The Canadian National Topographic DataBase and mountain cartography
Roger Wheate, University of Northern British Columbia, Canada
The Canadian National Topographic DataBase (NTDB) contains digital versions of
13,377 1:50,000 map sheets, completed in 2012. These include all vector layers:
roads, hydrography, contours, forests etc.., plus raster map scan, DEM/DTM and
Landsat satellite image for each map. This talk will show examples how these data
can be used to enhance cartographic depiction in Canada’s mountain landscapes
10th Mountain Cartography workshop, Austrian / German Alps, April 2016
The Canadian National Topographic DataBase and mountain cartography
Pre 1940: All mountain
cartography was by phototopographic surveyors, using
oblique ground photos
e.g. A.O.Wheeler
Athabasca Glacier 1911
Post 1945, all topographic
mapping at 1:50,000 was from
air photography, by returning
war veterans and planes;
completed for all maps 2012
Athabasca Glacier, 1958
The National Topographic System (NTS)
http://atlas.gc.ca/site/english/toporama/index.html
Total 1:50,000 Canada map sheets = 13,377
http://geogratis.ca
All data free to download since 2009
- Download by map sheet or Area of Interest (AOI)
- Select topographic map vectors, raster map scan, DTM, Landsat
- DTM can be as interpolated raster or from contour vectors
Map sheet examples used in this presentation:
1. Pyramid Mountain,
Axel Heiberg Island
Arctic cordillera
2. Andrei Icefield,
Coast Mtns
3. Mt. Robson,
Rocky Mtns
Area 1: Pyramid Peak, Axel Heiberg Island
NTS map
059H12
Pyramid
Peak
(2012)
Landsat 7
ETM 2000
3D perspective using DEM
McGill Arctic
Research Station
(MARS), Axel
Heiberg Island
Map subset area
Hillshade 50%
transparency
map scan
with shading
Land beige / glaciers azure
Contours and ice intersected
To enable bi-colour contours
Tundra grasses in yellow
plus index contours labels
Parks Canada
Banff Park,
1995 map
Glaciers in purple
to increase
contrast with
lakes and water
Might this work
at larger scales
with NTDB data ?
Perhaps not here ….
NTDB data main processing steps
Download map sheet or AOI from geogratis.ca
Contours -> generate DTM
Create and add hillshade (relief shading) with transparency
Overlay / intersect glaciers with contours to colour contours
Use minimum threshold length contour segments for labels
Add land cover (mostly ice) – and vegetation from satellite image
Add selected lettering from annotation layer (not done here)
Area 2. Andrei Icefield (Coast Mtns)
Photo: Laura Thomson
Map sheet 104B13: Printed 1975 from 1965 photos
5 km
Map sheet 104B13 with shaded relief
Shaded relief and hydrography
+ glaciers and gravel beds
+ forest cover
+ alpine meadows
2013
5 km
Landsat 5 TM image used to create alpine meadows
+ index contours for illustration
Ongoing issues for map updating and design
DEM/DTM data are from the first mapping (1965)
Glacier extents … ~20 metre retreat per year
Glacier downwasting – up to 5m per year
: can use SRTM DTM (2000) or ASTER for updated DEM
Area 3. Mt. Robson, Berg Lake, Canadian Rocky Mountains
This is the most popular hike in the Canadian Rockies
Robson Glacier 1911-2011
Byron Harmon 1911
Sign: glacier was here in 1911
Roger Wheate 2011
Glacier extents 1923-2005 (Laura Thomson),
base map: A. O. Wheeler, Boundary Commission, 1923
Robson (1975 photos / printed 95)
+ shaded relief
DEM shows BC / AB ‘join’
This 30m break is repeated on Google Earth AB/BC
AB
+30m
BC
Achtung, der Überhang
DEM generated from contours
+ hydrography and glaciers
Landsat 2015 and Robson Glacier 1923
Coniferous / deciduous
vegetation from
Landsat greenness
Selected names from
annotation layer
Berg Glacier, and side of Mt. Robson in background; RW and DAAD/RISE Interns
Birte Kulla (Bonn) and Christina Kramer (Berlin) RISE interns 2015