Assimilation of GOSAT Methane in the Hemispheric CMAQ; Part I: Design of the Assimilation System

We present a parametric Kalman filter data assimilation system using GOSAT methane observations within the hemispheric CMAQ model. The assimilation system produces forecasts and analyses of concentrations and explicitly computes its evolving error variance while remaining computationally competitive with other data assimilation schemes such as 4-dimensional variational (4D-Var) and ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF). The error variance in this system is advected using the native advection scheme of the CMAQ model and updated at each analysis while the error correlations are kept fixed. We discuss extensions to the CMAQ model to include methane transport and emissions (both anthropogenic and natural) and perform a bias correction for the GOSAT observations. The results using synthetic observations show that the analysis error and analysis increments follow the advective flow while conserving the information content (i.e., total variance). We also demonstrate that the vertical error correlation contributes to the inference of variables down to the surface. In a companion paper, we use this assimilation system to obtain optimal assimilation of GOSAT observations.

Accuracy Assessment of Post-processing Kinematic Georeferencing Based on Real-time Kinematic Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and Structure-from-motion Photogrammetry: Topographic Measurements of a Riverbed in a Small Watershed with a Check Dam

<p><a>To obtain an accurate digital surface model of the small watershed topography of a forested area while reducing time and labor costs, we used a consumer-grade unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a build-in real-time kinematic global navigation satellite system. The applicability of structure-from-motion (SfM) multi-view stereo processing with post-processing kinematic (PPK) correction of the positional coordinate data (the UAV-PPK-SfM method) was tested. Nine verification points were set up in a small (0.5 km²) watershed, based on a check dam in the headwaters of a forest area. The location information of the verification points extracted from the digital surface model acquired by UAV-PPK-SfM and the overall working time were compared with the corresponding location information and working time of a traditional field survey using a total station. The results showed that the vertical error between the total station and each verification point at an altitude of 150 m ranged from 0.006 to 0.181 m. The working time of the UAV-PK-SfM survey was 10 % of that of the total station survey (30 min). The UAV-PPK-SfM workflow proposed in this study shows that wide-area, non-destructive topographic surveying, including fluvial geomorphological mapping, is possible with a vertical error of ±0.2 m in small watersheds (<0.5 km²). This method will be useful for rapid topographic surveying in inaccessible areas during disasters, such as monitoring debris flow at check dam sites, and for efficient topographic mapping of steep valleys in forested areas where the positioning of ground control points is a laborious task.</a></p>

Accuracy Assessment of Post-processing Kinematic Georeferencing Based on Real-time Kinematic Unmanned Aerial Vehicle and Structure-from-motion Photogrammetry: Topographic Measurements of a Riverbed in a Small Watershed with a Check Dam

<p><a>To obtain an accurate digital surface model of the small watershed topography of a forested area while reducing time and labor costs, we used a consumer-grade unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a build-in real-time kinematic global navigation satellite system. The applicability of structure-from-motion (SfM) multi-view stereo processing with post-processing kinematic (PPK) correction of the positional coordinate data (the UAV-PPK-SfM method) was tested. Nine verification points were set up in a small (0.5 km²) watershed, based on a check dam in the headwaters of a forest area. The location information of the verification points extracted from the digital surface model acquired by UAV-PPK-SfM and the overall working time were compared with the corresponding location information and working time of a traditional field survey using a total station. The results showed that the vertical error between the total station and each verification point at an altitude of 150 m ranged from 0.006 to 0.181 m. The working time of the UAV-PK-SfM survey was 10 % of that of the total station survey (30 min). The UAV-PPK-SfM workflow proposed in this study shows that wide-area, non-destructive topographic surveying, including fluvial geomorphological mapping, is possible with a vertical error of ±0.2 m in small watersheds (<0.5 km²). This method will be useful for rapid topographic surveying in inaccessible areas during disasters, such as monitoring debris flow at check dam sites, and for efficient topographic mapping of steep valleys in forested areas where the positioning of ground control points is a laborious task.</a></p>

Applicability of Data Acquisition Characteristics to the Identification of Local Artefacts in Global Digital Elevation Models: Comparison of the Copernicus and TanDEM-X DEMs

Several global digital elevation models (DEMs) have been developed in the last two decades. The most recent addition to the family of global DEMs is the TanDEM-X DEM. The original version of the TanDEM-X DEM is, however, a nonedited product (i.e., it contains local artefacts such as voids, spikes, and holes). Therefore, subsequent identification of local artefacts and their editing is necessary. In this study, we evaluated the accuracy of the original TanDEM-X DEM and its improved edited version, the Copernicus DEM, in three major European mountain ranges (the Alps, the Carpathians, and the Pyrenees) using a digital surface model derived from airborne laser scanning data as a reference. In addition, to evaluate the applicability of data acquisition characteristics (coverage map, consistency mask, and height error map) and terrain characteristics (slope, aspect, altitude) to the localization of problematic sites, we modeled their associations with the TanDEM-X DEM error. We revealed local occurrences of large errors in the TanDEM-X DEM that were typically found on steep ridges or in canyons, which were largely corrected in the Copernicus DEM. The editing procedure used for the Copernicus DEM construction was evidently successful as the RMSE for the TanDEM-X and Copernicus DEMs at the 90 m resolution improved from 45 m to 12 m, from 16 m to 6 m, and from 24 m to 9 m for the Alps, the Pyrenees, and the Carpathians, respectively. The Copernicus DEM at the 30 m resolution performed similarly well. The boosted regression trees showed that acquisition characteristics provided as auxiliary data are useful for locating problematic sites and explained 28–50% of deviance of the absolute vertical error. The absolute vertical error was strongly related to the height error map. Finally, up to 26% of cells in the Copernicus DEM were filled using DEMs from different time periods and, hence, users performing multitemporal analysis or requiring data from a specific time period in the mountain environment should be wary when using TanDEM-X and its derivations. We suggest that when filling problematic sites using alternative DEMs, more attention should be paid to the period of their collection to minimize the temporal displacement in the final products.

Probabilistic Modelling for Incorporating Uncertainty in Least Cost Path Results: a Postdictive Roman Road Case Study

The movement of past peoples in the landscape has been studied extensively through the use of least cost path (LCP) analysis. Although methodological issues of applying LCP analysis in archaeology have frequently been discussed, the effect of DEM error on LCP results has not been fully assessed. Due to this, the reliability of the LCP result is undermined, jeopardising how well the method can confidently be used to model past movement. To strengthen the reliability of LCP results, this research proposes the use of Monte Carlo simulation as a method for incorporating and propagating the effects of error on LCP results. Focusing on vertical error, random error fields are calculated and incorporated into the documented and reproducible LCP modelling process using the R package leastcostpath. By graphically communicating the impact of vertical error using probabilistic LCPs, uncertainty in the results can be taken into account when interpreting LCPs. The method is applied to a Roman road case study, finding that the incorporation of vertical error results in the identification of multiple ‘least cost’ routes within the landscape. Furthermore, the deviation between the roman road and the probabilistic LCP suggests that the location of the roman road was influenced by additional factors other than minimising energy expenditure. This research finds that the probabilistic LCP derived using Monte Carlo simulation is a viable method for the graphical communication of the uncertainty caused by error within the input data used within the LCP modelling process. Therefore, it is recommended that probabilistic LCPs become the default approach when modelling movement using input data that contains errors.

UAV LIDAR DATA PROCESSING: INFLUENCE OF FLIGHT HEIGHT ON GEOMETRIC ACCURACY, RADIOMETRIC INFORMATION AND PARAMETER SETTING IN DTM PRODUCTION

This article presents the results of studies related to the impact of flight altitude of UAV equipped with lidar data on geometric and radiometric information. Experiments were conducted in two test areas by performing UAV test flight missions at different UAV Laser Scanner (ULS) altitudes. The results were compared to other parameters describing the point clouds in order to answer the questions related to their genesis and evaluation of a product from such high-resolution datasets. The accuracy of the elevation models was assessed on the basis of control points measured with GNSS RTK and Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS). Accuracy was assessed by statistical parameters and differential digital elevation models. The second issue raised in this work is the study of the decrease in radiometric value with an increase in platform elevation. The results of this work clearly indicate the very low impact of platform altitude on DTM vertical error. In presented works the suggestion about DTM resolution and interpolation method are provided. Moreover, the influence of flight height on the reflectance and intensity is notable, however, its impact is related more with the details and resolution of the raster than radiometric values considering the possibility of radiometric calibration of the intensity.

Probabilistic Modelling using Monte Carlo Simulation for Incorporating Uncertainty in Least Cost Path Results: a Postdictive Roman Road Case Study

The movement of past peoples in the landscape has been studied extensively through the use of Least Cost Path (LCP) analysis. Although methodological issues of applying LCP analysis in Archaeology have frequently been discussed, the effect of vertical error in the DEM on LCP results has not been fully assessed. This research proposes the use of Monte Carlo simulation as a method for incorporating and propagating the effects of vertical error on LCP results. Random error fields representing the vertical error of the DEM are calculated and incorporated into the documented and reproducible LCP modelling process using the R package leastcostpath. By incorporating vertical error into the LCP modelling process the accuracy of the LCP results can be understood probabilistically, with the likelihood of obtaining an LCP result quantified. Furthermore, the effect of incorporating vertical error on the LCP results can be expressed through the use of probabilistic LCPs, allowing for a graphical representation of the uncertainty in the LCP calculation, as well as identifying the most probable location of the ‘true’ least cost path. The method of understanding LCP results probabilistically is applied to a Roman road case study, finding that the accuracy of the LCP from south-to-north without incorporating vertical error is not representative of the LCP population with vertical error accounted for. In contrast, the accuracy of the LCP without incorporating vertical error from north-to-south is representative of the LCP population. The use of probabilistic LCPs suggests that the location of the Roman road in the southern section of the study area was selected to minimise the time taken to move up and down slope, irrespective of the direction of movement. However, the identification of two corridors of similar likelihood of containing the ‘true’ location of the LCP in the northern section when modelling movement south-to-north suggests that the input data and parameters used in the LCP analysis are unable to discern which corridor contains the most probable ‘true’ location of the LCP. Therefore, this research suggests that different input data and parameters are used and tested.

An Online SBAS Service to Improve Drone Navigation Performance in High-Elevation Masked Areas

Owing to the high demand for drone operation in high-elevation masked areas, it is necessary to develop a more effective method of transmitting and applying Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) messages for drones. This study proposes an onboard module including correction conversion, integrity information calculation, and fast initialization requests, which can enable the application of an online SBAS to drone operation. The proposed system not only improves the position accuracy with timely and proper protection levels in an open sky, but also reduces the initialization time from 70–100 s to 1 s, enabling a drone of short endurance to perform its mission successfully. In SBAS signal-denied cases, the position accuracy was improved by 40% and the uncorrected 13.4 m vertical error was reduced to 5.6 m by applying an SBAS message delivered online. The protection levels calculated with the accurate position regardless of the current location could denote the thrust level and availability of the navigation solution. The proposed system can practically solve the drawbacks of the current SBAS, considering the characteristics of the low-cost receivers on the market. Our proposed system is expected to be a useful and practical solution to integrate drones into the airspace in the near future.

The mean point of vergence is biased under projection

The point of interest in three-dimensional space in eye tracking is often computed based on intersecting the lines of sight with geometry, or finding the point closest to the two lines of sight. We first start by theoretical analysis with synthetic simulations. We show that the mean point of vergence is generally biased for centrally symmetric errors and that the bias depends on the horizontal vs. vertical error distribution of the tracked eye positions. Our analysis continues with an evaluation on real experimental data. The error distributions seem to be different among individuals but they generally leads to the same bias towards the observer. And it tends to be larger with an increased viewing distance. We also provided a recipe to minimize the bias, which applies to general computations of eye ray intersection. These findings not only have implications for choosing the calibration method in eye tracking experiments and interpreting the observed eye movements data; but also suggest to us that we shall consider the mathematical models of calibration as part of the experiment.

Accuracy of the TanDEM-X Digital Elevation Model for Coastal Geomorphological Studies in Patagonia (South Argentina)

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the usefulness of TanDEM-X DEM (digital elevation model) for remote geomorphological analysis in Argentinian Patagonia. The use of a DEM with appropriate resolution and coverage might be very helpful and advantageous in vast and hardly accessible areas. TanDEM-X DEM could represent an unprecedented opportunity to identify geomorphological features because of its global coverage, ~12 m spatial resolution and low cost. In this regard, we assessed the vertical accuracy of TanDEM-X DEM through comparison with Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) datasets collected in two areas of the Patagonia Region during a field survey; we then investigated different types of landforms by creating the elevation profiles. The comparison indicates a high agreement between TanDEM-X DEM and reference values, with a mean absolute vertical error (MAE) of 0.53 m, and a root mean squared error (RMSE) of 0.73 m. The results of landform analysis show an appropriate spatial resolution to detect different features such as beach ridges, which are impossible to delineate with other lower resolution DEMs. For these reasons, TanDEM-X DEM constitutes a useful tool for detailed geomorphological analyses in Argentinian Patagonia.