Star3i Library

This page contains papers which have been written on the topic of Star3i data and do not neccessarily pertain to the Kuparuk basin data. The papers have been provided as a courtesy and information resource to the user. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in these papers are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Please refer to the following web sites for additional information about the Star3i system:

Intermap Technologies Corporation http://www.intermaptechnologies.com

Global Terrain http://www.globalterrain.com

All papers are in PDF format, you will need Acrobat Reader to view them.

Globalterrain Product Handbook
Intermap Technologies Corporation 2002
GT_product_handbook_v2_3.pdf / 3,111 Kb / 64 pages
Handbook for all data provided by Intermap

Z Marks The Spot
GEO:connexion July/August 2002 • by Kevin Corbley
z_marks_the_spot_Geoconnxion_8.02.pdf / 494 Kb / 5 pages
NEXTMap Britain is a fast track flying program that is collecting one-meter z values across the UK.

A New Star in the Radar Firmament: STARplus Set to Broden Use of Radar
EOM July 2002 • by Diane Coleman
New_Star_EOM_8.02.pdf / 1 Mb / 3 pages
STARplus is a practical combination of Intermap's interferometric radar data and Landsat optical data.

Accuracy of Airborne IFSAR Mapping
2002 FIG/ASPRS Conference • by Xiaopeng Li, A. Bruce Baker and Thomas Hutt
061802accuracy_airborn.pdf / 309 Kb / 11 pages
Airborne IFSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) mapping is attracting much attention in the geo-spatial community. This attention is due to the flexibility of system deployment, near weather-independent operation, cloud penetrating capability, versatile map products, and quick turn-around time.

Mapping Great Britain at one Metre Z Values
Ranger Spring 2002 • by Hugh MacKay
Ranger_article.pdf / 267 Kb / 4 pages
Imagine having access to over 8 billion individual high–accuracy elevation points of Great Britain. Imagine having

DTMs for Thames Flood Model
Elevation April 2002 • by Garth Lawrence
Elevation_NEXTMap_Britain.pdf / 1.3 MB / 2 pages
April issue of Elevation features NEXTMap Britain cover image and a brief account of the program's beginning.

Calibration of an Airborne Along-Track Interferometric SAR System for Accurate Measurement of Velocities
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Oliver Hirsch
igarss2001.pdf / 332 Kb / 3 pages
One of the applications of synthetic aperture radar in oceanography is the study of ocean surface currents by airborne along–track interferometric SAR (along–track INSAR, ATI).

Large area DEM Generation with ERS Tandem Data
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Marcus Schwäbisch
ceos_paper.pdf / 2.4 Mb / 5 pages
The main subject of this paper is an assessment of the potential to generate large scale digital elevation models by means of interferometric processing of ERS SAR data.

The High Resolution Airbone Interferometric SAR AES-1
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Marcus Schwäbisch and João Moreira
paper_xband.pdf / 872.4 KB / 8 pages
This paper presents design and applications of the high resolution airborne interferometric SAR AES–1, built and operated by Aerosensing Radarsysteme.

Multipath P-Band Interferometry - First Results
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Christoph Hofmann, Marcus Schwäbisch, Susanne Och, Christian Wimmer and João Moreira
paper_pband.pdf / 692.3 KB / 6 pages
P–Band interferometric SAR sensors recently have been experienced more attention due to their capability to penetrate vegetation coverage, thus offering the possibility to derive the ground topography of vegetated regions such as forest or agricultural areas.

Feature Selection for ERS-1/2 InSAR Classification: High Dimensionality Case
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Luciano Dutra, and Reinhold Huber
huber_dutra_igarss_98.pdf / 102.4 KB / 3 pages
A systematic way of selection and assessment of the performance of a large number of texture features extracted from spaceborne interferometric SAR data and classified with different types of classifiers is presented.

Primary Forest and Land Cover Contextual Classification using JERS-1 data in Amazonia, Brazilg
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Luciano Dutra, Reinhold Huber and Pedro Hernandez
dutra_huber_hernandez_igarss_98.pdf / 102.4 KB / 3 pages
We present a methodology for land cover and primary forest mapping in Amazonia using textual features derived from JERS–1 data and classified with a multi layer perceptron based contextual method

A Fast and Efficient Technique for SAR Interferogram Geocoding
Aerosensing Radarsysteme GmbH • by Marcus Schwäbisch
schwaebisch_igarss98.pdf / 89.3 KB / 3 pages
In the following paper a new efficient technique for SAR interferogram geocoding is presented.

Star-3i® Upgrade
Intermap_STAR-3i_upgrade_screen.pdf / 1.5 MB / 8 pages
Check out our upgraded STAR-3i® system, providing higher resolution images and digital elevation models (DEM) at the same affordable Intermap prices.

Radar Revolution Revealing the Bald Earth
Calgary, EOM November 2001 • by Diane Coleman
Radar Revolution.pdf / 1.01 MB / 4 pages
For more than 20 years, Intermap Technologies Corp. – and its predecessor company Intera Technologies – has lead the world in the development of airborne radar technology for mapping. The company has successfully brought the unique capabilities of airborne radar to such widely diverse uses as sea-ice mapping and monitoring, geological exploration, tropical forest and land-use mapping, and flood and floodplain mapping. In every case, thus innovative firm has had to develop the tools and teach new users to understand and appreciate the value of their technology.

Comparing LIDAR and IFSAR: What can you expect?
Calgary, October 2001 • by Bryan Mercer
paper_Stuttgart01_JBM3.pdf / 624 KB / 10 pages
Three-dimensional mapping products in the form of DEMs (Digital Elevation Models) have become much more accessible in recent years, in part due to the implementation of LIDAR and IFSAR technologies. While there is considerable familiarity with one technology or the other, they are not often examined in terms of their mutually similar characteristics or equally those that are dissimilar. The purpose of this paper is to summarize those factors, which will ultimately help to determine whether one technology or the other is appropriate for a particular application. We present two examples to illustrate and suggest that in many ways they can be viewed as complimentary rather than competitive technologies.

STAR3i® Accuracy Assessment ICC 2001
Ottawa, August 2001 • by Xiaopeng Li PhD., Bruce Baker, George Dickson
STAR3iaccuracyassesmentICC2001.pdf / 254 KB / 9 pages
Traditional photogrammetric mapping technologies are being challenged by the increasing demands for faster and cheaper digital mapping products. High-resolution airborne Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) systems are starting to penetrate the traditional photogrammetric market, due to their operational and economic advantages. Many geo-spatial data, such as Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), Digital Ortho Images (DOIs) and Topographic Line Maps (TLMs), can be derived efficiently and quickly by using the IFSAR system and appropriate processing technologies. These products have proven to be an important data source for Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The main objective of this paper is to examine in detail the positional accuracy and characteristics of these topographic products through a comprehensive test.

Automatic Generation of Bald Earth Digital Elevation Models from Digital Surface Models Created Using Airborne IFSAR
Calgary, May 2001 • by Yandong Wang, Bryan Mercer, Vincent C. Tao, Jayanti Sharma and Scott Crawford
asprs2001_Intermap_E.pdf / 2.28 MB / 11 pages
This paper presents a novel approach for the automatic generation of ‘bald-earth’ digital elevation models (DEMs) from digital surface models (DSMs) created using STAR-3i ® - the Intermap Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) system. The method uses a hierarchical surface fitting technique to yield bald earth DEMs. It first generates a hierarchy of images from the original DSMs, and bald earth DEMs are created hierarchically through the image pyramid. At the same time, a self-diagnostic process is incorporated into the method, which automatically locates and corrects ‘problem areas’ based on the map differences between the original DSM and the derived bald earth DEM.

Comparison of Digital Elevation Data From Airborne Laser and Interferometric SAR Systems
July 2000 • by M. Sites, S. Kruger, J. B. Mercer and S. Schnick
Manfred_Final_Version.pdf / 1,935KB / 8 pages
Requirements for precise digital elevation data (i.e., Digital Elevation Models or DEMs) of varying levels of detail are being formulated for different fields of application. The degree of detail found in a DEM is usually characterized by the horizontal sample spacing and by the vertical accuracy of the samples. Increased detail is normally associated with increased cost to the user, which fuels the debate over which technologies are suitable for which applications. In this paper, we present the results of comparative tests of two technologies from which are derived relatively detailed digital elevation data sets with sample spacing of a few meters.

An Innovative Approach Using a Digital Photogrammetric Workstation to Generate Topographic Line Maps from Airbone IFSAR
ISPRS Amsterdam
July 2000 • by M Lorraine Tighe, Richard A. Bruce Baker
crs_v5.pdf/1,1,188KB/18 pages
The production of 1:20,000 topographic maps similar in nature to photo derived maps are being successfully generated from interferometric SAR (IFSAR) data. IFSAR has advanced to the point where airborne systems are capable of accuracies in the centimeters. These high-resolution systems are making their way into aerial photography niches, especially in areas inaccessible by photo due to cloud cover or congested airspace.

Using SAR Imagery for Flood Modelling
February 22 2000 • by Helène M. Galy, Richard A. Sanders, Willis, London, UK
Rgs_paper.pdf/33KB/14 pages
Airborne radar technology has long been exclusively devoted to military applications. In the recent years, applications in telecommunications, oil exploration and agriculture have proved that radar technology can also be used commercially. This paper focuses on an application in the insurance industry and describes the development of a large-scale flood risk assessment model for the River Thames.

U.S. Military Maps Panama Canal with Airborne Interferometry in Preparation for Transition
by Kevin P. Corbley
Intermap_Panama_EOM.pdf/14.74KB/6 pages
Nearly 90 years after its construction, the Panama Canal is still considered one of the greatest engineering feats ever attempted. The 82-kilometer long passage is without a doubt one of the most important transportation routes in the world, and it is also considered one of the most difficult structures to defend.

STAR-3i ® Interferometric Syntetic Aperture Radar (INSAR): Some lessons learned on the road to commercialization
by J. Keith Tennant and Tim Coyne
ERIM_AB99.pdf/548 KB/ 8 pages
The paper begins with a very brief history of INSAR development and the type of output Intermap generates for commercial consumption. It then describes basic INSAR performance issues as manifested in the STAR-3i ® system. This is followed by a description and qualification of some of the phenomena present in INSAR data and how Intermap has addressed these difficult issues. As with any engineering process, a review of the failures is often more useful than review of the successes with this in mind, project examples are presented which highlight the improvements learned from process failures as well as a brief overview of some of the success achieved by applications of the lessons learned.

Comparison of DEMs from STAR-3i ® Interferometric SAR and Scanning Laser
by J. Bryan Mercer and Steven Schnick
Mercer_Schnick-Radar_Laser_DEM.pdf /4, 817 KB /8 pages
Within the past few years there has been a significant increase in the use of Digital Elevation Models (DEMs), for applications as varied as telecommunications and precision agriculture, forestry and flood-risk assessment. Additionally, one may expect that externally-supplied DEMs will be used increasingly for ortho-rectification of high-resolution satellite imagery as it becomes available.
In this paper we examine the capabilities and deficiencies of two of these DEM sources – airborne laser scanning systems and interferometric airborne radar.

Exploration applications of RADARSAT imagery in the Foothills and the Western Canada Basin
by Zeev Berger, Rebecca Irving, Julie Clark
jur1.pdf /288KB /5 pages
A series of examples from the tropics and the heavily vegetated areas of the Western Canada Basin are being used to illustrate the surface mapping capabilities of RADARSAT, and its potential for exploration applications. Results show that the RADARSAT image products, in all modes evaluated to date, provide significant geological information and appear to overcome the series limitations associated with shadowing (airborne systems) and layover affects (ERS-1 satellite systems).

A Combined DGPS/INS and Synthetic Aperture Radar System for GEOID Referenced Elevation Models and Ortho-Rectified Image Maps
by C.L. Glennie, K.P. Schwarz, A.M. Bruton, J.K. Tennant, M. Wei
ifsar.pdf / 240KB /6 pages
The objective of this paper is to introduce and describe the concept of using airborne gravimetry by strapdown INS/DGPS to reference mapping products derived from Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) to the GEOID. Calgary-based Intermap Technologies Corp. is a digital mapping company that focuses on providing digital elevation models and ortho-rectified images using an interferometric radar system called the STAR-3i ®. Intermap Technologies Corp., in partnership with the University of Calgary, has developed a product capable of providing GEOID referenced digital elevation models and ortho-rectified images.

Radar Derived DEMs for Urban Areas
by J. Bryan Mercer, Michael Gill
isprstut.pdf/278KB /8 pages
A major objective of the on-going work, is to determine to what extent the STAR-3i ® DEM can be used for 3D building extraction and for the creation of a ‘bald-earth’ DTM. In this paper we provide illustrations and statistical data to demonstrate the viability of STAR-3i ® DEMs for both of these applications in a typical North American city. Intermap's GLOBAL Terrain™ DEMs offer city governments a technically attractive and cost competitive alternative for many of their urban applications.

Concepts and Applications of Digital Orthophotos
by Robert A. Fowler
bobfowler.pdf /19KB /7 pages
Digital orthophotography is a technology that has been around for a few years now, (At Intermap we have been doing it for more than seven years) but has not had the reception in Canada that it has had in other parts of North America and around the world. This is rather strange, given that Canada has always considered itself at the forefront of Geographic Information Systems and digital map data development. As a personal observation, I wonder if this is actually one of the reasons - because so much energy has been spent on structuring data in conventional vector systems, that there is some resistance to a new technology, which in many cases throws out so much of the work done.

Operational DEM Production from Airborne Interferometry and from RADARSAT Stereo Technologies
by J. Bryan Mercer, Scott Thorton, Keith Tennant
asprs98.pdf /154KB /11 pages
In this paper we report upon the advances achieved over the past year in the creation of Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) on an operational and commercial basis, using data from two very different radar platforms. STAR-3i ® is an airborne interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), capable of achieving DEMs at a level of detail and accuracy suitable for map scales as large as 1:10,000. A less detailed, but correspondingly less expensive product is achieved using TOPOSAR technology to create DEMs from RADARSAT stereo image pairs.

Summary of Independent Evaluations of STAR-3i ® DEMs
by J. Bryan Mercer
star3eva.pdf /28KB /5 pages
This document presents a summary of the published results of tests performed by several independent organizations to establish the vertical accuracy of DEMs created by Intermap’s STAR-3i ® system. The tests were conducted over different areas and under various conditions. The accompanying table summarizes the test characteristics and results. Additionally, there is a brief verbal description of each of the test situations.