pp. 3325-3336
S&M3394 Research Paper of Special Issue https://doi.org/10.18494/SAM4379 Published in advance: August 4, 2023 Published: September 29, 2023 Accuracy Assessment of Google Earth and Open-source Digital Elevation Models in China Using GPS on Field Control Points [PDF] Xuwan Zhang, Lei You, Mingjun Deng, Yuan Kou, and Yin Yang (Received March 9, 2023; Accepted July 4, 2023) Keywords: AW3D30, Google Earth, horizontal accuracy, TanDEM-X, vertical accuracy
Google Earth (GE) provides accurate and reliable global high-resolution images and can obtain the coordinates of any point on Earth’s surface. A digital elevation model (DEM) is a dataset that quantitatively reflects the elevation of Earth’s surface. Although GE and DEMs can be used to obtain the coordinates of any position on Earth, their open-access data can be affected by various factors, thereby inducing undesirable precision variability. Therefore, it is essential to estimate the accuracy of GE and open-source DEMs. In this study, 325 high-precision GPS survey points in 16 regions in China were used to evaluate the horizontal and vertical accuracies of GE and the elevation accuracy of two open-source DEMs. GE had a high horizontal accuracy with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 2.495 m and an error range of 1.090–4.844 m. The elevation accuracy of GE (RMSE = 2.610 m) was lower than those of TanDEM-X (RMSE = 2.055 m) and AW3D30 (RMSE = 2.373 m) DEMs. At the same time, the impacts of slope, aspect, and feature type on the accuracy of these data are studied and analyzed. The results show that the accuracy of control data are closely related to the characteristics of the study area. Overall, these findings indicate that for future studies in China, GE can be used to acquire horizontal data, whereas TanDEM-X and AW3D30 are more suitable for elevation data that have higher precision and provide a reference for relevant research on geographic information.
Corresponding author: Mingjun DengThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Cite this article Xuwan Zhang, Lei You, Mingjun Deng, Yuan Kou, and Yin Yang, Accuracy Assessment of Google Earth and Open-source Digital Elevation Models in China Using GPS on Field Control Points, Sens. Mater., Vol. 35, No. 9, 2023, p. 3325-3336. |