Grid-mapping: Quantifying the distribution of landforms

Abstract

Grid-mapping is a valuable method to quantify the distribution and geography of landforms using remote sensing data. It can be applied at many mapping scales; from small local study areas to global examinations. Therefore, it is a particularly convenient approach to planetary mapping. By separating the study area into tick boxes of a predefined size, it is possible to determine if a landform occurs in one box or not. The result is an extensive geospatial data set in the form of a spreadsheet which can be used for both simple and advanced statistical calculations and evaluations. Hence, it is possible to study the geographic behaviour of landforms within their planetary environment. And as grid-mapping is not necessarily dependent on high-resolution data sets, it can be applied to almost any celestial body in the Solar System that has been photographed by a space probe.