Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment
Snow conditions in the Northern Hemisphere are rapidly changing, and information on snow depth is critical for decision-making and other societal needs. Uncrewed or unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) can offer data resolutions of a few centimeters at a catchment-scale and thus provide a low-cost solut...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:4a7faf59747a4799a03726cb224e0814 2023-11-12T04:26:56+01:00 Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment A. Rauhala L.-J. Meriö A. Kuzmin P. Korpelainen P. Ala-aho T. Kumpula B. Kløve H. Marttila 2023-10-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 https://doaj.org/article/4a7faf59747a4799a03726cb224e0814 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4343/2023/tc-17-4343-2023.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/4a7faf59747a4799a03726cb224e0814 The Cryosphere, Vol 17, Pp 4343-4362 (2023) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 2023-10-22T00:42:02Z Snow conditions in the Northern Hemisphere are rapidly changing, and information on snow depth is critical for decision-making and other societal needs. Uncrewed or unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) can offer data resolutions of a few centimeters at a catchment-scale and thus provide a low-cost solution to bridge the gap between sparse manual probing and low-resolution satellite data. In this study, we present a series of snow depth measurements using different UAS platforms throughout the winter in the Finnish subarctic site Pallas, which has a heterogeneous landscape. We discuss the different platforms, the methods utilized, difficulties working in the harsh northern environment, and the UAS snow depth results compared to in situ measurements. Generally, all UASs produced spatially representative estimates of snow depth in open areas after reliable georeferencing by using the structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetry technique. However, significant differences were observed in the accuracies produced by the different UASs compared to manual snow depth measurements, with overall root mean square errors (RMSEs) varying between 13.0 and 25.2 cm, depending on the UAS. Additionally, a reduction in accuracy was observed when moving from an open mire area to forest-covered areas. We demonstrate the potential of low-cost UASs to efficiently map snow surface conditions, and we give some recommendations on UAS platform selection and operation in a harsh subarctic environment with variable canopy cover. Article in Journal/Newspaper Subarctic The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Cryosphere 17 10 4343 4362 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
spellingShingle |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 A. Rauhala L.-J. Meriö A. Kuzmin P. Korpelainen P. Ala-aho T. Kumpula B. Kløve H. Marttila Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
Snow conditions in the Northern Hemisphere are rapidly changing, and information on snow depth is critical for decision-making and other societal needs. Uncrewed or unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) can offer data resolutions of a few centimeters at a catchment-scale and thus provide a low-cost solution to bridge the gap between sparse manual probing and low-resolution satellite data. In this study, we present a series of snow depth measurements using different UAS platforms throughout the winter in the Finnish subarctic site Pallas, which has a heterogeneous landscape. We discuss the different platforms, the methods utilized, difficulties working in the harsh northern environment, and the UAS snow depth results compared to in situ measurements. Generally, all UASs produced spatially representative estimates of snow depth in open areas after reliable georeferencing by using the structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetry technique. However, significant differences were observed in the accuracies produced by the different UASs compared to manual snow depth measurements, with overall root mean square errors (RMSEs) varying between 13.0 and 25.2 cm, depending on the UAS. Additionally, a reduction in accuracy was observed when moving from an open mire area to forest-covered areas. We demonstrate the potential of low-cost UASs to efficiently map snow surface conditions, and we give some recommendations on UAS platform selection and operation in a harsh subarctic environment with variable canopy cover. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
A. Rauhala L.-J. Meriö A. Kuzmin P. Korpelainen P. Ala-aho T. Kumpula B. Kløve H. Marttila |
author_facet |
A. Rauhala L.-J. Meriö A. Kuzmin P. Korpelainen P. Ala-aho T. Kumpula B. Kløve H. Marttila |
author_sort |
A. Rauhala |
title |
Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
title_short |
Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
title_full |
Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
title_fullStr |
Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
title_full_unstemmed |
Measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using UASs – Part 1: Measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
title_sort |
measuring the spatiotemporal variability in snow depth in subarctic environments using uass – part 1: measurements, processing, and accuracy assessment |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 https://doaj.org/article/4a7faf59747a4799a03726cb224e0814 |
genre |
Subarctic The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
Subarctic The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 17, Pp 4343-4362 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/17/4343/2023/tc-17-4343-2023.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/4a7faf59747a4799a03726cb224e0814 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-17-4343-2023 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
17 |
container_issue |
10 |
container_start_page |
4343 |
op_container_end_page |
4362 |
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1782340735491637248 |