Digital Elevation Models: An Important Source of Data for Geoscientists [Education]

Satellite technology has revolutionized the way we acquire terrestrial surface data. Such remotely sensed terrestrial data have made it possible to generate digital elevation models (DEMs) at multiple spatial and temporal scales by exploiting stereographic, interferometric, radargrammetric, and lidar principles [1]-[10]. Schemes adapted to generate DEMs are hugely successful, and, as such, DEM generation is considered an engineering marvel. In turn, the availability of DEMs to the geoscientific community is a blessing.