U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation & Science (EROS) Center
2011
GMTED2010
raster digital data
The Global Multi-resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010 (GMTED2010) provides a new level of detail in global topographic data. Previously, the best available global DEM was GTOPO30 with a horizontal grid spacing of 30 arc-seconds. The GMTED2010 product suite contains seven new raster elevation products for each of the 30-, 15-, and 7.5-arc-second spatial resolutions and incorporates the current best available global elevation data. The new elevation products have been produced using the following aggregation methods: minimum elevation, maximum elevation, mean elevation, median elevation, standard deviation of elevation, systematic subsample, and breakline emphasis. Metadata have also been produced to identify the source and attributes of all the input elevation data used to derive the output products. Many of these products will be suitable for various regional continental-scale land cover mapping, extraction of drainage features for hydrologic modeling, and geometric and radiometric correction of medium and coarse resolution satellite image data. The global aggregated vertical accuracy of GMTED2010 can be summarized in terms of the resolution and RMSE of the products with respect to a global set of control points (estimated global accuracy of 6 m RMSE) provided by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). At 30 arc-seconds, the GMTED2010 RMSE range is between 25 and 42 meters; at 15 arc-seconds, the RMSE range is between 29 and 32 meters; and at 7.5 arc-seconds, the RMSE range is between 26 and 30 meters. GMTED2010 is a major improvement in consistency and vertical accuracy over GTOPO30, which has a 66 m RMSE globally compared to the same NGA control points. In areas where new sources of higher resolution data were available, the GMTED2010 products are substantially better than the aggregated global statistics; however, large areas still exist, particularly above 60 degrees North latitude, that lack good elevation data. As new data become available, especially in areas that have poor coverage in the current model, it is hoped that new versions of GMTED2010 might be generated and thus gradually improve the global model.
In 1996, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) developed a global topographic elevation model designated as GTOPO30 at a horizontal resolution of 30 arc-seconds for the entire Earth. Because no single source of topographic information covered the entire land surface, GTOPO30 was derived from eight raster and vector sources that included a substantial amount of U.S. Defense Mapping Agency data. The quality of the elevation data in GTOPO30 varies widely; there are no spatially-referenced metadata, and the major topographic features such as ridgelines and valleys are not well represented. Despite its coarse resolution and limited attributes, GTOPO30 has been widely used for a variety of hydrological, climatological, and geomorphological applications as well as military applications, where a regional, continental, or global scale topographic model is required. These applications have ranged from delineating drainage networks and watersheds to using digital elevation data for the extraction of topographic structure and three-dimensional (3D) visualization exercises. Many of the fundamental geophysical processes active at the Earth's surface are controlled or strongly influenced by topography, thus the critical need for high-quality terrain data. U.S. Department of Defense requirements for mission planning, geographic registration of remotely sensed imagery, terrain visualization, and map production are similarly dependent on global topographic data. Since the time GTOPO30 was completed, the availability of higher-quality elevation data over large geographic areas has improved markedly. New data sources include global Digital Terrain Elevation Data (DTEDŽ) from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), Canadian elevation data, and data from the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite (ICESat). Given the widespread use of GTOPO30 and the equivalent 30-arc-second DTEDŽ level 0, the USGS and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) have collaborated to produce an enhanced replacement for GTOPO30, the Global Land One-km Base Elevation (GLOBE) model and other comparable 30-arc-second-resolution global models, using the best available data. The new model is called the Global Multi-resolution Terrain Elevation Data 2010, or GMTED2010 for short. This suite of products at three different resolutions (approximately 1,000, 500, and 250 meters) is designed to support many applications directly by providing users with generic products (for example, maximum, minimum, and median elevations) that have been derived directly from the raw input data that would not be available to the general user or would be very costly and time-consuming to produce for individual applications. The source of all the elevation data is captured in metadata for reference purposes.
2011
publication date
None planned
-180.0001388
179.9998611
83.9998611
-90.0001388
Elevation
Global Elevation, GMTED2010, Digital Elevation Model
Global
Global
No restrictions, All GMTED2010 data products are publically available. Any acquisition or use of these data signifies a user's agreement to comprehension and compliance of the USGS Standard Disclaimer. Ensure all portions of metadata are read and clearly understood before using these data in order to protect both user and USGS interests. Please refer to http://www.usgs.gov/privacy.html for the USGS disclaimer.
Although the USGS is making these data available to others who may find the data of value, USGS does not warrant, endorse, or recommend the use of these data for any given purpose. The user assumes the entire risk related to the use of these data. USGS is providing these data "as is", and USGS disclaims any and all warranties, whether expressed or implied, including (without limitation) any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. In no event will USGS be liable to you or to any third party for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or exemplary damages or lost profits resulting from any use or misuse of these data. Acknowledgement of the U.S. Geological Survey would be appreciated in products derived from these data. Any user who modifies the data is obligated to describe the types of modifications they perform. User specifically agrees not to misrepresent the data, nor to imply that changes made were approved or endorsed by the USGS.
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation & Science (EROS) Center
mailing and physical address
47914 252nd Street
Sioux Falls
South Dakota
57198
United States
gmted2010@usgs.gov
Suggested citation:
Danielson, J.J., and Gesch, D.B., 2011, Global multi-resolution terrain elevation data 2010 (GMTED2010): U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2011?1073, 26 p.
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
Unclassified
Microsoft Windows XP Version 5.1 (Build 2600) Service Pack 3; ESRI ArcCatalog 9.3.1.4000
See full documenation at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
See full documenation at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
See full documenation at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
See full documenation at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
See full documenation at http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1073/
N/A
Raster
Grid Cell
Depends on grid resolution : 20880, 33600, 67200
Depends on grid resolution : 43200, 86400, 172800
1
Depends on grid resolution: 0.0083333333, 0.0041666666, 0.0020833333
Depends on grid resolution: 0.0083333333, 0.0041666666, 0.0020833333
Decimal degrees
row and column
Depends on grid resolution: 0.0083333333, 0.0041666666, 0.0020833333
Depends on grid resolution: 0.0083333333, 0.0041666666, 0.0020833333
D_WGS_1984
WGS_1984
6378137.000000
298.257224
Variable depending input source
Meters
gmted2010.vat
Rowid
Internal feature number.
ESRI
Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
VALUE
COUNT
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation & Science (EROS) Center
mailing and physical address
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) EROS, 47914 252nd Street
Sioux Falls
South Dakota
57198
United States
Online Data Availability: http://topotools.cr.usgs.gov/GMTED_viewer/ and http://edcsns17.cr.usgs.gov/NewEarthExplorer/
The U.S. Geological Survey gives no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of these data. It is strongly recommended that these data are directly acquired from a USGS server and not indirectly through other sources which may have changed the data in some way. Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey, no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the utility of the data on another system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This disclaimer applies both to individual use of the data and aggregate use with other data.
20111007
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation & Science (EROS) Center
REQUIRED: The person responsible for the metadata information.
mailing and physical address
47914 252nd Street
Sioux Falls
South Dakota
57106
USA
REQUIRED: The telephone number by which individuals can speak to the organization or individual.
gmted2010@usgs.gov
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata
FGDC-STD-001-1998
local time
No restrictions, All GMTED2010 data products and associated metadata are publically available
None
Unclassified
http://www.esri.com/metadata/esriprof80.html
ESRI Metadata Profile
http://www.esri.com/metadata/esriprof80.html
ESRI Metadata Profile