertainty over small survey extents, compared to global digital elevation model (DEM) products, which are often the only available choice of DEMs in the high-mountain Himalaya. Access to fine-resolution topography in the high mountain Himalaya is essential to assess where flood and landslide events present a risk to populations and infrastructure. In this study, we compare the topography of UAV-derived DEMs, three open-access global DEM products, and the 8 m High Mountain Asia (HMA) DEMs (released in December 2017) and assess their suitability for landslide- and flood-related hazard assessments. We observed close similarity between UAV and HMA DEMs when comparing terrain elevation, river channel delineation, landside volume, and landslide-dammed lake area and volume. We demonstrate the use of fine-resolution topography in a flood-modelling scenario relating to landslide-dammed lakes that formed on the Marsyangdi River following the 2015 Gorkha earthquake. We outline a workflow for using UAVs in hazard assessments and disaster situations to generate fine-resolution topography and facilitate real-time decision-making capabilities, such as assessing landslide-dammed lakes, mass movement volumes, and flood risk.

scholarly journals Estimation of the Water Balance of a Small Tropical Andean Catchment

La Granja ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-69
Author(s):  
Paola Jackeline Duque-Sarango ◽  
Ronald Cajamarca-Rivadeneira ◽  
Beverley C. Wemple ◽  
Manuel E. Delgado-Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Water Balance ◽  
Soil Analysis ◽  
Field Capacity ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Double Mass ◽  
Temperature Reference ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Precipitation And Temperature

The present study seeks to estimate the water balance that results as a product of the variation of precipitation and temperature over the Chaquilcay microcatchment, a natural system that intercepts with the surface of the Aguarongo Protected Forest in Gualaceo, Ecuador. Four meteorological stations of the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (INAMHI) were studied, which are divided into climatological and pluviometric, with time series of over 30 years, (1982-2015 period). In order to quantify the contributions and losses of water, statistical analyzes of the time series and surveys of in situ information were carried out. The methods used are linear regression, streak test and double mass curve. To fill and validate the series of precipitation and temperature, reference temperatures of the isothermal raster of Ecuador were included in the pluviometric stations. Additionally, a digital elevation model (MDE) was used to predict the amount of sunshine, and the Thornthwaite evapotranspiration method (1948) was applied from the obtained data. The results show acceptance of the meteorological records, while in the soil analysis we obtained the following data: Humidity, 62.38%; organic matter, 21.29%; field capacity, 18.71 mm and a flow of 1.89 m³ / s during the month of May. Finally, the water balance indicates 843.7 mm of annual precipitation, a storage difference of 18.71 mm representing 2.22% of total precipitation, an surplus of 144.5 mm, and actual evapotranspiration of 680.5 mm, with 17.13% and 80.65%, respectively.

scholarly journals Efficient delineation of nested depression hierarchy in digital elevation models for hydrological analysis using level-set method

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiusheng Wu ◽  
Charles R. Lane ◽  
Lei Wang ◽  
Melanie K. Vanderhoof ◽  
Jay R. Christensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Level Set Method ◽  
Level Set ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Hydrological Modeling ◽  
Watershed Modeling ◽  
Hydrological Process ◽  
Terrain Analysis ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Fine Resolution

In terrain analysis and hydrological modeling, surface depressions (or sinks) in a digital elevation model (DEM) are commonly treated as artifacts and thus filled and removed to create a depressionless DEM. Various algorithms have been developed to identify and fill depressions in DEMs during the past decades. However, few studies have attempted to delineate and quantify the nested hierarchy of actual depressions, which can provide crucial information for characterizing surface hydrologic connectivity and simulating the fill-merge-spill hydrological process. In this paper, we present an innovative and efficient algorithm for delineating and quantifying nested depressions in DEMs using the level-set method based on graph theory. The proposed level-set method emulates water level decreasing from the spill point along the depression boundary to the lowest point at the bottom of a depression. By tracing the dynamic topological changes (i.e., depression splitting/merging) within a compound depression, the level-set method can construct topological graphs and derive geometric properties of the nested depressions. The experimental results of two fine-resolution LiDAR-derived DEMs show that the raster-based level-set algorithm is much more efficient (~150 times faster) than the vector-based contour tree method. The proposed level-set algorithm has great potential for being applied to large-scale ecohydrological analysis and watershed modeling.

scholarly journals Performance of A Two-Dimensional Hydraulic Model for the Evaluation of Stranding Areas and Characterization of Rapid Fluctuations in Hydropeaking Rivers

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Juárez ◽  
Ana Adeva-Bustos ◽  
Knut Alfredsen ◽  
Bjørn Dønnum
Keyword(s):  
Electricity Market ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Area Distribution ◽  
Hydraulic Conditions ◽  
River Reach ◽  
Wetted Area ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Fine Resolution ◽  
The Impact

Extreme, short-duration fluctuations caused by hydropeaking occurs when hydropower is regulated to cover demand peaks in the electricity market. Such rapid dewatering processes may have a high impact on the downstream biological conditions, particularly related to stranding of fish and other species. The present work analyzes these fluctuations using a two-dimensional unsteady hydraulic modelling approach for quantification of two important hydro-morphological factors on fish stranding risk: the variation in wetted area and the dewatering ramping rate. This approach was applied on the two-kilometer-long reach of Storåne downstream of the Hol 1 power plant, where topo bathymetric LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data was available providing a high-resolution digital elevation model. Based on this model, hydraulic conditions could be simulated in high detail allowing for an accurate assessment of the hydro morphological factors. Results show the dried area distribution at different flows and dewatering ramping rates. The attenuation of the water level fluctuation due to the damping effect along the river reach controls the dewatering rate. We recommend an alternative scenario operation which can reduce the impact of the peaking operation and estimate the operational mitigation cost. We find that the modelling based on the fine resolution grid provides new opportunities in assessing effects of hydropower regulations on the ecosystem.

scholarly journals THE ASSESSMENT OF ORTHOPHOTO QUALITY WITH RESPECT TO THE STRUCTURE OF DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL

2015 ◽  
Vol XL-1-W5 ◽  
pp. 487-492
Author(s):  
M. Modiri ◽  
H. Enayati ◽  
M. Ebrahimikia
Keyword(s):  
Structure Calculation ◽  
The Other ◽  
Nearest Neighbour ◽  
Mean Square ◽  
Pixel Size ◽  
Bilinear Interpolation ◽  
Dem Resolution ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Elevation Model ◽  
Fine Resolution

Orthophoto is an image which is being corrected geometrically so each object has to be situated on the corrected place consequently. Choosing the best DEM structure with respect to the area topographic is the most challenge which has more important role when dealing with rough surfaces displacements in duration of orthophoto procedures. The Lower DEM resolution makes points density lower and makes the procedure faster but cause to decreasing the product precision in compare to choosing the other one. However if a fine resolution DEM cause to very delicate displacement corrections aside of the other benefits but it makes to appear some undesired visualized errors like as elongation error especially in an areas which are hidden with some obstacles and there are lacks of data in an imaging. For preventing of such error in DEM structure calculation and earning the most benefits, we found and execute some solutions. In other word we answered to this question that what DEM resolution is the best for orthophoto production. In the following we have done some tests. First a dense DEM of a topographic area calculated and edited accurately then its density was reduced in some steps gradually. At each stage the root mean square error (RMSE) of interpolated heights of points which were laid in the distance between the corresponding DEMs pixels has been calculated respectively. Two interpolation methods (Nearest neighbour and Bilinear interpolation) have been used in this test. Decreasing the DEMs density or increasing the pixel size made the amounts of errors high and the rate of this changing dependent on the kind of topography directly. So we divided the area into some reasonable topographic classes then calculated our results for each class separately. The result of each strategy compared with each other and presented in both numerical tables and some illustrated images. <br><br> Because of the relation between horizontal precision of orthophotos which are existed in the standard producing instruction and the accuracy of the DEM which are mostly related to its density, the suitable resolution for producing different scale orthophotos at each kind of topographic class have been calculated from mentioned methods consequences and shown as a final result.

scholarly journals A fine-scale digital elevation model of Antarctica derived from ICESat-2

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyi Shen ◽  
Chang-Qing Ke ◽  
Yubin Fan ◽  
Lhakpa Drolma
Keyword(s):  
Ice Sheet ◽  
Fine Scale ◽  
Specific Time ◽  
Scientific Applications ◽  
Laser Altimeter ◽  
Ice Shelves ◽  
Digital Elevation ◽  
Time Stamps ◽  
Stereo Photogrammetry ◽  
Elevation Model

Abstract. Antarctic digital elevation models (DEMs) are essential for human fieldwork, ice topography monitoring and ice mass change estimation. In the past thirty decades, several Antarctic DEMs derived from satellite data have been published. However, these DEMs either have coarse spatial resolutions or vague time stamps, which limit their further scientific applications. In this study, the new-generation satellite laser altimeter Ice, Cloud, And Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is used to generate a fine-scale and specific time-stamped Antarctic DEM for both the ice sheet and ice shelves. Approximately 4.69 × 109 ICESat-2 measurement points from November 2018 to November 2019 are used to estimate surface elevations at resolutions of 250 m, 500 m and 1 km based on a spatiotemporal fitting method, which results in a modal resolution of 250 m for this DEM. Approximately 74 % of Antarctica is observed, and the remaining observation gaps are interpolated using the ordinary kriging method. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Operation IceBridge (OIB) airborne data are used to evaluate the generated Antarctic DEM (hereafter called the ICESat-2 DEM) in individual Antarctic regions and surface types. Overall, a median bias of 0.11 m and a root-mean-square deviation of 8.27 m result from approximately 1.4 × 105 spatiotemporally matched grid cells. The accuracy and uncertainty of the ICESat-2 DEM vary in relation to the surface slope and roughness, and more reliable estimates are found in the flat ice sheet interior. The ICESat-2 DEM is superior to previous DEMs derived from satellite altimeters for both spatial resolution and elevation accuracy and comparable to those derived from stereo-photogrammetry and interferometry. The decimeter-scale accuracy and specific time stamp make the ICESat-2 DEM an essential addition to the existing Antarctic DEM groups, and it can be further used for other scientific applications.

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