TY - JOUR
T1 - Perspectives on open access high resolution digital elevation models to produce global flood hazard layers
AU - Sampson, Christopher C.
AU - Smith, Andrew M.
AU - Bates, Paul D.
AU - Neal, Jeffrey C.
AU - Trigg, Mark A.
PY - 2016/1/5
Y1 - 2016/1/5
N2 - Global flood hazard models have recently become a reality thanks to the release of open access global digital elevation models, the development of simplified and highly efficient flow algorithms, and the steady increase in computational power. In this commentary we argue that although the availability of open access global terrain data has been critical in enabling the development of such models, the relatively poor resolution and precision of these data now limit significantly our ability to estimate flood inundation and risk for the majority of the planet’s surface. The difficulty of deriving an accurate “bare-earth” terrain model due to the interaction of vegetation and urban structures with the satellite-based remote sensors means that global terrain data are often poorest in the areas where people, property (and thus vulnerability) are most concentrated. Furthermore, the current generation of open access global terrain models are over a decade old and many large floodplains, particularly those in developing countries, have undergone significant change in this time. There is therefore a pressing need for a newgeneration of high resolution and high vertical precision open access global digital elevation models to allow significantly improved global flood hazard models to be developed.
AB - Global flood hazard models have recently become a reality thanks to the release of open access global digital elevation models, the development of simplified and highly efficient flow algorithms, and the steady increase in computational power. In this commentary we argue that although the availability of open access global terrain data has been critical in enabling the development of such models, the relatively poor resolution and precision of these data now limit significantly our ability to estimate flood inundation and risk for the majority of the planet’s surface. The difficulty of deriving an accurate “bare-earth” terrain model due to the interaction of vegetation and urban structures with the satellite-based remote sensors means that global terrain data are often poorest in the areas where people, property (and thus vulnerability) are most concentrated. Furthermore, the current generation of open access global terrain models are over a decade old and many large floodplains, particularly those in developing countries, have undergone significant change in this time. There is therefore a pressing need for a newgeneration of high resolution and high vertical precision open access global digital elevation models to allow significantly improved global flood hazard models to be developed.
KW - DEM
KW - Global flood modeling
KW - Hazard modeling
KW - Hydraulic modeling
KW - Remote sensing of environment
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85020887811&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/feart.2015.00085
DO - 10.3389/feart.2015.00085
M3 - Article (Academic Journal)
AN - SCOPUS:85020887811
SN - 2296-6463
VL - 3
JO - Frontiers in Earth Science
JF - Frontiers in Earth Science
IS - 85
M1 - 00085
ER -