The following table shows the current ice sheet elevation products available from NSIDC. To obtain documentation for a specific product or access the data, click on the data set title in the table.
| Data Set Title |
Summary |
| Alaska North Slope 100 m Digital Elevation Model (DEM) |
This data set is a 100-m resolution DEM for the Brooks Range and the North Slope of Alaska, including a small area of Canada. Data are derived from National Elevation Dataset DEMs and the global GTOPO30 DEM (Canada only). |
| High-Resolution Radar Imagery, Digital Elevation Models, and Related GIS Layers for Barrow, Alaska, USA |
This product set contains high-resolution Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) imagery and geospatial data for the Barrow Peninsula and Barrow Triangle, for use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing software. Derived data layers include aspect, shaded relief, and slope-angle grids, as well as a vector layer of contour lines. |
| Reduced-Resolution Radar Imagery, Digital Elevation Models, and Related GIS Layers for Barrow, Alaska, USA |
This product set contains reduced-resolution Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) imagery and geospatial data for the Barrow Peninsula, for use in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing software. Derived data layers include aspect, shaded relief, and slope-angle grids (floating-point binary format), as well as a vector layer of contour lines. |
| Data Set Title |
Summary |
| Antarctic 5 km Digital Elevation Model from ERS-1 Altimetry |
This data set provides a DEM for Antarctica to 81.5° south latitude, at a resolution of 5 km. Data points were derived from European Remote Sensing Satellite-1 (ERS-1) radar altimetry during the geodetic phase from March 1994 to May 1995. |
| GEOSAT Radar Altimeter DEM Atlas of Antarctica North of 72.1° South |
Each of the 28 maps contains surface elevations and coordinates for one atlas page covering 16 degrees of longitude at a resolution of 3 km. Data were acquired by the Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) Geodetic Mission (GM) from March 1985 through September 1986. |
| GLAS/ICESat 500 m Laser Altimetry Digital Elevation Model of Antarctica |
This DEM of Antarctica is derived from laser altimetry profile data obtained by the Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS) instrument aboard the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation satellite (ICESat). It provides new surface elevation grids of the ice sheets and coastal areas, with greater latitudinal extent and fewer slope-related effects than radar altimetry. |
| Ice Thickness and Surface Elevation, Southeastern Ross Embayment, West Antarctica |
Ice surface elevation and ice thickness data are available for a portion of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. The investigators utilized an airborne laser altimeter and ice-penetrating radar to survey the ice sheet. |
| MODIS Mosaic of Antarctica (MOA) Image Map |
Staff from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) and the University of New Hampshire have assembled a digital image map and a snow-grain-size image of the Antarctic continent and surrounding islands. The map is a composite of 260 swaths comprised of both Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images acquired between 20 November 2003 and 29 February 2004. |
| Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project Digital Elevation Model Version 2 |
The high-resolution Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project (RAMP) DEM combines topographic data from a variety of sources, including European Remote Sensing Satellite-1 (ERS-1) radar altimetry, airborne radar surveys, ground-based surveys, the recently-updated Antarctic Digital Database (version 2), and large-scale topographic maps from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Australian Antarctic Division. The resulting data set provides consistent coverage of all of Antarctica. Version 2 improves upon the original version by incorporating new topographic data, error corrections, extended coverage, and other modifications. |
| Roosevelt Island Bedrock and Surface Elevations |
This data set consists of bedrock and surface elevation readings taken by ground penetrating radar and the Global Positioning System (GPS) on Roosevelt Island, an ice dome within the Ross Ice Shelf. |
| Seasat and GEOSAT Altimetry for the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets |
The Ice Altimetry System (IAS) data set contains surface elevations of the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets derived from Sea Satellite (Seasat) and Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) radar altimetry data. |
| Surface Elevation and Ice Thickness, Western Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica |
This data set provides surface elevation and ice thickness data for a portion of the Marie Byrd Land sector of West Antarctica, including the Ford Ranges, the Sulzberger Ice Shelf, much of the Edward VII Peninsula, and the Shirase Coast region of the eastern Ross Ice Shelf. The investigators used airborne radar sounding and laser altimetry during 64 surveys between December 1998 and January 1999. |
| Data Set Title |
Summary |
| Digital SAR Mosaic and Elevation Map of the Greenland Ice Sheet (includes KMS Eckholm DEM) |
This data set combines the most detailed Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) image mosaic available with the best current digital elevation model. The SAR mosaic was created using European Remote Sensing Satellite-1 (ERS-1) SAR imagery. The DEM was constructed from Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) and ERS-1 satellite altimetry, Greenland Aerogeophysics Project (GAP) airborne radar altimetry, NASA Arctic Ice Mapping (AIM) airborne laser altimetry, a local survey on the summit of the ice sheet, stereo photogrammetry scannings, and information manually extracted from maps. Prospective users of the product are required to complete a Research Agreement stating that the image and elevation data will only be used under the specified terms and conditions. |
| Elevation Change of the Southern Greenland Ice Sheet from 1978-88 |
Southern Greenland ice sheet elevation change estimates are derived from Sea Satellite (Seasat) and Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) radar altimetry data from 1978 to 1988. |
| GLAS/ICESat 1 km Laser Altimetry Digital Elevation Model of Greenland |
This DEM of Greenland is derived from laser altimetry profile data obtained by the Geoscience Laser Altimetry System (GLAS) instrument aboard the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation satellite (ICESat). It provides new surface elevation grids of the ice sheets and coastal areas, with greater latitudinal extent and fewer slope-related effects than radar altimetry. |
| Greenland 5 km DEM, Ice Thickness, and Bedrock Elevation Grids |
The DEM, ice thickness grid, and bedrock elevation grid of Greenland are available in a polar stereographic projection at a 5 km grid spacing. DEM data are a combination of European Remote Sensing Satellite-1 (ERS-1) and Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) radar altimetry data, Airborne Topographic Mapper (ATM) data, and photogrammetric digital height data. Ice thickness data are based on data collected in the 1990s from an airborne Ice Penetrating Radar (IPR) system, and from an airborne echo sounder survey performed in the 1970s. The ice thickness grid was subtracted from the DEM to produce the bedrock elevation values grid. |
| Seasat and GEOSAT Altimetry for the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets |
The Ice Altimetry System (IAS) data set contains surface elevations of the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets derived from Sea Satellite (Seasat) and Geodetic Satellite (GEOSAT) radar altimetry data. |
