Antarctic Digital Elevation Model in Two Projections

A 1996 beta-release digital elevation model (DEM) of Antarctica, provided by the CEOS_EXTRA organization. The dataset contains elevation data in two coordinate systems: geographic (lat/lon) with 30 arc-second spacing and polar stereographic (meters). It is distributed as 16-bit raster image files, each accompanied by five ancillary files for georeferencing and metadata.

Use Cases

• Model ice flow and thickness by analyzing elevation gradients from the DEM raster values.
• Create topographic maps of Antarctica by processing the georeferenced raster data in the polar stereographic projection.
• Study historical Antarctic surface elevation changes by comparing this 1996 DEM with more recent datasets.
• Perform terrain analysis for logistical planning by extracting slope and aspect from the 30 arc-second resolution elevation grid.

Strengths

• High spatial resolution with 30 arc-second (approximately 1 km) grid spacing.
• Complete coverage of the Antarctic continent from 60S to 90S latitude.
• Data provided in two standard projections (geographic and polar stereographic) for different analytical needs.

Limitations

• Data is a beta release from 1996, potentially containing unaddressed anomalies and lacking modern updates.
• Specific row and column counts for the full dataset are not aggregated, complicating total size estimation.
• The technical description notes it is referenced to the WGS84 ellipsoid, which may require datum transformations for integration with some modern datasets.

Provenance

Source

CEOS_EXTRA organization, distributed via NASA Earthdata.

Collection Method

Derived from remote sensing data; specific source instrumentation is not detailed in the provided description.

Time Range

Snapshot circa 1996; the dataset represents a single temporal point.

Freshness

Last updated on 1996-07-17.

Geography

Antarctica, covering the continent from 60 degrees South to 90 degrees South latitude.