Effects of DEM horizontal resolution and methods on calculating the slope length factor in gently rolling landscapes

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

LIU, H.

Changjiang River Scientific Research Inst., Wuhan, Chine

Dep. of Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Inst. of the Conservation of Natural Resources, Univ., Kiel, Allemagne

KIESEL, J.

Dep. of Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Inst. of the Conservation of Natural Resources, Univ., Kiel, Allemagne

HÖRMANN, G.

Dep. of Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Inst. of the Conservation of Natural Resources, Univ., Kiel, Allemagne

FOHRER, N.

Dep. of Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Inst. of the Conservation of Natural Resources, Univ., Kiel, Allemagne

Description :
The AA. made 2 comparisons to evaluate the effects of DEM horizontal resolution and processing algorithm on the accuracy of the L factor in gently sloped landscapes : one is between the grid cumulating method (GC) and the contributing area method (CA) using D8 flow-routing algorithm, the other is among single (D8, Rho8) and multiple (FD8, FRho8 and DEMON) flow-routing algorithms for processing the contributing area method. In 2 comparisons, 5 m, 10 m, 25 m, 50 m and 100 m DEM of a 0.88 km2 catchment in the lowland of Northern Germany were applied. The results indicate that L factor calculated with any of the 6 methods is sensitive to horizontal resolution, which strongly affects the accuracy. It is concluded that DEM horizontal resolution is very important for L factor calculation. This study can be used for selecting a suitable method and DEM resolution for accurate calculation of L factor and soil loss in gently rolling landscapes.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Catena (Giessen), issn : 0341-8162, 2011, vol. 87, n°. 3, p. 368-375, nombre de pages : 8, Références bibliographiques : 30 ref.

Date :
2011

Editeur :
Pays édition : Allemagne, Cremlingen-Destedt, Catena

Langue :
Anglais