Creation of digital elevation models for river floodplains

Abstract: A procedure for constructing a digital elevation model (DEM) of the northern part of the Volga-Akhtuba interfluve is described. The basis of our DEM is the elevation matrix of Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) for which we carried out the refinement and updating of spatial data using satellite imagery, GPS data, depth measurements of the River Volga and River Akhtuba stream beds. The most important source of high-altitude data for the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain (VAF) can be the results of observations of the coastlines dynamics of small reservoirs (lakes, eriks, small channels) arising in the process of spring flooding and disappearing during low-flow periods. A set of digitized coastlines at different times of flooding can significantly improve the quality of the DEM. The method of constructing a digital elevation model includes an iterative procedure that uses the results of morphostructural analysis of the DEM and the numerical hydrodynamic simulations of the VAF flooding based on the shallow water model.