SPOT vs Landsat TM for the maintenance of topographical databases

Abstract Remotely sensed data from satellites are being used operationally to maintain part of the federal national topographic map series (NTS). To date, the program has a demonstrated overall benefit of approximately $10 million. This paper reports the results of research into the applications of high resolution satellite data for database maintenance. SPOT-1 and/or Landsat TM data were analyzed for fourteen test areas across Canada. They were evaluated for the three main components of mapping: 1. detection, 2. identification, and 3. planimetric positioning. The primary limitation to using these data is the detection and identification of point features that are presented on the 1:50 000 scale maps. If this limitation is acceptable, then the high resolution SPOT and TM data can be used to expand the maintenance program and increase the realized benefits for the NTS.