Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-363
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2022-363
02 Feb 2023
 | 02 Feb 2023
Status: a revised version of this preprint is currently under review for the journal ESSD.

High-resolution digital elevation models and orthomosaics generated from historical aerial photographs (since the 1960s) of the Bale Mountains in Ethiopia

Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed, Binyam Tesfaw Hailu, Georg Miehe, Thomas Nauss, and Dirk Zeuss

Abstract. The natural resources of Ethiopian high-altitude ecosystems are commonly perceived as increasingly threatened by devastating land-use practices owing to decreasing lowland resources. Quantified time-series data of the course of land-use cover changes are still needed. Very high-resolution digital data on the historical landscape over the recent decades are needed for determining the impacts of changes in afro-alpine ecosystems. However, digital elevation models (DEMs) and orthomosaics do not exist for most afro-alpine ecosystems of Africa. We processed the only available and oldest historical aerial photographs for Ethiopia and, to the best of our knowledge, for any afro-alpine ecosystem. Here, we provide both DEM and orthomosaic images for the years 1967 and 1984 for the Bale Mountains in Ethiopia, which comprise the largest afro-alpine ecosystem in Africa. We used 298 historical aerial photographs captured in 1967 and 1984 for generating DEMs and orthomosaics with Structure from Motion Multi View Stereo Photogrammetry along an elevation gradient from 977 to 4377 m above sea level (asl) at spatial resolutions of 0.84 m and 0.98 m for the years 1967 and 1984, respectively. Our datasets can be used by researchers and policymakers for (1) watershed management, as the area provides water for more than 30 million people; (2) landscape management; (3) detailed mapping and analysis of geological and archaeological features, as well as natural resources; (4) analyses of geomorphological processes; and (5) biodiversity research.

Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed et al.

Status: final response (author comments only)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on essd-2022-363', Anonymous Referee #1, 08 Mar 2023
    • AC1: 'Reply on RC1', Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed, 30 Aug 2023
  • RC2: 'Comment on essd-2022-363', Anonymous Referee #2, 01 May 2023
    • AC2: 'Reply on RC2', Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed, 30 Aug 2023

Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed et al.

Data sets

High-resolution digital elevation models and orthomosaics of the Bale Mountains in Ethiopia Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed, Binyam Tesfaw Hailu, Georg Miehe, Thomas Nauss, Dirk Zeuss https://zenodo.org/record/7269999

High-resolution digital elevation models and orthomosaics of the Bale Mountains in Ethiopia Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed, Binyam Tesfaw Hailu, Georg Miehe, Thomas Nauss, Dirk Zeuss https://zenodo.org/record/7271617

Mohammed Ahmed Muhammed et al.

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Short summary
We processed the only available and oldest historical aerial photographs for the Bale Mountains, Ethiopia. We used Structure-from-Motion Multi View Stereo Photogrammetry to generate the first high resolution DEMs and orthomosaics for 1967 and 1984 at larger spatial extents (5730 km2) and at high spatial resolutions (0.84 m and 0.98 m, respectively). Our datasets will help the scientific community address questions related to the Bale Mountains and afro-alpine ecosystems.