Improved measurements of cryospheric processes using advanced photogrammetry

The cryosphere is defined as the areas of the Earth where water is found frozen. The notion of cryospheric processes relates to glaciers, ice caps, ice sheets, ice shelves, sea ice and permafrost. Cryospheric processes are often used as indicators of a changing climate since they respond relatively fast to climate change: sea ice extent decreases, ice shelves and glaciers retreat, permafrost thaws...Therefore, understanding these processes is critical to the understanding of the causes and effects of climate change. Photogrammetry, the science of making geometric and radiometric measurements using photographic imagery, has a century-long history of providing data for geoscience research. Indeed, it is an incredible tool to produce data for the study of processes of interest, in the form of digital elevation models to study their geometry, or in the form of orthoimages to study their texture. If imagery data of the same scene can be acquired at different moments in time, it is possible to create time series. Series of measurements allows for the study and understanding of the evolution of a process through time. This thesis presents work done in the development and application of leading edge photogrammetric methods to the measurement of cryopsheric processes, going through the different scales at which these processes are active, starting at the largest scale with the camera closest to the ground for the study of the meter scale and gradually getting a larger view. Close range photogrammetry was used for the study of the meter scale permafrost process of sorted circles, light airborne imaging was used for the study of a small glacier called Midtre Lovénbreen and its periglacial area, historical heavy airborne survey was used for a more regional survey of Prins Karl Forland and a satellite imaging processing workflow was developed to allow for the study of global scale changes. Thanks to recent developments in photogrammetry, including those presented in this thesis, data quality is on the rise. The key conclusions of this work are that (1) it is possible to push the limit of the precision of the elevation data obtained from imagery by applying modern, improved methods, and (2) that, with these methods, all sorts of image sources can be exploited in order to acquire data on various processes of interest. We used images that we acquired ourselves using consumer grade tools, images found by digging through historical airborne survey archives, and images obtained using spaceborne instruments. That second objective is complemented with the open-source availability of the software and methods developed in the context of this PhD in order to facilitate their use by the scientific community

Surface kinematics of periglacial sorted circles using structure-from-motion technology

Sorted soil circles are a form of periglacial patterned ground that is commonly noted for its striking geometric regularity. They consist of an inner fine domain bordered by gravel rings that rise some decimetres above the fine domain. Field measurements and numerical modelling suggest that these features develop from a convection-like circulation of soil in the active layer of permafrost. The related cyclic burial and exhumation of material is believed to play an important role in the soil carbon cycle of high latitudes. The connection of sorted circles to permafrost conditions and its changes over time make these ground forms potential palaeoclimatic indicators. In this study, we apply for the first time photogrammetric structure-from-motion technology (SfM) to large sets of overlapping terrestrial photos taken in August 2007 and 2010 over three sorted circles at Kvadehuksletta, western Spitsbergen. We retrieve repeat digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthoimages with millimetre resolution and precision. Changes in microrelief over the 3 yr are obtained from DEM differencing and horizontal displacement fields from tracking features between the orthoimages. In the fine domain, surface material moves radially outward at horizontal rates of up to ~2 cm yr-1. The coarse stones on the inner slopes of the gravel rings move radially inward at similar rates. A number of substantial deviations from this overall radial symmetry, both in horizontal displacements and in microrelief, shed new light on the spatio-temporal evolution of sorted soil circles, and potentially of periglacial patterned ground in general

ABSOLUTE COREGISTRATION AND DOMING CORRECTION IN ADVERSE CONDITIONS, OR HOW TO RETRIEVE SNOW DEPTH FROM DRONE FLIGHTS

Doming, a superimposition of a scene-wide dome-shaped bias to the elevation data, is a classical problem in photogrammetry, especially when using the auto-calibration and bundle adjustment typical of the Structure-from-Motion approach. A number of solutions have been proposed, but most rely on a certain degree of freedom in the data acquisition strategy, such as the ability to acquire many ground control points or to acquire additional imagery over the area of interest with different flight parameters. In this paper, we present a method to solve for the dome when working on a snowfield in the Norwegian mountains. That specific situation leads to difficulties to fly the drone optimally and acquire ground control points due to short weather windows, high winds, cold temperatures, low sun angles and short day duration (i.e. high latitudes). Here, we use natural landmarks and pre-existing knowledge about the bare ground topography for removing the inevitable dome

Surface kinematics of periglacial sorted circles using Structure-from-Motion technology

Sorted soil circles are a conspicuous form of periglacial patterned ground. Numerical modelling suggests that these features develop from a convection-like circulation of material in the active layer of permafrost. The related iterative burying and resurfacing of material is believed to play an important role in the soil carbon cycle of high latitudes. The connection of sorted circles to permafrost conditions and its changes over time make these ground forms to a potential paleoclimatic indicator. In this study we apply the photogrammetric Structure-from-Motion technology (SfM) to large sets of overlapping terrestrial photos taken in Augusts 2007 and 2010 over three sorted circles at Kvadehuksletta, Western Spitsbergen. We retrieve repeat digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthoimages with millimetre-resolution and accuracy. Changes in microrelief over the three years are obtained from DEM-differencing and horizontal displacement fields from tracking features between the orthoimages. In the inner domains of the circles, consisting of fines, material moves radially outside with horizontal surface speeds of up to 2 cm yr−1. The outer circle ridges consist of coarse stones that displace towards the inner circle domain at similar rates. A number of substantial deviations from this overall radial symmetry, both in horizontal displacements and in microrelief, shed new light on the potential spatio-temporal evolution of sorted soil circles, and periglacial patterned ground in general

Terrain changes from images acquired on opportunistic flights by SfM photogrammetry

Acquiring data to analyse change in topography is often a costly endeavour requiring either extensive, potentially risky, fieldwork and/or expensive equipment or commercial data. Bringing the cost down while keeping the precision and accuracy has been a focus in geoscience in recent years. Structure from motion (SfM) photogrammetric techniques are emerging as powerful tools for surveying, with modern algorithm and large computing power allowing for the production of accurate and detailed data from low-cost, informal surveys. The high spatial and temporal resolution permits the monitoring of geomorphological features undergoing relatively rapid change, such as glaciers, moraines, or landslides. We present a method that takes advantage of light-transport flights conducting other missions to opportunistically collect imagery for geomorphological analysis. We test and validate an approach in which we attach a consumer-grade camera and a simple code-based Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver to a helicopter to collect data when the flight path covers an area of interest. Our method is based and builds upon Welty et al. (2013), showing the ability to link GNSS data to images without a complex physical or electronic link, even with imprecise camera clocks and irregular time lapses. As a proof of concept, we conducted two test surveys, in September 2014 and 2015, over the glacier Midtre Lovénbreen and its forefield, in northwestern Svalbard. We were able to derive elevation change estimates comparable to in situ mass balance stake measurements. The accuracy and precision of our DEMs allow detection and analysis of a number of processes in the proglacial area, including the presence of thermokarst and the evolution of water channels

Structure-From-Motion Photogrammetry of Antarctic Historical Aerial Photographs in Conjunction with Ground Control Derived from Satellite Data

A longer temporal scale of Antarctic observations is vital to better understanding glacier dynamics and improving ice sheet model projections. One underutilized data source that expands the temporal scale is aerial photography, specifically imagery collected prior to 1990. However, processing Antarctic historical aerial imagery using modern photogrammetry software is difficult, as it requires precise information about the data collection process and extensive in situ ground control is required. Often, the necessary orientation metadata for older aerial imagery is lost and in situ data collection in regions like Antarctica is extremely difficult to obtain, limiting the use of traditional photogrammetric methods. Here, we test an alternative methodology to generate elevations from historical Antarctic aerial imagery. Instead of relying on pre-existing ground control, we use structure-from-motion photogrammetry techniques to process the imagery with manually derived ground control from high-resolution satellite imagery. This case study is based on vertical aerial image sets collected over Byrd Glacier, East Antarctica in December 1978 and January 1979. Our results are the oldest, highest resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) ever generated for an Antarctic glacier. We use these DEMs to estimate glacier dynamics and show that surface elevation of Byrd Glacier has been constant for the past ∼40 years

Time‐Lapse Photogrammetry of Distributed Snow Depth During Snowmelt

Characterizing snowmelt both spatially and temporally from in situ observation remains a challenge. Available sensors (i.e., sonic ranger, lidar, airborne photogrammetry) provide either time series of local point measurements or sporadic surveys covering larger areas. We propose a methodology to recover from a minimum of three synchronized time‐lapse cameras changes in snow depth and snow cover extent over area smaller or equivalent to 0.12 km2. Our method uses photogrammetry to compute point clouds from a set of three or more images and automatically repeat this task for the entire time series. The challenges were (1) finding an optimal experimental setup deployable in the field, (2) estimating the error associated with this technique, and (3) being able to minimize the input of manual work in the data processing pipeline. Developed and tested in the field in Finse, Norway, over 1 month during the 2018 melt season, we estimated a median melt of 2.12 ± 0.48 m derived from three cameras 1.2 km away from the region of interest. The closest weather station recorded 1.94 m of melt. Other parameters like snow cover extent and duration could be estimated over a 300 × 400m region. The software is open source and applicable to a broader range of geomorphologic processes like glacier dynamic, snow accumulation, or any other processes of surface deformation, with the conditions of (1) having fixed visible points within the area of interest and (2) resolving sufficient surface textures in the photographs

Spatial Variability in Patterns of Glacier Change across the Manaslu Range, Central Himalaya

This study assesses changes in glacier area, velocity, and geodetic mass balance for the glaciers in the Manaslu region of Nepal, a previously undocumented region of the Himalayas. We studied changes between 1970 (for select glaciers), 2000, 2005, and 2013 using freely available Landsat satellite imagery, the SRTM Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and a DEM based on Worldview imagery. Our results show a complex pattern of mass changes across the region, with glaciers lowering on average by 0.25 ± 0.08 m a−1 between 2000 and 2013 which equates to a geodetic mass balance of −0.21 ± 0.16 m w.e.a−1 . Over approximately the same time period (1999 to 2013) the glaciers underwent a 16.0% decrease in mean surface velocity over their debris-covered tongues as well as a reduction in glacier area of 8.2%. The rates of glacier change appear to vary between the different time periods, with glacier losses increasing in most cases. The glaciers on Manaslu itself underwent a change in surface elevation of −0.46 ± 0.03 m a−1 between 1970 and 2000 and −0.99 ± 0.08 m a−1 between 2000 and 2013. Rates of glacier area change for the same glaciers increased from−0.36 km2 a −1 between 1970 and 2001 to −2.28 km2 a −1 between 2005 and 2013. Glacier change varies across the region and seems to relate to a combination of glacier hypsometry, glacier elevation range and the presence and distribution of supraglacial debris. Lower-elevation, debris-free glaciers with bottom-heavy hypsometries are losing most mass. As the glaciers in the Manaslu region continue to stagnate, an accumulation and thickening of the debris-cover is likely, thereby insulating the glacier and further complicating future glacier responses to climate