This
book is the first attempt to synthesize knowledge on theory, methods, and
applications of digital terrain analysis in the context of multiscale
problems of soil science and geology. The content of the book
is based on long-standing,
interdisciplinary research of the author.
The book is divided into three
parts. Part I represents main concepts, principles, and
methods of digital terrain modeling. In Chapter 1, there is a brief historical overview of the
progress of geomorphometry and digital terrain analysis in the context of soil and geological studies. Chapter 2 discusses the basic notions of digital
terrain modeling: the concept of the topographic surface; five main groups
of morphometric variables (local, non-local, solar, and combined
attributes, and structural lines); and key landform classifications.
Chapter 3 concerns techniques to produce digital elevation models (DEMs),
main types of DEM grids, issues of DEM resolution including the sampling
theorem and its sequences, as well as interpolation approaches. Chapter 4
deals with calculation of morphometric variables on plane and spheroidal
regular grids. Chapter 5 investigates the problem of errors and accuracy of
digital terrain models (DTMs). Chapter 6 considers DTM decomposition,
denoising, and generalization. Chapter 7 examines peculiarities of DTM
visualization.
Part II
discusses various aspects of the use of
digital terrain analysis in soil science. Chapter 8 probes into the main regularities in the influence of topography
on spatial distribution of soil properties. Chapter 9 concerns determination of the adequate grid
spacing for DTM-based soil studies. Chapter 10 looks at predictive soil
mapping, a growing branch of soil science. Chapter 11 presents two case
studies on DTM-based analysis of relationships
between topography and soil.
Part III looks at applications of digital terrain modeling
in geology. Chapter 12 probes into applications of data on curvatures of
the land and stratigraphic surfaces in research of folds and folding
processes. Chapter 13 concerns revealing and
classification of topographically expressed lineaments and faults. Chapter 14 looks at relationships between zones
of flow accumulation and natural phenomena a priori associated with
fault intersections. Chapter 15 examines a hypothesis on tectonically and topographically expressed,
global helical structures using spheroidal digital terrain modeling of the
Earth, Mars, Venus, and the Moon.
Chapter 16 concludes the book summarizing its main themes. Appendix A, written
by Peter Shary, presents a mathematical proof for the formulae used in this
book. Appendix
B briefly describes the software LandLord intended for digital terrain analysis.
The book is addressed to
geomorphometrists, soil scientists, geologists, geoscientists,
geomorphologists, geographers, and GIS scientists (at scholar, lecturer,
and postgraduate student levels, with mathematical skills). This book is
also intended for the GIS professionals in industry and research
laboratories focusing on geoscientific and soil research.
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