Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry
Arctic tundra environments are characterized by a spatially heterogeneous end-of-winter snow depth resulting from wind transport and deposition. Traditional methods for measuring snow depth do not accurately capture such heterogeneity at catchment scales. In this study we address the use of high-res...
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Canadian Science Publishing
2021
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:5b47097f65f8459ca8f2e8936da1ae23 2023-05-15T14:23:43+02:00 Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry Branden Walker Evan J. Wilcox Philip Marsh 2021-09-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 https://doaj.org/article/5b47097f65f8459ca8f2e8936da1ae23 EN FR eng fre Canadian Science Publishing https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2020-0006 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/5b47097f65f8459ca8f2e8936da1ae23 Arctic Science, Vol 7, Iss 3, Pp 588-604 (2021) unmanned aerial system (uas) snow depth structure-from-motion (sfm) tundra high resolution Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 article 2021 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 2022-12-31T07:44:49Z Arctic tundra environments are characterized by a spatially heterogeneous end-of-winter snow depth resulting from wind transport and deposition. Traditional methods for measuring snow depth do not accurately capture such heterogeneity at catchment scales. In this study we address the use of high-resolution, spatially distributed, snow depth data for Arctic environments through the application of unmanned aerial systems (UASs). We apply Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry to images collected using a fixed-wing UAS to produce a 1 m resolution snow depth product across seven areas of interest (AOIs) within the Trail Valley Creek Research Watershed, Northwest Territories, Canada. We evaluated these snow depth products with in situ measurements of both the snow surface elevation (n = 8434) and snow depth (n = 7191). When all AOIs were averaged, the RMSE of the snow surface elevation models was 0.16 m (<0.01 m bias), similar to the snow depth product (UASSD) RMSE of 0.15 m (+0.04 m bias). The distribution of snow depth between in situ measurements and UASSD was similar along the transects where in situ snow depth was collected, although similarity varies by AOI. Finally, we provide a discussion of factors that may influence the accuracy of the snow depth products including vegetation, environmental conditions, and study design. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Arctic Northwest Territories Tundra Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Northwest Territories Canada Valley Creek ENVELOPE(-138.324,-138.324,63.326,63.326) Trail Valley Creek ENVELOPE(-133.415,-133.415,68.772,68.772) Arctic Science 7 3 588 604 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English French |
topic |
unmanned aerial system (uas) snow depth structure-from-motion (sfm) tundra high resolution Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 |
spellingShingle |
unmanned aerial system (uas) snow depth structure-from-motion (sfm) tundra high resolution Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 Branden Walker Evan J. Wilcox Philip Marsh Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
topic_facet |
unmanned aerial system (uas) snow depth structure-from-motion (sfm) tundra high resolution Environmental sciences GE1-350 Environmental engineering TA170-171 |
description |
Arctic tundra environments are characterized by a spatially heterogeneous end-of-winter snow depth resulting from wind transport and deposition. Traditional methods for measuring snow depth do not accurately capture such heterogeneity at catchment scales. In this study we address the use of high-resolution, spatially distributed, snow depth data for Arctic environments through the application of unmanned aerial systems (UASs). We apply Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry to images collected using a fixed-wing UAS to produce a 1 m resolution snow depth product across seven areas of interest (AOIs) within the Trail Valley Creek Research Watershed, Northwest Territories, Canada. We evaluated these snow depth products with in situ measurements of both the snow surface elevation (n = 8434) and snow depth (n = 7191). When all AOIs were averaged, the RMSE of the snow surface elevation models was 0.16 m (<0.01 m bias), similar to the snow depth product (UASSD) RMSE of 0.15 m (+0.04 m bias). The distribution of snow depth between in situ measurements and UASSD was similar along the transects where in situ snow depth was collected, although similarity varies by AOI. Finally, we provide a discussion of factors that may influence the accuracy of the snow depth products including vegetation, environmental conditions, and study design. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Branden Walker Evan J. Wilcox Philip Marsh |
author_facet |
Branden Walker Evan J. Wilcox Philip Marsh |
author_sort |
Branden Walker |
title |
Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
title_short |
Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
title_full |
Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
title_fullStr |
Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
title_full_unstemmed |
Accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using Structure-from-Motion photogrammetry |
title_sort |
accuracy assessment of late winter snow depth mapping for tundra environments using structure-from-motion photogrammetry |
publisher |
Canadian Science Publishing |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 https://doaj.org/article/5b47097f65f8459ca8f2e8936da1ae23 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-138.324,-138.324,63.326,63.326) ENVELOPE(-133.415,-133.415,68.772,68.772) |
geographic |
Arctic Northwest Territories Canada Valley Creek Trail Valley Creek |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Northwest Territories Canada Valley Creek Trail Valley Creek |
genre |
Arctic Arctic Northwest Territories Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Arctic Northwest Territories Tundra |
op_source |
Arctic Science, Vol 7, Iss 3, Pp 588-604 (2021) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 https://doaj.org/toc/2368-7460 doi:10.1139/as-2020-0006 2368-7460 https://doaj.org/article/5b47097f65f8459ca8f2e8936da1ae23 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2020-0006 |
container_title |
Arctic Science |
container_volume |
7 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
588 |
op_container_end_page |
604 |
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1766296195418816512 |