Andy Turner's Geomorphometrics Research Interests

Geomorphometrics are measures of the shape of planetary physical horizons and their change over time. They are metrics that are useful in analysing landforms and modelling how these might change over time. Fundamentally each metric is geographically variable. Two examples metrics: slope which is the gradient, and aspect is the way in which a slope is facing (i.e. the angle relative to some plane).

To help study erosion and land degradation I started to develop Java software for handling raster data and generating geomorphometrics in around 2003. In 2010 some of this software was used to attempt to classify different building roof types in an urban area dataset provided by Ordnance Survey as part of the UKBuildingGeometry project. Recently I have collaborating with glaciology experts to explore the use of geomorphometrics to help study icey environments.

I produced geomorphometrics using elevation data for Mars thinking that it might help identify landscape processes and landforms, but I have sadly lost my way with that. In 2004 I began to draft an article about Developing and Using Geomorphometrics, but it remains a sketchy draft. More recently I have developed a document that describes the different types of metrics that some software I developed produces.

References and Reading

• Albani M., Klinkenberg B., Andison D.W., Kimmins J.P. (2004) The choice of window size in approximating topographic surfaces from Digital Elevation Models. International Journal of Geographical Informaiton Science Vol. 18, No. 6, September, pages 577-593. http://doi.org/10.1080/13658810410001701987 - "Presents a general analytical method to estimate the propagation of elevation errors to the principal derived topographic variables (slope, aspect and surface curvatures) as calculated with the quadratic approximation method with variable evaluation window size of Wood (1996). It expands the work of Florinsky (1998b) to incorporate evaluation windows of sizes larger than 3x3, and considers spatially correlated elevation error." (Taken form the conclusion)
• Wood, J. D. (1996) The geomorphological characterisation of Digital Elevation Models. PhD thesis, University of Leicester. (Bibliography)
• Aguilar J.A.P, Perez J.M.R., GIS (Idrisi) Analysis of Digital Elevation Models for the Extraction of Drainage Basin Geomorphometric Properties.
• Donker, N. H. W., 1992: Automatic extraction of catchment hydrologic properties from digital elevation data. ITC Journal 3, 257-265.
• Gardner, T. W., Connors Sasowshy, K. and Day, R. L., 1990: Automated extraction of geomorphometric properties from digital elevation data. Z. Geomorph. N. F. 80, 57-68.
• Garg, P.K. and Harrison, A. R., 1990: Quantitative representation of land-surface morphology from digital elevation models. In: Proceedings of the 4th international symposium on spatial data handling. Vol. 1, Zurich, 273-282.
• Evans I.S. (1972) General Geomorphometry, derivatives of altitude, and descriptive statistics. In Chorley R.J. (ed.) Spatial Analysis in Geomorphology. Mathuen & co ltd 17-92.
• Frauenfelder R., Schneider B. (2002) Geomorphometric modelling of rock Glaciers, an extended abstract
• Kokkas N.A., Miliaresis G.Ch. (2004) Geomorphometric mapping of Grand Canyon from the 1-degree USGS DEMs
• Korup O. (2003) Geomorphometric Characteristics of New Zealand landslide dams. Engineering Geology 73.1 May 2004 pp13-35
• Korup O. (2004) Geomorphic Hazard Assessmen of landslide dams in South Westland New Zealand: Fundamental Problems and approaches. Geomorphology 66.2 March 2005 pp167-188
• Horsch B. (2003) Modelling the spatial distribution of montane and subalpine forests in the central alps using digital elevation models. Ecological modelling 168.3 October 2003 pp267-282.
• Mark D. (1975) Geomorphometric parameters, a review and evaluation. Geographiska Annaler 57A 1461-1467.
• Pike R. (1995) Geomorphometry-process, practice and prospects. Zeitschrift. Geomorphologie N.F. Suppl. Bd 101:221-238
• Pike R.J. (1998) Web Resources Compiled For Terrain Modeling (https://web.archive.org/web/20090305134249/http://www.agu.org/eos_elec/97260e.html).
• Pike R.J. (2002) A Bibliography of Terrain Modelling (Geomorphometry), the Quantitative Representation of Topography Supplement 4.0 USGS Open File Report 02-465. (http://geopubs.wr.usgs.gov/open-file/of02-465/of02-465.pdf)
• Strahler, A. N., 1954: Quantitative geomorphology of erosional landscapes. 19th Intern. Geol. Cong., Algiers, 341-354.
• Fortey, R. (2004) The Earth: An Intimate History. Knopf/Random House. ISBN: 0375406263

Acknowledgements and thanks

Thank you Steve Carver, Brian Irvine, Jianhui Jin, Sadhvi Selveraj, Scott Watson, Owen King, Mark Smith, Duncan Quincey and Jonathan Carrivick.