GEOLOGIC INTERPRETATION OF ANTARCTICA'S MOUNTAINOUS REGIONS WITH SPACE IMAGERY

This paper demonstrates how ice-surface relief identified on space imagery can be used in mapping selected elements of the geologic structure of the Antarctic Peninsula. The mapping procedure is based on the fact that all major subglacial relief forms appear, albeit in subdued form, on the surface of slow moving and relatively thin ice sheets. Since subglacial bedrock relief reflects geologic structure, particular surface configurations of ice identified on space imagery can be used as indicators of major structural elements. Examples of the procedure, including imagery of ice relief and corresponding cartographic representations of underlying structure are provided for faults and ring structures. Translated from: Antarktika, AN SSSR Mezhduvedomstvennaya komissiya po izucheniyu Antarktiki, Doklady komissii [USSR Academy of Sciences Joint Commission on Antarctic Research, Commission Report], No. 24. Moscow, 1985, pp. 50-55. An article demonstrating the application of these methods in the compilation of a geologic map for a part of the Antarctic Peninsula will appear in a later issue.     

INTEGRATION OF CARTOGRAPHIC AND REMOTE SENSING METHODS

The history of the joint use of maps and air photos/space imagery in geographic problem solving is examined, as are general problems which must be addressed before more complete consolidation of map use and image interpretation methods will be possible. The relatively new field of geoiconics, encompassing image theory, processing, and interpretation, is proposed as a branch of knowledge promoting the integration of cartography and remote sensing rather than a megafield that will ultimately replace them. Translated from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1985, No. 4, pp. 11-22.     

USE OF SPACE PHOTOGRAPHS IN THE MAKING AND REVISION OF SMALL-SCALE MAPS

A brief review paper focuses on Soviet strategies for the use of space imagery, particularly photographic products (1:2,000,000 to 1:4,200,000 scale) from manned spaceflights, in the revision of small-scale general reference maps. Principles for the interpretation and mapping of basic map elements appearing on space photographs are outlined. Space photographs provide for reduction in time spent in map editing and the more correct analysis of the reliability of information and its generalization. A technology of map revision based on the joint use of original photographs and photomaps, with the transfer of revisions from photomaps to map originals, is proposed. Translated from: Geodeziya i kartografiya, 1986, No. 8, pp. 29-33.     

INTERPRETATION OF THE AGRICULTURAL LANDSCAPE WITH SPACE IMAGERY

Heterochronous multispectral imagery from the “Fragment” scanner is used to identify and map a series of “natural-agricultural complexes,” or agricultural landscapes, of southern European Russia. Interpretation is based on imagery in the green, orange, red, and near-infrared zones of the spectrum (0.5-1.1 μm). Interpretation keys and other information designed to facilitate feature discrimination (optimal wavelengths, best seasons for imagining) are provided in many instances. Natural landscape and soil erosion maps are also compiled from the imagery, which supply information (an optimal crop rotation scheme and needed reclamation measures) used on the agricultural landscape map. Translated from: Vestnik Moskovs-kogo Unlversiteta, geografiya, 1985, No. 2, pp. 34-41.     

THE STUDY OF SOIL-VEGETATION DYNAMICS THROUGH REMOTE SENSING

Remote sensing imagery at widely varying scales is used in the analysis of the soil-vegetation cover of the west-central Siberia. Space imagery and smaller-scale air photographs initially are used to divide a study area into basic soil-vegetation complexes based on the criterion of figure outline. The internal structure of the complexes are then analyzed in greater detail, using larger-scale air photographs and a standard interpretation key based on selected field observations. Tonal-textural variations establish the ecological affiliations of separate elements within each complex and their dynamic states at a particular point in time. Translated from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1985, No. 2, pp. 112-119.     

NATURAL ZONES OF THE USSR ON SPACE IMAGERY: A NEW INSTRUCTIONAL AID IN THE SECONDARY SCHOOLS

The development of a new instructional aid in geography in the USSR is described–an exhibit featuring wall-map sized space imagery of major natural regions. Each station in the exhibit (prepared jointly by the Moscow University Laboratory of Remote Sensing Methods and the Main Administration of Geodesy and Cartography) includes a color image of a site representing one of seven major natural zones, a series of thematic maps based on results of image interpretation, a map showing the location of the imaged area within the USSR, and a series of ground photographs of typical landscapes and land uses. Translated from: Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta, geografiya, 1988, No. 2, pp. 36-41 by Natalia B. Barbash, Brooklyn, NY 11209.     

THE USE OF ANCIENT MAPS AND SPACE IMAGERY IN THE STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE

The author outlines, in diagrammatic form, a procedure for the joint use of old maps (topographic, land survey, etc.) and current space imagery to compile maps of environmental change. The ancient maps reveal land use and physical conditions which serve as a benchmark for evaluation of subsequent change. Space imagery is useful both in updating the current state of the environment and providing a cartographic base for the preparation of final maps. Selected areas of Moscow Oblast are used as test sites. Translated from: Izvestiya vuzov, Geodeziya i aerofotos' yem-ka, 1985, No. 1, pp. 104-109.     

COMMENTS ON K.A. SALISHCHEV'S PAPER

A method is described for the mapping of exogenous geomorphologic hazards (mass movements, frost heaving, suffosion, melting of permafrost) in the Lake Baykal area using space imagery. Black-and-white photography from the Salyut-4 space station (1:2,100,000 scale) was used as a base for the preparation of a series of maps depicting natural conditions (morphotectonic and physical geographic regions, faults, climate, dominant exogenous processes) used as a base for compiling a map of planning and engineering measures for the prevention and amelioration of geomorphologic hazards. Translated from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1985, No. 2, pp. 59-67.     

IMPROVING ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT WITH A DATA BANK OF SPACE IMAGERY

The paper outlines a strategy for environmental management based on the joint use of space imagery and existing thematic map sets in monitoring the state of the environment in areas known as territorial human-environment complexes, proposed as regional-level units of nature management. Space imagery is also instrumental in the identification of these complexes prior to the onset of monitoring, a subject which is addressed in some detail at the start of the paper. Most extensive coverage is devoted to the organization and operation of a centralized, interdisciplinary data bank of remote sensing imagery, from which scenes are processed and interpretation maps distributed according to the specific needs of user organizations. Translated from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1986, No. 2, pp. 138-142.     

SOVIET GEODESISTS IN THE CENTRAL ARCTIC

The work of a recent Soviet geodetic surveying expedition to the Central Arctic and the Barents Sea off Franz Josef Land is described, with an emphasis on gravimetric surveying and determination of gravimetric control points at the North Pole and at two drifting polar research stations. In addition, glacier fields of Alexander Land (Franz Josef Land) were mapped and keys for their interpretation on space imagery identified. Translated from: Geodeziya i kartografiya, 1988, No. 3, pp. 9-12.     

USE OF SPACE IMAGERY IN THE STUDY OF MASS EXCHANGE IN GLACIER SYSTEMS

The author surveys the use of remote sensing imagery in the study of mass exchange in glaciers, i.e., glacier dynamics resulting from phase changes in the water which they contain. A program of research now underway at the Institute of Geography (USSR Academy of Sciences) in conjunction with the “Priroda” Remote Sensing Center (Moscow) focuses on improving methods of data collection and mapping of glacier dynamics from space imagery, and particularly on identifying natural glacioclimatic zones believed to represent specific mass exchange conditions or regimes. The boundary of glacier nourishment separating areas of accumulation and ablation represents a key glacioclimatic indicator of mass exchange on satellite imagery and aerial photography. Translated from: Geodeziya i kartografiya, 1986, No. 5, pp. 26–31.     

REMOTE SENSING IN THE STUDY OF LANDSCAPE STRUCTURE

Applications of remote sensing, in particular space imagery, in the study of the physical structure of landscapes are described. Special attention is paid to space imagery's capacity for instantaneous analysis of extensive areas, its potential for combined use with more traditional methods, and the multiscalar quality of the data obtained. Joint use of a variety of image products and imaging sequences provides diverse information which can be integrated for a more comprehensive understanding of landscape structure in a variety of physical environments. Translated from: Izvestiya Vsesoyuznogo geograficheskogo obshchestva, 1985, No. 3, pp. 266-270.     

DIGITAL IMAGE PROCESSING IN THE COMPILATION OF LUNAR PHOTOMAPS

A method of compiling lunar thematic photomaps is described, in which telescopically derived photometric data, representing the map theme of albedo variation, is portrayed on a topographic base map prepared from scanner data obtained from a space probe. Digital image processing is employed in a wide range of tasks including data averaging and filtration, and grid and scale transformation. Two maps, representing different versions of final output, are provided: a map with albedo variation displayed according to the shaded-isoline technique, and one in which numerical values are printed over a grid of control points. Translated from: Geodeziya i kartografiya, 1985, No. 1, pp. 38-44.     

THE ECOLOGY OF URBAN GEOSYSTEMS FROM SPACE IMAGERY

This study uses space imagery, particularly false-color composites, to identify and map major natural complexes of the Yerevan basin and the changes they are undergoing as a result of a variety of in situ and “imported” pollution impacts. Interpretation aides in the identification of areas affected by different types of pollution in the basin are identified. Translated by Edward Torrey, Alexandria, VA 22308 from: Izvestiya [Rossiyskoy] Akademii Nauk, seriya geograficheskaya, 1992, No. 1, pp. 112–121.     

REMOTE SENSING IN PROFESSIONAL TRAINING OF CARTOGRAPHER-GEOGRAPHERS

The author reviews the contributions of the “aerospace” disciplines (remote sensing, photogrammetry, photometry) in the training of cartographers at Moscow University. Changes in the present curriculum are advocated, leading to the emergence of a unified educational discipline referred to alternately as “remote mapping methods,” or “remote sensing and mapping.” Training in this discipline is designed to enhance the interpretation and map compilation skills of cartographers working with space imagery. Translated from: Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta, geografiya, 1984, No. 5, pp. 40-43.     

MAPPING THE AVALANCHE HAZARD FOR MOUNTAINOUS AREAS OF AFGHANISTAN

The authors describe a procedure for the compilation of maps of the avalanche hazard in high-mountain regions of Afghanistan. The basic sources of information include space imagery (photographs and scanner imagery), weather station data, and other geographic information on relief, elevation, location of moisture sources, etc. The methodology features the compilation of series of increasingly more specific and informative maps and graphs regarding the avalanche hazard: terrain types, snow cover depth and seasonal extent, duration of snow cover and its elevational zonation, snow as a factor in avalanche formation, and summary map of avalanche hazard. Translated by Elliott B. Urdang, Providence, RI 02906 from: Materialy glyatsiologicheskikh issledovaniy, 1991, No. 71, pp. 86–93.     

ON THE ESSENCE OF THE LANGUAGE OF THE MAP

The author continues development of his concept of cartography as the “language of the map,” an earlier paper of this subject appearing in translation in M.S.R.S., 1985, No. 1. Although the term language has been widely used to describe cartographic communication, current theory fails to incorporate aspects of the language which provide for a comprehensive understanding of its structure and function. In particular, the language of the map and its symbolic elements cannot be explained reflexively by methods and rules of symbol and map design, since these elements were developed not before but after the existence of the language. The language of the map thus is proposed as the mechanism which provides for replicability or duplication in the way a system of mapmaking-map use functions (under diverse conditions, purposes, historical periods, and levels of training of users) through its different methods, models, and norms. Translated from: Geografiya i prirodnyye resursy, 1985, No. 3, pp. 142-151.     

THE POTENTIAL OF NIGHTTIME SPACE IMAGERY IN ANALYSIS AND MAPPING OF URBAN SETTLEMENT

A procedure is described for the use of nighttime space imagery in the mapping of an urban settlement hierarchy in the Federal Republic of Germany. City “brightness” values provide surrogate measures of urban settlement density, which are then mapped isarithmically. The resulting statistical surface is then divided into regions (first- and second-order settlement systems), and the map compared with one produced by quantitative (cluster analysis) techniques. The two regionalization schemes produce remarkably similar results, although the map compiled from the space image contained a greater number of regions, and was more detailed in other ways. Translated from: Vestnik Leningradskogo Universiteta, seriya geografiches-kaya, 1984, No. 6, pp. 112-114.     

USE OF REMOTE SENSING IN THE STUDY OF THE CHANGING SHORELINE OF SARYKAMYSH LAKE

The findings of a program monitoring the growth of an enormous man-made lake, created by the flooding of a low-lying area by irrigation water drainage, are described. Black-and-white space images for the period 1973-1985 are used to determine rates of shoreline displacement, map the growth in the lake's water area, and to determine probable areas of future flooding as a basis for prediction of future lake levels and shoreline positions. Translated from: Geodeziya i kartografiya, 1988, No. 7, pp. 44-46.     

STATISTICAL APPROACHES TO IMAGE PROCESSING AND THE MODELING OF FEATURE EDGES

The authors describe a method of nonlinear modeling of the space of feature edges on remote sensing imagery, which is used to derive algorithms for the identification of edge features, and subsequently the production of feature classification maps. Translated from: Metody kompleksnykh aerokosmicheskikh issledovaniy Sibiri, L. K. Zyat'kova, ed. Novosibirsk: Nauka, 1985, pp. 60–63.