noaa / NATIONAL OCEANIC AND

ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

National Environmental Satellite,

Data, and Information Service

NOAA Technical Memorandum NESDIS NGDC-24

ETOPO1 1 ARC-MINUTE GLOBAL RELIEF MODEL:

PROCEDURES, DATA SOURCES AND ANALYSIS 

C. Amante

B.W. Eakins

National Geophysical Data Center

Marine Geology and Geophysics Division

Boulder, Colorado

March 2009

UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Gary Locke

Secretary

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND

ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

Dr. Jane Lubchenco

Under Secretary for Oceans

and Atmosphere/Administrator

National Environmental Satellite,

Data, and Information Service

Mary E. Kicza

Assistant Administrator

NOAA Technical Memorandum NESDIS NGDC-24

ETOPO1 1 ARC-MINUTE GLOBAL RELIEF MODEL:

PROCEDURES, DATA SOURCES AND ANALYSIS 

Christopher Amante1 

Barry W. Eakins2

1NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholar, Boulder, Colorado

2Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado, Boulder 

National Geophysical Data Center

Marine Geology and Geophysics Division 

Boulder, Colorado

March 2009
Amante and Eakins, 2009

ii

NOTICE

Mention of a commercial company or product does not constitute an endorsement by the 

NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service. Use of information 

from this publication concerning proprietary products or the test of such products for publicity

or advertising purposes is not authorized. 

Corresponding project contact:

Barry E. Eakins

NOAA, National Geophysical Data Center

Marine Geology and Geophysics Division

325 Broadway, E/GC 3

Boulder, Colorado 80305

Phone: 303-497-6505

Fax: 303-497-6513

E-mail: Barry.Eakins@noaa.gov

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/global/global.html

Also available from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS)

(http://www.ntis.gov)
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

iii

Contents

1. Introduction........................................................................................................................................1

2. Study Area..........................................................................................................................................2

3. Methodology ......................................................................................................................................2

3.1 Data Sources and Processing ......................................................................................................3

3.1.1 Shoreline................................................................................................................4

3.1.2 Bathymetry ............................................................................................................5

3.1.3 Topography............................................................................................................7

3.1.4 Integrated Bathymetry–Topography......................................................................9

3.1.5 Bedrock ...............................................................................................................13

3.2 Establishing Common Datums .................................................................................................14

3.2.1 Vertical datum transformations ...........................................................................14

3.2.2 Horizontal datum transformations.......................................................................14

3.3 Digital Elevation Model Development .....................................................................................14

3.3.1 Verifying consistency between data sets.............................................................14

3.3.2 Gridding of coastal bathymetry...........................................................................14

3.3.3 Gridding the data with MB-System.....................................................................16

3.3.4 Registration of grids............................................................................................16

3.4 Quality Assessment of the DEM...............................................................................................17

3.4.1 Horizontal and vertical accuracy.........................................................................17

4. Summary and Conclusions...............................................................................................................17

5. Acknowledgments............................................................................................................................18

6. References........................................................................................................................................18

7. Data Processing Software ................................................................................................................19

List of Figures

Figure 1. Color, shaded-relief image of the ETOPO1 Ice Surface Global Relief Model...........................1

Figure 2. Color, shaded-relief image of the ETOPO1 Bedrock Global Relief Model ...............................2

Figure 3. Source and coverage of data sets used to compile the ETOPO1 Ice Surface

Global Relief Model ............................................................................................................3

Figure 4. Source and coverage of data sets used to compile the ETOPO1 Bedrock 

Global Relief Model ............................................................................................................3

Figure 5. Color image of Caspian Sea depth contours and bathymetric grid.............................................6

Figure 6. Color image of Mediterranean Sea morpho-bathymetric map ...................................................6

Figure 7. A row of bad data present in the SRTM30 data set.....................................................................7

Figure 8. Coverage of GLOBE topography that was used in building ETOPO1.......................................8

Figure 9. Anomalous depth values in the Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography 

grid in shallow coastal waters north of Vancouver Island .................................................10

Figure 10. Color image of the IBCAO v.2 grid of the Arctic.....................................................................11

Figure 11. Areas of the U.S. coast covered by NGDC’s Coastal Relief Model.........................................12

Figure 12. Color image of the Estimated Seafloor Topography grid along Iceland’s 

northwest coast ..................................................................................................................15

Figure 13. Color image of Iceland’s northwest coast in ETOPO1.............................................................15

Figure 14. Differences between grid-registration and cell-registration......................................................17

List of Tables

Table 1. Specifications for ETOPO1.........................................................................................................2

Table 2. Shoreline data sets used in evaluating ETOPO1 source data sets...............................................4

Table 3. Bathymetric data sets used in compiling ETOPO1.....................................................................5

Table 4. Topographic data sets used in compiling ETOPO1 ....................................................................7

Table 5. Integrated bathymetric–topographic data sets used in compiling ETOPO1...............................9

Table 6. Bedrock elevation data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Bedrock 

Global Relief Model ..........................................................................................................13

Table 7. Data hierarchy used to assign gridding weight in MB-System.................................................16
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ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

Procedures, Data Sources and Analysis

1. Introduction

In August 2008, the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC), an office of the National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) developed the ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model as an improvement 

to the ETOPO2v2 Global Relief Model. ETOPO1 is available in “Ice Surface” (top of Antarctic and Greenland ice 

sheets; Fig. 1) and “Bedrock” (base of the ice sheets; Fig. 2) versions. Both versions of ETOPO1 were generated 

from diverse global and regional digital data sets (coverage shown in Figs. 3 and 4), which were shifted to common 

horizontal and vertical datums, and then evaluated and edited as needed. This report provides a summary of the data 

sources and methodology used in developing ETOPO1. 

Figure 1. Color, shaded-relief image of the ETOPO1 Ice Surface Global Relief Model.
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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Figure 2. Color, shaded-relief image of the ETOPO1 Bedrock Global Relief Model. Illumination from the east.

2. Study Area

ETOPO1 provides complete global topographic and bathymetric coverage between -90° to +90° in latitude and 

-180° to +180° in longitude. 

3. Methodology

ETOPO1 was developed to improve the resolution and accuracy of the ETOPO2v2 2 arc-minute Global Relief 

Model, and was designed to support tsunami forecasting, modeling and warning, as well as ocean circulation modeling 

and Earth visualization. The best available regional and global digital data sets were obtained by NGDC and shifted 

to common horizontal and vertical datums: World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84) and sea level. Data processing, 

evaluation, assembly and assessment of ETOPO1 are described in the following subsections.

Table 1: Specifications for ETOPO1.

Versions Ice Surface, Bedrock

Coverage Area Global: -180o to 180o; -90o to 90o

Coordinate System Geographic decimal degrees

Horizontal Datum World Geodetic System of 1984 (WGS 84)

Vertical Datum Sea Level

Vertical Units Meters

Cell Size 1 arc-minute

Grid Format Multiple: netCDF, g98, binary float, tiff, xyz
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3.1 Data Sources and Processing

Shoreline, bathymetric, topographic, integrated bathymetric–topographic, and bedrock digital data sets (data 

footprints shown in Figs. 3 and 4) were obtained from several U.S. government agencies, international agencies and 

academic institutions. Safe Software’s (http://www.safe.com/) ‘Feature Manipulation Engine’ (FME) data translation 

tool package was used to shift data sets to WGS 84 horizontal datum and sea level vertical datum, and to convert them 

into ESRI (http://www.esri.com/) ArcGIS shape files and rasters. The shape files and rasters were then displayed with 

ArcGIS to assess data quality and manually edit data sets. Wessel and Smith’s [1991, 1995] ‘Generic Mapping Tools’

(GMT) version 4.3 (http://gmt.soest.hawaii.edu) and Caress and Chayes’ [1995] ‘MB-System’ version 5.1.0 (http://

www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/MB-System/) were used to grid the data and build the global relief model. 

Figure 3. Source and coverage of data sets used to compile the ETOPO1 Ice Surface Global Relief Model.

Figure 4. Source and coverage of data sets used to compile the ETOPO1 Bedrock Global Relief Model.
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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3.1.1 Shoreline

Coastline data sets were obtained from NGDC and the Antarctica Digital Database (Table 2). Both coastline data 

sets were used in evaluating individual source data sets and ETOPO1. They were also used to clip some data sets to 

the coastline to eliminate anomalous values.

Table 2: Shoreline data sets used in evaluating ETOPO1 source data sets.

Source Name Year Data Type Spatial 

Resolution

Original Horizontal 

Datum/Coordinate 

System

Original 

Vertical 

Datum

URL

NGDC GSHHS 2003

Hierarchically 

arranged closed 

polygons

Approximately 

100 m WGS 84 geographic MSL http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/

mgg/shorelines/gshhs.html

ADD Antarctica 

Coastline

1993 to 

2006

Derived from 

maps

Ranges from 5 

m to 5 km WGS 84 geographic MSL http://www.add.scar.

org:8080/add/

1) GSHHS

NGDC disseminates the GSHHS (Global Self-consistent, Hierarchical, High-resolution Shoreline) in 

ArcGIS format. GSHHS is a high-resolution shoreline data set created from the two well-known, public 

domain data sets [Wessel and Smith, 1996]. World Data Bank II (WDB; also known as CIA Data Banks) 

contains global coastlines, lakes, political boundaries, and rivers at an approximate working scale of 

1:3,000,000, which means that the features are considered to be accurately located on maps using that scale 

or smaller. The other data set is the World Vector Shoreline (WVS), which only contains shorelines along 

the ocean and land interface. The WVS data has superior quality and resolution with a working scale of 

1:100,000 and thus the GSHHS was created using the WVS data when possible and supplementing it with 

WDB data. The data have undergone extensive processing and are free of internal inconsistencies such as 

erratic points and crossing segments.

2) Antarctica Coastline

The Antarctic Digital Database provides a medium-resolution coastline for Antarctica, south of 60° S, 

created by the British Antarctic Survey. The database is managed by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic 

Research (SCAR).
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3.1.2 Bathymetry

Bathymetric data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Global Relief Model were obtained from the Japan 

Oceanographic Data Center (JODC), NGDC, the Caspian Environment Programme (CEP), and the Mediterranean 

Science Commission (CIESM; Table 3).

Table 3: Bathymetric data sets used in compiling ETOPO1.

Source Name Year Data Type Spatial 

Resolution

Original 

Horizontal 

Datum/

Coordinate 

System

URL

JODC JODC 

Bathymetry

Grid derived from hydrographic 

survey soundings 0.5 km WGS 84 geographic

http://www.jodc.go.jp/

data_set/jodc/jegg_intro.

html

NGDC

Gulf of 

California 

Bathymetry

2006 Grid derived from multibeam 

swath sonar bathymetric surveys 7 arc-second WGS 84 geographic

CEP Caspian Sea 

Bathymetry 1999 Digitized depth contours 1 arc-minute WGS 84 geographic

http://www.

caspianenvironment.org/

dim/menu5.htm

CIESM Mediterranean 

Sea Bathymetry 2005 Grid derived from multibeam swath sonar bathymetric surveys 0.5 km WGS 84 geographic

http://www.ifremer.fr/

drogm_uk/Realisation/

carto/Mediterranee/index.

html

1) JODC Bathymetry

The JODC data set provides bathymetric data for three areas surrounding Japan:

(1) latitude: N 34 to 46 (degrees), longitude : E 135 to 148 (degrees)

(2) latitude: N 30 to 38 (degrees), longitude : E 128 to 144 (degrees)

(3) latitude: N 24 to 30 (degrees), longitude : E 122 to 132 (degrees)

The underlying hydrographic survey soundings were collected by the Hydrographic and Oceanic 

Department of the Japan Coast Guard and various ocean research institutes. The data were then integrated 

and gridded at 500 meter intervals in the WGS 84 geographic coordinates. Since there is a variety of data 

quality and density, JODC smoothed the data to prevent improper steps. In areas void of data or with rapid 

bathymetry changes, such as coastal areas or seamounts, there are instances where the adopted values are 

moderately different from observed values. 

2) Gulf of California Bathymetry

A 7 arc-second grid of multibeam swath sonar bathymetric surveys in the mouth of the Gulf of California, 

previously created by one of the authors, was used in building ETOPO1. This grid is not currently available 

to the public, although all of the multibeam swath sonar bathymetric data can be obtained from the online 

NGDC multibeam bathymetric database (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/bathymetry/multibeam.html).
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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3) Caspian Sea Bathymetry 

The Caspian Environment Programme provides digitized contour lines of the Caspian Sea ranging from 

zero to 1000 meters in depth, in the WGS 84 geographic coordinate system. The digitized contour lines 

were created from ‘The Navigation Map’ published by the Navigation and Oceanography Department of the 

Defense Ministry of the USSR in 1987 at a scale of 1:1,000,000 in the Mercator projection. NGDC gridded 

the contours with the ArcGIS ‘Topo to Raster’ tool to infill depths between contours (Fig. 5). The contour 

intervals were originally referenced relative to local lake level—approximately 28 meters below mean sea 

level. The grid was shifted 28 m vertically, to be consistent with sea level, before use in gridding ETOPO1.

Figure 5. Color image of Caspian Sea depth contours and bathymetric grid. NGDC used the ArcGIS 

‘Topo to Raster’ tool to create a “hydrologically correct” surface from the contours.

4) Mediterranean Sea Bathymetry

The Mediterranean Science Commission (CIESM) has produced a morpho-bathymetric map (Fig. 6) of 

the Mediterranean Sea derived from multibeam swath sonar surveys [Medimap Group et al., 2005]. A 1-km 

grid of this data was graciously provided to NGDC by Benoit Loubrieu, Ifremer, which was used in building 

ETOPO1.

Figure 6. Color image of Mediterranean Sea morpho-bathymetric map. [Image from 

CIESM web site.]
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3.1.3 Topography

Topographic data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Global Relief Model were obtained from NGDC, NASA, 

and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC; Table 4). 

Table 4: Topographic data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Global Relief Model.

Source Name Year Data Type Spatial 

Resolution

Original 

Horizontal Datum/

Coordinate System

URL

NASA SRTM30 2000 30 arc-second grid derived from 

SRTM radar topography

30 arcsecondsWGS 84 

geographic

http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/

srtm/

NGDC GLOBE 1999 Grid derived from various data 

sets

30 arcsecondsWGS 84 

geographic

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/

mgg/topo/globe.html

NSIDC Antarctica 

RAMP 2001

Grid derived from satellite 

radar altimetry, airborne radar 

surveys, topographic maps

400 m WGS 84 polar 

stereographic

http://nsidc.org/data/

nsidc-0082.html

1) SRTM30 Global Topography

In February 2000, the Space Shuttle Endeavour flew the ‘Space Shuttle Radar Topography Mission’ 

(SRTM), which obtained nearly complete high-resolution digital topographic coverage of Earth between 56° 

S and 60° N. This data was processed into a 3 arc-second coverage database that is distributed to the public 

through the USGS ‘Seamless Server’. It was subsequently converted into a global topographic data set at 30 

arc-second cell size by incorporating GTOPO30 gridded data into areas without SRTM data. The geodetic 

reference for SRTM30 is the WGS 84 EGM96 geoid. NGDC utilized the SRTM30 data between 56° S and 

60° N—excluding Greenland— while eliminating ocean-surface “zero” values and GTOPO30 data outside 

the original SRTM survey region, though other anomalous data points had to be removed manually (e.g., Fig. 

7).

Figure 7. A row of bad data, along 2°S, present in the SRTM30 data set. The bad data were manually removed before the gridding of 

ETOPO1.
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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2) GLOBE Topography

The NGDC GLOBE Topography data sets provides complete 30 arc-second cell-registered coverage of 

global topography [Hastings and Dunbar, 1999]. The data are in WGS 84 geographic coordinates and have 

a sea level vertical datum. GLOBE was created from both global and regional data sources. The underlying 

global data sources used were Digital Terrain Elevation Data (DTED) and Digital Chart of the World (DCW). 

Various regional data sources included DEMs for Australia, Japan, Italy, New Zealand, Greenland, Antarctica, 

and for parts of South America and Asia. ETOPO1 incorporates GLOBE topographic data north of 60° N 

(Fig. 8)—excluding Greenland—and in a few small areas south of 56° S that have islands not represented in 

the Antarctic RAMP data set.

Figure 8. Coverage of GLOBE topography (blue) that was used in building ETOPO1. GSHHS coastline in gray.

3) Antarctica RAMP Topography 

The Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project (RAMP) DEM combines topographic data from a variety of 

sources to provide consistent coverage of all of Antarctica. Version 2 improves upon the original version by 

incorporating new topographic data, error corrections, extended coverage, and other modifications [Liu et 

al., 2001]. The topographic data sources include satellite radar altimetry, airborne radar surveys, the recentlyupdated Antarctic Digital Database (version 2), and large-scale topographic maps from the U.S Geological 

Survey (USGS) and the Australian Antarctic Division. While most of the data has been collected during the 

1980s and 1990s, some of the data originates as far back as the 1940s. The RAMP DEM was created to assist 

in processing RAMP radar data but it does not utilize any RAMP radar data. NGDC utilized the 400-m grid, 

version 2, in building the ETOPO1 Ice Surface Global Relief Model.
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3.1.4 Integrated Bathymetry–Topography

Integrated bathymetric and topographic data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Global Relief Model were 

obtained from Scripps Institute of Oceanography (SIO), the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research (LIBSR), and 

NGDC (Table 5).

Table 5: Integrated bathymetric-topographic data sets used in compiling ETOPO1.

Source Name Year Data Type Spatial 

Resolution

Original 

Horizontal 

Datum/

Coordinate 

System

URL

SIO

Measured and 

Estimated 

Seafloor 

Topography

2008

Grid derived from satellite 

altimetry and hydrographic survey 

soundings

2 arc-minute WGS 84 

geographic

http://topex.ucsd.edu/

marine_topo/

LIBSR Baltic Sea 

Bathymetry 2001 Grid derived from hydrographic survey soundings

0.5 to 2 arcminutes WGS 84 

geographic

http://www.iowarnemuende.de/research/

en_iowtopo.html

NGDC IBCAO 2008

Grid derived from hydrographic 

survey soundings, digitized 

contours, grids and point 

information

2 km WGS 84 polar 

stereographic http://www.ibcao.org/

NGDC U.S. Coastal 

Relief Model

1999 

to 

2005

Grid of NOS hydrographic 

soundings and land topography 3 arc-second WGS 84 geographic

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/

mgg/coastal/coastal.html

NGDC Great Lakes 

Bathymetry

1996 

to 

2005

Grid of hydrographic soundings, 

bathymetric contours, and land 

topography

3 arc-second WGS 84 

geographic

http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/

mgg/greatlakes/greatlakes.

html

1) Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography

The Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography grid provides a 1 arc-minute gridded representation 

of seafloor topography for all ice-free ocean areas within +/- 80 degrees latitude in Mercator projection [Smith 

and Sandwell, 1997]. Topographic data are derived from GTOPO30. Bathymetric values are derived from 

known soundings and sea-surface satellite altimetry measurements, which were first used to calculate free-air 

gravity anomaly and then converted to inferred ocean depths using nearby soundings both as constraints and 

to save gravity-bathymetry relationships. Inaccuracies in the estimated seafloor grid were evident in shallow 

water throughout the data set (e.g., Fig. 9). NGDC down-sampled an older version of the estimated seafloor 

grid to 2 arc-minutes for use in building ETOPO1 (D. Sandwell, pers. request).
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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Figure 9. Anomalous depth values in the Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography grid in 

shallow coastal waters north of Vancouver Island. Depths in the grid exceed 1000 meters in many 

places in this region, although actual charted depths are typically on the order of a few tens of 

meters.
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3) Baltic Sea Bathymetry 

The Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research’s high resolution spherical grid topography of the Baltic 

Sea, 2nd edition, contains two separate grids of the Baltic Sea [Seifert et al., 2001]. The Baltic Sea grid 

covers the entire Baltic Sea from 9° to 31° E and from 53°30 ́ to 66° N, with a resolution of 2 arc-minutes of 

longitude and 1 arc-minute of latitude. The Belt Sea grid contains the region of the Belt Sea from 9° to 15°10 ́ 

E and from 53°30 ́ to 56°30 ́ N, with a resolution of 1 arc-minute of longitude and 0.5 arc-minutes of latitude. 

In order to create a more accurate coastline, both grids used land masks derived from global high-resolution 

shorelines, GSHHS and RANGS (Regionally Accessible Nested Global Shoreline; http://www2008.iowarnemuende.de/homepages/rfeistel/rangs.htm). Most of the underlying data sets were sampled from sea 

charts of different scales. Some data sets included digitized soundings, and only Reissmann’s “Bathymetry 

of four deep Baltic basins” data came from ship-borne measurements. Both grids contain topographic data 

from GTOPO30, though only bathymetric values were used in compiling ETOPO1. 

4) IBCAO Bathymetry

The International Bathymetric Chart of the Arctic Ocean (IBCAO) grid version 2.0 was created from ship 

track data, contours, grids and point information [Fig. 10; Jakobsson et al., 2008]. The majority of the echo 

sounding data was collected from surface vessels extracted from the following four archives: NGDC, the 

U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), the Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS), and the Royal Danish 

Administration of Navigation and Hydrography (RDANH). The NGDC database was the primary source 

and the other three sources were used where there was not any NGDC data available. Where the ship track 

database information was limited in the central Arctic Ocean, contour information was derived from Russia’s 

Head Department of Navigation and Oceanography Bottom relief of the Arctic Ocean map. In addition, 

contours were extracted from the GEBCO Digital Atlas in the southern Norwegian-Greenland Seas, in Baffin 

Bay and in some areas of the Canadian Arctic. In the Gulf of Bothnia, the IBCAO grid used bathymetric 

data derived from the Seifert and Kayser digital grid of the Baltic Sea. NGDC extracted IBCAO bathymetric 

data north of 65 degrees latitude and surrounding Greenland to create ETOPO1. IBCAO topographic data 

of Greenland were also used in building ETOPO1. The original IBCAO grid was in polar stereographic 

projection and was converted to WGS 84 geographic coordinates using ArcGIS. 

Figure 10. Color image of the IBCAO v.2 grid of the Arctic.
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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5) U.S. Coastal Relief Model 

NGDC’s U.S. Coastal Relief Model (CRM) provides 3 arc-second (~90 m) resolution for the East and 

West Coasts, Gulf of Mexico, Hawaii and Puerto Rico (see Fig. 11). The database extends from the coastal 

state boundaries to as far as the National Ocean Service hydrographic data is available, which in many 

cases reaches out to, and in some places even beyond, the continental slope. The bathymetric data sources 

include hydrographic surveys from the U.S. National Ocean Service (NOS), Monterey Bay Aquarium 

Research Institute (MBARI), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers LIDAR (SHOALS), and various other academic 

institutions. In addition, bathymetric contours from the International Bathymetric Chart of the Caribbean Sea 

and Gulf of Mexico were used where applicable. Topographic data are from the USGS National Elevation 

Data set (NED). Only bathymetric values were used in building ETOPO1.

Figure 11. Areas of the U.S. coast covered by NGDC’s Coastal Relief Model.

6) Great Lakes Bathymetry 

NGDC, in cooperation with NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Laboratory and the Canadian 

Hydrographic Service, has compiled detailed vector bathymetric contours and 3 arc-second (~90 m) 

bathymetric grids for most of the U.S. Great Lakes. This integrated bathymetric–topographic grid was 

extracted at 15 arc-seconds for use in building ETOPO1.
ETOPO1 1 Arc-Minute Global Relief Model

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3.1.5 Bedrock

Bedrock data sets depicting the bedrock elevation underneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets were obtained 

from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC), European Ice Sheet Modeling Initiative (EISMINT) and the 

Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR; Table 6).

Table 6: Bedrock elevation data sets used in compiling the ETOPO1 Bedrock Global Relief Model.

Source Name Year Data Type Spatial 

Resolution

Original 

Horizontal 

Datum/

Coordinate 

System

URL

NSIDC Greenland 

Bedrock 2001

Grid derived from satellite 

altimetry, Airbourne 

Topographic Mapper (ATM), 

photogrammetric digital height, 

ice penetrating Radar, airbourne 

echo sounder

5 km WGS 84 Polar 

Stereographic

http://nsidc.org/data/

nsidc-0092.html

EISMINT / 

SCAR

Antarctica 

BEDMAP 2000

Grid derived from terrestrial 

methods of measurement, 

primarily radar and seismic 

soundings

5 km WGS 84 Polar 

Stereographic

http://www.antarctica.

ac.uk//bas_research/data/

access/bedmap/

1) Greenland NSIDC Bedrock

The National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) has built 5-km grids of ice surface, ice thickness and 

bedrock elevation for Greenland in polar stereographic projection [Bamber et al., 2001a, 2001b]. NGDC 

utilized the bedrock grid, resampled to 30 arc-second cell size, in building the ETOPO1 Bedrock grid. NSIDC 

first created an ice-surface DEM from a combination of ERS-1 and Geostat satellite radar altimetry data, 

Airbourne Topographic Mapper (ATM) data, and photogrammetric digital height data. The ice-thickness 

grid was derived from approximately 700,000 data points collected from a University of Kansas airborne 

ice penetrating radar (IPR), in addition to nearly 30,000 data points collected in the 1970s from a Technical 

University of Denmark (TUD) airborne echo sounder. The bedrock-elevation grid was created by subtracting 

the ice-thickness grid from the ice-surface grid. It is in WGS 84 polar stereographic projection, with standard 

parallel of latitude 71° N, projection parallel of 90° N, and 39° W central meridian.

2) Antarctica BEDMAP Bedrock 

The European Ice Sheet Modeling Initiative (EISMINT) and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic 

Research’s (SCAR) created the Antarctica BEDMAP grid, which contains the bedrock elevation data beneath 

the grounded ice sheet of Antarctica [Lythe et al., 2000]. It includes the entire geosphere south of 60° S at 

a nominal grid spacing of 5 km in WGS 84 polar stereographic projection. It was created from terrestrial 

methods of measurement, primarily radar and seismic soundings. The Antarctica BEDMAP provides an 

improved delineation of the boundary between East and West Antarctica. It also more accurately describes 

the morphology of the contiguous East Antarctica landmass, which is under an average of 2,500 meters of 

ice. 
Amante and Eakins, 2009

14

3.2 Establishing Common Datums

3.2.1 Vertical datum transformations

Data sets used in the compilation and evaluation of ETOPO1 Global Relief Model were all originally referenced 

to sea level with the exception of the Caspian Sea data set. The contour intervals contained in this data set were 

originally referenced relative to local lake level. The grid was shifted 28 m vertically to be consistent with sea level 

before use in gridding ETOPO1. 

3.2.2 Horizontal datum transformations

Data sets used to compile ETOPO1 Global Relief Model were originally referenced to WGS 84 geographic and 

WGS 84 polar stereographic. The relationships and transformational equations between these horizontal datums are 

well established. All data were converted to the WGS 84 geographic horizontal datum using FME software.

3.3 Digital Elevation Model Development

3.3.1 Verifying consistency between data sets

After horizontal and vertical transformations were applied, the resulting ArcGIS shape files and rasters were 

checked in ArcMap for consistency between data sets. Problems and errors were identified and resolved before 

proceeding with subsequent gridding steps. The evaluated and edited ESRI shape files were then converted to xyz files 

in preparation for gridding. Problems included:

•	 Inconsistencies between IBCAO and the Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography data sets in coastal 

regions

•	 Row of data errors in SRTM30 data set. Manual editing of the data was necessary to minimize these 

artifacts.

•	 SRMT30 data set contains zero values over the open ocean. These values were removed using FME.

3.3.2 Gridding of coastal bathymetry

NGDC created bathymetric pre-surfaces in order to interpolate bathymetric data into coastal regions, which were 

poorly represented in some bathymetric data sets (e.g., Fig. 12). A global bathymetric pre-surface—excluding south 

of 60° S—was created using the Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography data (between -500 m and 0 m). These 

data were gridded at 1 arc-minute cell size using GMT’s ‘surface’ tool. Points extracted from the GSHHS coastline 

were also included, at -1 m elevation, to force bathymetric interpolation into the coastal zone. The resulting surface, 

created in quadrangles, was clipped to the GSHHS coastline and the -120 m contour. Values between -50 and 0 m 

were then extracted from the clipped quadrangle grids and were used in building ETOPO1 (e.g,. Fig. 13). An Iceland 

bathymetric pre-surface was also created, utilizing the Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography bathymetric 

values and the GSHHS coastline with points assigned at -5 m elevation, due to the deep fjords surrounding Iceland. 

This bathymetric pre-surface was also utilized in compiling ETOPO1 (see Table 7).
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Figure 12. Color image of the IBCAO grid along Iceland’s northwest coast. Note the presence of 

positive, topographic values in many of Iceland’s fjords. GSHHS coastline in red.

Figure 13. Color image of Iceland’s northwest coast in ETOPO1. ETOPO1 incorporates a 

bathymetric pre-surface that forces interpolation of bathymetric values into coastal zones, enhancing 

their representation in the global relief model. GSHHS coastline in red.
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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3.3.3 Gridding the data with MB-System

MB-System (http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/MB-System/) was used to create the 1 arc-minute ETOPO1 

DEM. MB-System is an NSF-funded free software application that manipulates a wide variety of data types, including 

generic xyz data. The MB-System tool ‘mbgrid’ was used to apply a tight spline tension to the xyz data, and interpolate 

values for cells without data. The data hierarchy used in the ‘mbgrid’ gridding algorithm, as relative gridding weights, 

is listed in Table 7. The greatest weight was given to the Antarctica RAMP ice surface topography, Antarctica 

BEDMAP bedrock topography and the Greenland NSIDC bedrock topography data sets. Least weight was given to the 

global data sets and the interpolated bathymetric surface. Data were gridded in 16 regional tiles that were seamlessly 

integrated to produce the final ice surface and bedrock grids.

 Table 7: Data hierarchy used to assign gridding weight in MB-System.

Data set Relative Gridding Weight

Antarctica RAMP Topography 100

Antarctica BEDMAP Bedrock 100

Greenland NSIDC Bedrock 100

Gulf of California Bathymetry 10

Mediterranean Sea Bathymetry 10

JODC Bathymetry 10

Baltic Sea Bathymetry 10

IBCAO Bathymetry 10

Caspian Sea Bathymetry 10

U.S. Coastal Relief Model 10

Great Lakes Bathymetry 10

Created Iceland Bathymetric Surface 10

SRTM30 Global Topography 1

GLOBE Topography 1

Measured and Estimated Seafloor Topography 1

Bathymetric pre-surface 1

3.3.4 Registration of grids

The ETOPO1 Ice Surface and Bedrock global relief models are available in both grid/node-registration and cell/

pixel-registration. Figure 14 illustrates the differences between these two registrations. An individual grid cell in either 

registration has one elevation value that represents the average elevation over the extent of the cell. This value can 

alternatively be represented as a point at the center of the cell. The differences between the two registrations are in 

how the grid ranges are defined (red lines in Fig. 14). Ranges for grid- or node-registered grids refer to the centers of 

the cells that lie along the boundaries of the grid (panel A), and the footprints of the cells extend 1/2 cell width outside 

the range. Ranges for cell- or pixel-registered grids refer to the outside edges of the boundaries of the grid (panel B). 

This means for two grids with the same range, the grid-registered grid will have one more row and one more column 

than the cell-registered version. For global grids, a grid-registered grid has cells along the northern boundary that sit 

atop the North Pole, and similarly for the South Pole. Cell-registered grids have cells along the northern boundary 

that just touch the North Pole. Cell-registered grids are more typically used in images, while grid-registered are more 

commonly used for representing discrete, though averaged, point data. 

ETOPO1 was built as a global, grid-registered, 1 arc-minute grid that spans from pole to pole and from -180° to 

180° in longitude. It is 21601 cells by 10801 cells in dimension, with multiple duplicate cells sitting atop the North and 

South poles and on the -180°/180° longitude line. A cell-registered version (21600 by 10800 cells) was created from 

the grid-registered version by resampling, using GMT’s ‘grdsample’ tool. This resampling introduces some flattening 

of relief, due to averaging of four grid-registered cell values to produce one cell-registered value (see Fig. 14). Both 

types are global, though the grid-registered version should be considered the authoritative version. The cell-registered 

version may be more appropriate for creating maps and images.
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Figure 14. Differences between grid-registration and cell-registration. Grid-registered grids have cells centered on 

gridlines (lines of latitude and longitude for ETOPO1), while cell-registered grids have cells lying between gridlines.

3.4 Quality Assessment of the DEM

3.4.1. Horizontal and Vertical accuracy

The horizontal and vertical accuracy of topographic and bathymetric features in the ETOPO1 is dependent upon 

the data sets used to determine corresponding DEM cell values. Thus far, only a qualitative assessment of ETOPO1 

has been performed. The GSHHS and the Antarctica Digital Database coastlines were used to assess the integration 

of topography and bathymetry. Further qualitative evaluation will involve the use of slope maps and 3-D perspectives 

in ETOPO1. A quantitative evaluation by comparing ETOPO1 with select source data sets and international nautical 

charts will be performed in the future.

4. Summary and Conclusions

ETOPO1 is a global, integrated bathymetric–topographic, digital elevation model with cell size of 1 arc-minute. 

It is available in two versions: Ice Surface, which depicts the surface of the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets; and 

Bedrock, which depicts the bedrock underneath the ice sheets. The best available digital data from diverse global and 

regional digital data sets were obtained, shifted to common horizontal and vertical datums, and evaluated and edited 

before DEM generation. The data and DEM were quality checked, processed and gridded using ArcGIS, FME, MBSystem, and GMT software. 

Recommendations to improve the ETOPO1 Global Relief Model include:

•	 Incorporate international hydrographic soundings in coastal waters

•	 Quantitatively assess by comparing to source data sets and international nautical charts
Amante and Eakins, 2009

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5. Acknowledgments

The development of ETOPO1 was supported by an internship at NGDC through the NOAA Ernest F. Hollings 

Undergraduate Scholarship Program. The authors thank Beniot Loubrieu, Ifremer, for contributing Mediterranean 

Sea bathymetry. They also thank the members of NGDC’s Marine Geology & Geophysics (MGG) division for their 

assistance throughout the development of ETOPO1. 

6. References

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Measurement, data reduction, and errors, J. of Geophys. Res. 106 (D24): 33773-33780, 2001a.

Bamber, J.L., R.L. Layberry, and S.P. Gogenini, A new ice thickness and bed data set for the Greenland ice sheet 2: 

Relationship between dynamics and basal topography, J. of Geophys. Res. 106 (D24): 33781-33788, 2001b.

Caress, D. W., and D. N. Chayes, New software for processing sidescan data from sidescan-capable multibeam sonars, 

Proceedings of the IEEE Oceans 95 Conference, 997-1000, 1995.

Hastings, D.A., and P. K. Dunbar, Global Land One-kilometer Base Elevation (GLOBE) Digital Elevation Model, 

Documentation, Volume 1.0, Key to Geophysical Records Documentation (KGRD) 34, National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Adminstration, National Geophysical Data Center, Boulder, Colorado, 1999.

Jakobsson, M., R. Macnab, M. Mayer, R. Anderson, M. Edwards, J. Hatzky, H-W. Schenke, and P. Johnson, An 

improved bathymetric portrayal of the Arctic Ocean: Implications for ocean modeling and geological, geophysical 

and oceanographic analyses, L07602, Geophys. Res. Lett., 35, doi:10.1029/2008GL033520, 2008.

Liu, H., K. Jezek, B. Li, and Z. Zhao, Radarsat Antarctic Mapping Project digital elevation model version 2, National 

Snow and Ice Data Center, Boulder, CO, Digital media, 2001.

Lythe, M.B., D. G. Vaughan, and the BEDMAP Consortium, BEDMAP - bed topography of the Antarctic, 1:10,000,000 

scale map, BAS (Misc) 9, Cambridge, British Antarctic Survey, 2000.

Medimap Group, B. Loubrieu, J. Mascle et al., Morpho-bathymetry of the Mediterranean Sea, CIESM/Ifremer edition, 

2 maps at 1:2,000,000, 2005.

Seifert, T., F. Tauber, and B. Kayser, A high-resolution spherical grid topography of the Baltic Sea – 2nd edition, Baltic 

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Wessel, P., and W. H. F. Smith, A Global Self-consistent, Hierarchical, High-resolution Shoreline Database, J. Geophys. 

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Wessel, P., and W. H. F. Smith, Free software helps map and display data, EOS Trans. AGU, 72, 441, 1991.

Wessel, P., and W. H. F. Smith, New version of the Generic Mapping Tools released, EOS Trans. AGU, 76, 329, 

1995.
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7. Data Processing Software

ArcGIS v. 9.2, developed and licensed by ESRI, Redlands, California, http://www.esri.com/

FME 2008 ESRI Edition – Feature Manipulation Engine, developed and licensed by Safe Software, Vancouver, BC, 

Canada, http://www.safe.com/

GMT v. 4.3 – Generic Mapping Tools, free software developed and maintained by Paul Wessel and Walter Smith, 

funded by the National Science Foundation, http://gmt.soest.hawaii.edu

MB-System v. 5.1.0, free software developed and maintained by David W. Caress and Dale N. Chayes, funded by the 

National Science Foundation, http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/MB-System/