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🌍planetary science review
11.3 Planetary cartography and image processing
3 min read•Last Updated on July 30, 2024
Planetary cartography and image processing are crucial for understanding celestial bodies. These techniques involve creating accurate maps, enhancing images, and analyzing surface features. They help scientists interpret impact craters, volcanic activity, and other geological processes on planets and moons.
Digital elevation models (DEMs) take planetary mapping to the next level. By creating 3D representations of surfaces, DEMs allow for detailed analysis of topography, slopes, and landforms. This data is essential for planning missions and unraveling the geological history of other worlds.
Planetary Cartography Principles
Fundamentals of Planetary Cartography
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Top images from around the web for Fundamentals of Planetary Cartography
Interiors of icy bodies in the solar system (as of 2010) | The Planetary Society View original
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What's Up in the Solar System diagram by Olaf… | The Planetary Society View original
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From GIS to Remote Sensing: Interpretation of Remote Sensing Images View original
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Interiors of icy bodies in the solar system (as of 2010) | The Planetary Society View original
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What's Up in the Solar System diagram by Olaf… | The Planetary Society View original
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- Planetary cartography involves creating accurate maps of planetary bodies (planets, moons, asteroids, comets)
- Accurate maps are crucial for understanding geology, topography, and surface features of planetary bodies
- Maps aid in planning and executing exploration missions
- Planetary cartography utilizes various data sources
- Remote sensing data from spacecraft
- Ground-based observations
- In-situ measurements
Process of Creating Planetary Maps
- Creating planetary maps involves several steps
- Data acquisition
- Data processing
- Map projection
- Map design
- Map projections represent the curved surface of a planetary body on a flat map
- Choice of projection depends on the map's purpose and the planetary body's characteristics
- Planetary maps serve various purposes
- Scientific research
- Mission planning
- Public outreach
Image Processing for Planetary Analysis
Image Enhancement Techniques
- Image enhancement techniques improve visual quality and interpretability of planetary images
- Contrast stretching
- Color enhancement
- Noise reduction
- Image rectification and georeferencing align planetary images with a coordinate system and correct geometric distortions
- Image mosaicking combines multiple overlapping images into a single, seamless image covering a larger surface area
Image Analysis Techniques
- Image classification techniques identify and map different surface features and materials based on spectral properties
- Supervised classification
- Unsupervised classification
- Image analysis techniques identify and characterize specific surface features
- Feature extraction
- Pattern recognition
- Identifying craters, valleys, and dunes
Interpreting Planetary Surfaces
Impact Craters
- Impact craters are common features on many planetary surfaces
- Provide insights into the age and history of the surface
- Crater morphology can infer properties of the impactor and target material
- Size
- Depth
- Presence of central peaks or ejecta blankets
Volcanic and Tectonic Features
- Volcanic features (lava flows, volcanic cones, calderas) indicate past or present volcanic activity
- Morphology and composition provide information about the type and origin of volcanic activity
- Tectonic features (faults, ridges, graben) indicate internal stresses and deformation within a planetary body
- Orientation and distribution provide insights into tectonic history and processes
Surface Processes and Landforms
- Aeolian features (dunes, wind streaks) indicate wind-driven processes on a planetary surface
- Morphology and distribution provide information about wind regime and sediment transport
- Fluvial and glacial features (channels, valleys, ice deposits) indicate past or present water or ice on a planetary surface
- Morphology and distribution provide insights into hydrologic and climatic history
Digital Elevation Models of Planets
Creating Digital Elevation Models (DEMs)
- DEMs are 3D representations of planetary surfaces providing elevation and topography information
- DEMs can be created using various techniques depending on available data and planetary body characteristics
- Photogrammetry: using overlapping images to create a 3D model by measuring parallax between corresponding points
- Laser altimetry: using a laser rangefinder to measure distance between spacecraft and planetary surface
- Radar interferometry: using radar images from different viewing angles to create a 3D model by measuring phase difference between radar signals
Analyzing Digital Elevation Models
- DEMs can analyze various aspects of planetary surface topography
- Slope
- Aspect
- Roughness
- Provides insights into geologic processes and history
- Topographic profiles and cross-sections can be extracted from DEMs to study morphology and structure of specific landforms or regions
- DEMs can create shaded relief maps simulating the effect of illumination from a specific direction
- DEMs can orthorectify and georegister planetary images, improving spatial accuracy and alignment with surface topography