Bumps in river profiles
- The analysis of longitudinal river profiles is an important tool for studying landscape evolution. However, characterizing river profiles based on digital elevation models (DEMs) suffers from errors and artifacts that particularly prevail along valley bottoms. The aim of this study is to characterize uncertainties that arise from the analysis of river profiles derived from different, near-globally available DEMs. We devised new algorithms quantile carving and the CRS algorithm - that rely on quantile regression to enable hydrological correction and the uncertainty quantification of river profiles. We find that globally available DEMs commonly overestimate river elevations in steep topography. The distributions of elevation errors become increasingly wider and right skewed if adjacent hillslope gradients are steep. Our analysis indicates that the AW3D DEM has the highest precision and lowest bias for the analysis of river profiles in mountainous topography. The new 12m resolution TanDEM-X DEM has a very low precision, most likely dueThe analysis of longitudinal river profiles is an important tool for studying landscape evolution. However, characterizing river profiles based on digital elevation models (DEMs) suffers from errors and artifacts that particularly prevail along valley bottoms. The aim of this study is to characterize uncertainties that arise from the analysis of river profiles derived from different, near-globally available DEMs. We devised new algorithms quantile carving and the CRS algorithm - that rely on quantile regression to enable hydrological correction and the uncertainty quantification of river profiles. We find that globally available DEMs commonly overestimate river elevations in steep topography. The distributions of elevation errors become increasingly wider and right skewed if adjacent hillslope gradients are steep. Our analysis indicates that the AW3D DEM has the highest precision and lowest bias for the analysis of river profiles in mountainous topography. The new 12m resolution TanDEM-X DEM has a very low precision, most likely due to the combined effect of steep valley walls and the presence of water surfaces in valley bottoms. Compared to the conventional approaches of carving and filling, we find that our new approach is able to reduce the elevation bias and errors in longitudinal river profiles.…
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| Author details: | Wolfgang SchwanghartORCiDGND, Dirk Scherler |
|---|---|
| URN: | urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-419077 |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.25932/publishup-41907 |
| ISSN: | 1866-8372 |
| Title of parent work (English): | Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe |
| Subtitle (English): | uncertainty assessment and smoothing using quantile regression techniques |
| Publication series (Volume number): | Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe (624) |
| Publication type: | Postprint |
| Language: | English |
| Date of first publication: | 2019/02/19 |
| Publication year: | 2017 |
| Publishing institution: | Universität Potsdam |
| Release date: | 2019/02/19 |
| Tag: | DEM uncertainty; SRTM; digital elevation model; drainage basins; error; geomorphometry; resolution; terrain; topography; validation |
| Issue: | 624 |
| Number of pages: | 19 |
| Source: | Earth Surface Dynamics 5 (2017), pp. 821–839 DOI 10.5194/esurf-5-821-2017 |
| Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät |
| DDC classification: | 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 55 Geowissenschaften, Geologie / 550 Geowissenschaften |
| Peer review: | Referiert |
| Publishing method: | Open Access |
| Grantor: | Copernicus |
| License (German): |  CC-BY - Namensnennung 4.0 International |
