Review of Spatial Interpolation Methods for Environmental Data

Australian Ocean Data Network provides a review summarizing 51 comparative studies on spatial interpolation methods for environmental data. The review compares the performance of 62 methods and sub-methods, quantifies impacts using data from 77 cases, and classifies 26 methods based on their features. It includes a decision tree for method selection and a list of software packages, with a focus on marine environmental science applications.

Use Cases

• Selecting an appropriate spatial interpolation method based on data availability and nature, as described in the decision tree.
• Comparing the performance of non-geostatistical, geostatistical, and combined interpolation methods based on summarized comparative studies.
• Quantifying the impact of factors like sample density and data variation on interpolation estimates using the 77 case studies.
• Understanding relationships and similarities among 26 classified spatial interpolators through cluster analysis.

Strengths

• Summarizes findings from 51 comparative studies on interpolation method performance.
• Compares the performance of 62 specific methods and sub-methods.
• Quantifies impacts of factors like sample design using data from 77 cases.
• Provides a decision tree for selecting from 26 classified methods.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic or source bias inherent to data_gov_au.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network via data_gov_au

Collection Method

Literature review and meta-analysis of existing comparative studies.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 16:44:16.449266; freshness should be verified.