Shuttle Radar Topography Mission
Also called: SRTM · Topic: Topographical Maps: Relief Representation and Interpretation · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) was a NASA mission flown on the Space Shuttle Endeavour in February 2000. It used radar to measure the height of the land between 60°N and 56°S. Radar is a system that sends out radio waves and times their echoes, so it works through cloud and at night. The result is a near-global digital elevation model (DEM) at about 30 m resolution. A DEM is a grid of ground heights stored on a computer. Scientists and planners worldwide use SRTM data for slope, drainage and flood mapping.
Example
All of India lies well within the 60°N–56°S belt, so SRTM covers the whole country, from the Himalaya to Kanniyakumari. It is widely used to study river basins such as the Brahmaputra in Assam.
Don't confuse with
- CartoDEM: this is ISRO's DEM of India only, made from Cartosat-1 stereo images rather than radar.