SRTM- Shuttle Radar Topography Mission

On 23 September 2014, the White House announced that the highest-resolution topographic data generated from NASA‘s that is Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), it was released globally by late 2015.

The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission is elevation data on a near-global scale, acquired from the Space Shuttle, to generate the most complete high-resolution digital topographic database of Earth.

SRTM data have been enhanced to fill areas of missing data to deliver Digital Elevation data with a resolution of 1 arc-second for global range.

Specifications

SRTM Data Products

3 types of data Products;

• 1 Arc-Second Global

1 Arc-Second Global elevation data offer worldwide coverage of void filled data at a resolution of 1 arc-second (30 meters) and provide open distribution of this high-resolution global data set.

• Void Filled

Void Filled elevation data are the result of additional processing to address areas of missing data.This data is 1 arc-second for the United States and 3 arc-seconds for global coverage.

• Non-Void Filled

Non-Void Filled elevation data were processed from C-band radar signals spaced at intervals of 1 arc-second at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

SRTM Data Download

Many sources are available to download SRTM Data. Top 3 sources:

1. JPL – NASA (SRTM)
2. USGS Earth Explore
3. OpenDEM

Data Versions

1. SRTM1:
   • Resolution: ~30 meters
   • Available for U.S. and later released globally
2. SRTM3:
   • Resolution: ~90 meters
   • Initially the only global product
3. SRTM Void-Filled:
   • Gaps filled using interpolation or other datasets like ASTER or GDEM
4. SRTM Plus (or Finished):
   • Enhanced version with improved void-filling and corrections

Applications

• Topographic mapping
• Watershed and hydrologic modeling
• Flood risk analysis
• Land cover classification
• Infrastructure planning
• 3D terrain visualization