Derivation of surface topography and terrain parameters from single satellite image using shape-from-shading technique

This paper evaluates and compares two area-based shape-from-shading algorithms for deriving detailed surface topography and terrain parameters. A Fourier transform-based linear algorithm and an iterative minimization algorithm with integrability constraint are devised and implemented using C++ programming language, and applied to a SPOT panchromatic image. The relative height measurements from the shape-from-shading technique are calibrated into an absolute elevation model using a parametric least-squares adjustment procedure based on a number of ground control points. Surface slope, orientation, and structural lines are also calculated based on the digital elevation model derived from the shape-from-shading technique. The comparative advantages of the two algorithms are discussed, and the combination of two algorithms is also explored. The fundamental requirement for the shape-from-shading algorithms is that the terrain surface under investigation has a relatively homogenous land cover. Source codes in C++ and test data sets are available.