For three years, Airbus’ twin high-resolution radar satellites, TerraSar-X and TanDEM-X, imaged the entire land surface of our planet multiple times to create the first ever global 12-meter (m) elevation model. Referred to as WorldDEMTM, this data is ideal for all mapping projects requiring accurate elevation models including orthorectification, floodplain determination, mineral exploration and hydrocarbon development.
WorldDEM April 2016 Product Updates
Sales of the bare earth version of WorldDEM, referred to as WorldDEM DTM, have commenced. And in September 2015, the price for 12-meter WorldDEM DTM dropped significantly to $21.60 per square kilometer. Any area that is ready to order can now be produced in all three WorldDEM formats – see below for technical details on these formats.
During April no new WorldDEM data was released. As we near the completion of WorldDEM production, we expect there will be more months without new elevation data being released. However, you will be the first to know when new data is released in these monthly updates. To date, there is more than 159,190,000 square kilometers (sq km) of WorldDEM data that is available.
WorldDEM Specifications
The key product specifications of Airbus’ WorldDEM are as follows:
- Resolution: 12-m
- Coverage: entire landmass of the Earth, ~150 million square kilometers (sq km)
- Absolute Vertical Accuracy: < 4-m Linear Error 90% (LE90)
- Relative Vertical Accuracy: < 2-m LE90 (slopes ≤ 20%), < 4-m LE90 (slopes > 20%)
- Absolute Horizontal Accuracy: < 10-m Circular Error 90% (CE90)
- Vintage: all data collected within 3 years
- Source: interferometry from synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites TerraSAR-X & TanDEM-X
- Minimum Order: 500 sq km per polygon
- File Format: GeoTIFF
- Projection: geographic WGS84 (EGM2008, vertical datum), meter vertical unit
- Product Line Options:
- WorldDEMcore – unedited digital surface model (DSM), includes spikes, wells and voids
- WorldDEM – a DSM with removal of artifacts and water body flattening
- WorldDEM DTM – artifacts and surface features removed, i.e. a digital terrain model (DTM)
WorldDEM Coverage and Pricing
WorldDEM data has a 500 sq km minimum order size with a 10-km width requirement. Prices for two of the product lines have been set:
- WorldDEMcore – $10.80 per sq km
- WorldDEM – $13.50 per sq km
- WorldDEM DTM – $21.60 per sq km (that’s a 20% savings from the original list price!)
WorldDEM Samples
You can download four 12-m WorldDEM samples here, including one of the WorldDEM DTM product:
- Buraydah, Saudi Arabia – desert with agriculture present; elevations from 576 m to 737 m provided in two formats, WorldDEMcore and WorldDEM
- Mjosa Lake, Norway – hilly terrain with large water bodies; 100 m to 840 m provided in two formats, WorldDEMcore and WorldDEM
- Rapid City, South Dakota, USA – moderate to hilly terrain; elevations from 927 m to 1,765 m provided in two formats, WorldDEM and WorldDEM DTM
- Wagga Wagga, Australia – forest and urban with many water bodies; 137 m to 922 m provided in two formats, WorldDEMcore and WorldDEM
For more information about 12-m WorldDEM data, please send us an email at sales@apollomapping.com or check our website here.
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