Evaluation of Vertical Accuracy of the WorldDEM™ Using the Runway Method
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Department of Geomatics Engineering, Bülent Ecevit University, Zonguldak 67100, Turkey
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Faculty of Geoingeenering, Mine and Geology, Wroclaw University of Technology, Wroclaw 50-370, Poland
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Airbus Defense and Space, Friedrichshafen 88039, Germany
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Department of Geomatics Engineering, Bülent Ecevit University, Zonguldak 67100, Turkey
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editors: Josef Kellndorfer and Prasad S. Thenkabail
Remote Sens. 2016, 8(11), 934; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs8110934
Received: 27 August 2016
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Revised: 4 October 2016
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Accepted: 7 November 2016
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Published: 10 November 2016
Accuracy assessment of a global digital elevation model (DEM) is an important and challenging task primarily because of the difficulties and costs associated with securing a reliable and representative reference dataset. In this article, we report on the vertical accuracy assessment of the WorldDEM™, the latest global DEM using the synthetic aperture radar interferometry (InSAR) method, based on the German TanDEM-X mission data. For reference data we use vertical profiles along the centerline of 47 paved runways located in different areas around the world. Our accuracy statement is based on the analysis of discrepancies between the reference data and the corresponding vertical profiles extracted from the WorldDEM™ dataset. Since the runways are nearly flat and have homogenous surfaces, the observed discrepancies are mainly due to instrument-induced error. Therefore, the derived accuracy statement has a universal character, e.g., it is not biased by other error sources including target- or environment-induced errors. Our main conclusions are that the WorldDEM™ is the most accurate global DEM to date in terms of its vertical accuracy; it appears that the accuracy is spatially independent.
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Keywords:
WorldDEM™; accuracy; runway method; InSAR; TanDEM-X
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
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Externally hosted supplementary file 1
Link: http://gedtf.org/Appendix-A.pdf
Description: Data files used in the project
MDPI and ACS Style
Becek, K.; Koppe, W.; Kutoğlu, Ş.H. Evaluation of Vertical Accuracy of the WorldDEM™ Using the Runway Method. Remote Sens. 2016, 8, 934. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs8110934
AMA Style
Becek K, Koppe W, Kutoğlu ŞH. Evaluation of Vertical Accuracy of the WorldDEM™ Using the Runway Method. Remote Sensing. 2016; 8(11):934. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs8110934
Chicago/Turabian StyleBecek, Kazimierz, Wolfgang Koppe, and Şenol H. Kutoğlu. 2016. "Evaluation of Vertical Accuracy of the WorldDEM™ Using the Runway Method" Remote Sensing 8, no. 11: 934. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs8110934
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