DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

noaa / NATIONAL OCEANIC AND

ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

National Environmental Satellite,

Data, and Information Service

NOAA Technical Memorandum NESDIS NGDC-7

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA :

PROCEDURES, DATA SOURCES AND ANALYSIS 

L.A.Taylor

B.W. Eakins

K.S. Carignan

R.R. Warnken

T. Sazonova

D.C. Schoolcraft

G.F. Sharman

National Geophysical Data Center

Marine Geology and Geophysics Division

Boulder, Colorado

January 2008


DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Carlos M. Gutierrez

Secretary

NATIONAL OCEANIC AND

ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

VADM Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.

Under Secretary for Oceans

and Atmosphere/Administrator

National Environmental Satellite,

Data, and Information Service

Mary E. Kicza

Assistant Administrator

NOAA Technical Memorandum NESDIS NGDC-7

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA:

PROCEDURES, DATA SOURCES AND ANALYSIS

Lisa A. Taylor1

Barry W. Eakins2

Kelly S. Carignan2

Robin R. Warnken1

Tatiana Sazonova2

David C. Schoolcraft1

George F. Sharman1

1

NOAA, National Geophysical Data Center, Boulder, Colorado

2

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

National Geophysical Data Center

Marine Geology and Geophysics Division 

Boulder, Colorado

January 2008
ii

Taylor et al., 2008

NOTICE

Menton of a commercal company or product does not consttute an endorsement by the 

NOAA Natonal Envronmental Satellte, Data, and Informaton Servce. Use of nformaton 

from ths publcaton concernng propretary products or the test of such products for publcty

or advertsng purposes s not authorzed. 

Corresponding author contact:

Lsa A. Taylor

NOAA, Natonal Geophyscal Data Center

Marne Geology and Geophyscs Dvson

35 Broadway, E/GC 3

Boulder, Colorado 80305

Phone: 303-497-6767

Fax: 303-497-653

E-mal: Lsa.A.Taylor@noaa.gov

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

Also avalable from the Natonal Techncal Informaton Servce (NTIS)

(http://www.nts.gov)
iii

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

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 ............................................................................................................8

3.1.3 Topography..........................................................................................................18

3.1.4 Topography–Bathymetry.....................................................................................23

3.2 Establishing Common Datums .................................................................................................25

3.2.1 Vertical datum transformations ...........................................................................25

3.2.2 Horizontal datum transformations.......................................................................26

3.3 Digital Elevation Model Development .....................................................................................26

3.3.1 Verifying consistency between datasets..............................................................26

3.3.2 Averaging of City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data ..............................................27

3.3.3 Smoothing of bathymetric data ...........................................................................27

3.3.4 Gridding the data with MB-System.....................................................................27

3.4 Quality Assessment of the DEM...............................................................................................28

3.4.1 Horizontal accuracy.............................................................................................28

3.4.2 Vertical accuracy .................................................................................................28

3.4.3 Slope maps and 3-D perspectives........................................................................28

3.4.4	 Comparison with source data files.......................................................................30

3.4.5 Comparison with NOAA tidal stations................................................................30

3.4.6 Comparison with NGS geodetic monuments......................................................30

4. Summary and Conclusions...............................................................................................................32

5. Acknowledgments............................................................................................................................32

6. References........................................................................................................................................32

7. Data Processing Software ................................................................................................................34

List of Figures

Figure 1. Shaded-relief image of the Virginia Beach, Virginia region.......................................................1

Figure 2. Geologic cross-section showing stratigraphy of Atlantic Coastal Plain .....................................2

Figure 3. Source and coverage of datasets used to compile the Virginia Beach DEM ..............................3

Figure 4. Electronic Navigational Charts available for the Virginia Beach DEM .....................................5

Figure 5. Digital coastline segments used to create a ‘combined coastline’ for the Virginia Beach 

region ...................................................................................................................................7

Figure 6. Digital NOS hydrographic survey coverage in the Virginia Beach region...............................11

Figure 7. Spatial coverage of NOS shallow-water multibeam swath sonar surveys in the vicinity of 

Virginia Beach that were utilized in DEM development...................................................12

Figure 8. Detail of NOS multibeam survey H11303................................................................................13

Figure 9. Spatial coverage of USACE surveys of dredged shipping channels and the Atlantic 

Intracoastal Waterway in the vicinity of Virginia Beach ...................................................14

Figure 10. Spatial coverage of NGDC-digitized sections of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway..............15

Figure 11. Spatial coverage of soundings extracted from ENC #12253....................................................16

Figure 12. Spatial coverage of soundings extracted from ENCs in the Delmarva Peninsula region.........17

Figure 13. Color image of NED 1/3 arc-second data in the Hampton, Virginia area.................................19

Figure 14. Color image of striations within the NED 1 arc-second data in the Delmarva Peninsula ........19

Figure 15. SRTM data in the vicinity of Fishermans Island ......................................................................20

Figure 16. Color image of City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data in the vicinity of Little Creek 

 Channel ..............................................................................................................................21

Figure 17. Google Earth satellite image of Little Creek Channel..............................................................22
iv

Taylor et al., 2008

Figure 18. Spatial coverage of JALBTCX high-resolution, combined bathymetric-topographic, 

coastal LiDAR surveys in the vicinity of Virginia Beach that were utilized in 

DEM development.............................................................................................................24

Figure 19. Spatial coverage of VDatum transformation tools within Virginia Beach DEM boundary .....25

Figure 20. Histogram of the difference between the NOS hydrographic survey and the 

 1 arc-second NOS pre-surfaced bathymetric grid .............................................................27

Figure 21. Slope map of the Virginia Beach DEM in the vicinity of Newport News................................29

Figure 22. Perspective view from the east of the Virginia Beach DEM ....................................................29

Figure 23. Histogram of the difference between one JALBTCX coastal bathymetric–topographic 

	 LiDAR survey file and the Virginia Beach DEM..............................................................30

Figure 24. Location of NGS monuments and NOAA tide stations in the vicinity of Virginia Beach........31

Figure 25. Histogram of the differences between NGS geodetic monument elevations and the 

Virginia Beach DEM .........................................................................................................31

List of Tables

Table 1.	 PMEL specifications for the Virginia Beach DEM.....................................................................2

Table 2. Shoreline datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM .................................................4

Table 3. NOAA nautical charts in the Virginia Beach, Virginia region....................................................4

Table 4. Bathymetric datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.............................................8

Table 5. Digital NOS hydrographic surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.......................8

Table 6. Recent NOS shallow-water multibeam surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach 

DEM..........................................................................................................................................12

Table 7. Recent USACE surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM......................................14

Table 8. Constants applied to ENC-extracted soundings........................................................................16

Table 9. Topographic datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM ..........................................18

Table 10. Combined topographic-bathymetric datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach 

DEM ..................................................................................................................................23

Table 11. Relationships between Mean High Water and other vertical datums in the Virginia Beach 

region .................................................................................................................................26

Table 12. Data hierarchy used to assign gridding weight in MB-System.................................................28

Table 13. Comparison of NOAA tidal benchmark elevation, in meters above MHW, with the 

Virginia Beach DEM .........................................................................................................30


DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Digital Elevation Model of Virginia Beach, Virginia:

Procedures, Data Sources and Analysis

1. Introduction

In January 2007, the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC), an office of the National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), developed a bathymetric–topographic digital elevation model (DEM) of 

Virginia Beach, Virginia (Fig. 1) for the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) NOAA Center for Tsunami

Research (http://nctr.pmel.noaa.gov/). The DEM also spans the neighboring communities of Norfolk and Hampton, 

Virginia, which lie along southern Chesapeake Bay. The 1/3 arc-second coastal DEM will be used as input for the 

Method of Splitting Tsunami (MOST) model developed by PMEL to simulate tsunami generation, propagation and 

inundation. The DEM was generated from diverse digital datasets in the region (grid boundary and sources shown 

in Fig. 3) and will be used for tsunami inundation modeling, as part of the tsunami forecast system SIFT (Short-term 

Inundation Forecasting for Tsunamis) currently being developed by PMEL for the NOAA Tsunami Warning Centers. 

This report provides a summary of the data sources and methodology used in developing the Virginia Beach DEM. 

Figure 1. Shaded-relief image of the Virginia Beach, Virginia region. Coastline in red.

. The Virginia Beach DEM is built upon a grid of cells that are square in geographic coordinates (latitude and longitude), however, the cells are 

not square when converted to projected coordinate systems, such as UTM zones (in meters). At the latitude of Virginia Beach, Virginia (36°51′ N, 

76°00′ W) 1/3 arc-second of latitude is equivalent to 10.27 meters; 1/3 arc-second of longitude equals 8.26 meters.


Taylor et al., 2008

2. Study Area

The Virginia Beach DEM covers the coastal area surrounding the city of Virginia Beach and the mouth of 

Chesapeake Bay. Besides a large tourism economy, the region also supports several significant military facilities,

agricultural businesses, and serves as a main transportation hub based on its network of shipping and rail lines. Other 

communities located within the DEM include Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Hampton and Newport News (Fig. 

1).

The DEM is located within the geologic region called the Atlantic Coastal Plain: a thick basement layer of 

igneous and metamorphic rock overlain with a thick wedge of sediments that increases in thickness and dips towards 

the eastern shoreline (Fig. 2). This sedimentary wedge consists primarily of eroded clays, sands, and gravel from 

the Appalachian mountains, covered with a thin layer of marine sands deposited in a series of sea level changes. 

Chesapeake Bay also contains an impact crater estimated to be 35 million years old, stretching 90 km in diameter. As 

the plain was uplifted, numerous peninsulas were incised by stream cutting, with the larger rivers forming tidal rivers. 

Examples of this include the Potomac, Rappahannock, York, and James Rivers, all of which empty into Chesapeake 

Bay.

Figure 2. Geologic cross-section showing stratigraphy of Atlantic Coastal Plain. (http://www.

wm.edu/geology/virginia/coastal_plain_strat.html)

3. Methodology

The Virginia Beach DEM was developed to meet PMEL specifications (Table 1), based on input requirements

for the MOST inundation model. The best available digital data were obtained by NGDC and shifted to common 

horizontal and vertical datums: World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84) and Mean High Water (MHW), for modeling 

of “worst-case scenario” flooding, respectively. Data processing and evaluation, and DEM assembly and assessment

are described in the following subsections.

Table 1. PMEL specifications for the Virginia Beach DEM.

Grid Area Virginia Beach, Virginia

Coverage Area 75.4 o to 76.6o W; 36.45o to 37.5o N

Coordinate System Geographic decimal degrees

Horizontal Datum World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS84)

Vertical Datum Mean High Water (MHW)

Vertical Units Meters

Grid Spacing 1/3 arc-second

Grid Format ESRI ASCII raster grid
DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

3.1 Data Sources and Processing

Shoreline, bathymetric, topographic and combined topographic–bathymetric digital datasets (Fig. 3) were 

obtained from several U.S. federal and state agencies including: NOAA’s National Ocean Service (NOS), Office

of Coast Survey (OCS), Coastal Services Center (CSC), Coast Survey Development Laboratory (CSDL), National 

Geodetic Survey (NGS), and NGDC; the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS); the U.S Army Corps of Engineers (USACE); 

Virginia Coast Reserve-Long Term Ecological Research (VCR/LTER), University of Virginia; and the cities of 

Norfolk, Virginia Beach, and Hampton, Virginia. Safe Software’s (http://www.safe.com/) FME data translation tool 

package was used to shift datasets to WGS84 horizontal datum and to convert into ESRI (http://www.esri.com/) 

ArcGIS shape files. The shape files were then displayed with ArcGIS to assess data quality and manually edit datasets;

NGDC’s GEODAS software (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/geodas/) was used to manually edit large xyz datasets. 

Vertical datum transformations to MHW were accomplished using FME—based upon data from local NOAA tidal 

stations—and VDatum model software (http://nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/csdl/vdatum.htm).

Figure 3. Source and coverage of datasets used to compile the Virginia Beach DEM.
Taylor et al., 2008

3.1.1 Shoreline

Four digital coastline datasets of the Virginia Beach region were analyzed for inclusion in the Virginia Beach 

DEM: OCS electronic navigational charts, CSDL vector shoreline, NGS vector shoreline, and Northampton County, 

Virginia hydo-line (Table 2).

Table 2. Shoreline datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

Source Year Data Type Spatial Resolution

Original 

Horizontal 

Datum

Original 

Vertical 

Datum

URL

OCS Electronic 

Navigational Charts

2002 to 

2006 MHW coastline

Digitized from 

1:20,000 and 

1:80,000 scale 

charts

WGS84 

geographic MHW http://chartmaker.ncd.

noaa.gov/

CSDL 2001 U.S. Merged Vector 

shoreline 1:20,000 NAD83 geographic MHW

http://nauticalcharts.

noaa.gov/csdl/ctp/cm_

vs.htm

National Geodetic 

Survey 2003

NGS Shoreline 

Mapping Program 

Vector shoreline

NAD83 

geographic MHW

http://www.ngs.noaa.

gov/newsys_ims/

shoreline/index.cfm

Virginia Coast 

Reserve – Long 

Term Ecological 

Research 

1995 Northampton County 

Hydro-line

1:100,000 scale 

map

NAD83 State 

Plane Virginia 

South

MHW http://atlantic.evsc.

virginia.edu/

NGDC-digitized 2006 FWS wetlands maps 

and NOAA RNCs

1:24,000 scale 

topographic maps

WGS84 

geographic MHW

1) OCS Electronic Navigational Charts

Eighteen NOAA nautical charts were available for the Virginia Beach region (Table 3) and were 

downloaded from NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey (OCS) website (http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/). All of 

the nautical charts are available in raster nautical chart (RNC) format—georeferenced map imagery, which 

are frequently updated—with some also available as electronic navigation charts (ENCs)—digital GIS chart 

components (Fig. 4). The NOAA Coastal Services Center’s ‘Electronic Navigational Chart Data Handler 

for ArcView’ extension (http://www.csc.noaa.gov/products/enc/) was used to import the ENCs into ArcGIS. 

The ENCs include coastline data files (MHW), which were compared with the other coastline datasets, highresolution coastal LiDAR data, topographic data, and NOS hydrographic soundings. The ENCs also include 

soundings (extracted from NOS hydrographic surveys) and land elevations.

Eight of the ENCs were used in conjunction with other coastline datasets to build a ‘combined coastline’ 

(Fig. 5). Those nautical charts that exist only as RNCs were used to evaluate other coastline, bathymetric and 

topographic datasets and for digitization of coastal features not represented in any digital coastline dataset.

Table 3. NOAA nautical charts in the Virginia Beach, Virginia region.

Chart 

Number Title Edition Date Scale Available Format

Used in Combined 

Coastline

12205

FOLIO SMALL-CRAFT CHART Cape Henry to 

Pamlico Sound, Including Albemarle Sound; Rudee 

Heights

30th 11 /2005 various ENC yes

12206

Intracoastal Waterway Norfolk to Albemarle Sound 

via North Landing River or Great Dismal Swamp 

Canal

31st 4/2005 1:40,000 RNC no

12207 Cape Henry to Currituck Beach Light 21st 3/2004 1:50,000 RNC no

12208 Approaches to Chesapeake Bay 11 th 5/2005 1:50,000 ENC yes

12210 Chincoteague Inlet to Great Machipongo Inlet; 

Chincoteague Inlet 37th 1/2006 1:80,000 RNC no
DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

12221 Chesapeake Bay Entrance 78th 4/2006 1:80,000 ENC no

12222 Chesapeake Bay Cape Charles to Norfolk Harbor 47th 11 /2005 1:40,000 ENC yes

12224 Chesapeake Bay Cape Charles to Wolf Trap 5th 11 /2006 1:40,000 ENC no

12225 Chesapeake Bay Wolf Trap to Smith Point 55th 8/2004 1:80,000 RNC no

12226 Chesapeake Bay Wolf Trap to Pungoteague Creek 16th 11/2001 1:40,000 ENC no

12235 Rappahannock River Entrance Piankatank and 

Great Wicomico Rivers 4th 10/2006 1:40,000 ENC no

12238 Chesapeake Bay Mobjack Bay and York River 

Entrance 39th 1/2006 1:40,000 ENC no

12241 York River Yorktown and Vicinity 21st 1/2002 1:20,000 ENC yes

12245 Hampton Roads 65th 11 /2005 1:20,000 ENC yes

12248 James River Newport News to Jamestown Island; 

Back River and College Creek 41st 12/2005 1:40,000 ENC yes

12253 Norfolk Harbor and Elizabeth River 44th 12/2004 1:20,000 ENC yes

12254 Chesapeake Bay Cape Henry to Thimble Shoal 

Light 46th 2/2006 1:20,000 ENC yes

12255 Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base 16th 9/2005 1:5,000 ENC no

Figure 4. Electronic Navigational Charts available for the Virginia Beach DEM.
Taylor et al., 2008

2) CSDL Merged Vector Shoreline Derived from NOAA Nautical Charts

A merged vector shoreline dataset of the U.S. was originally derived from NOAA Nautical Charts using 

a process and software developed by the CSDL Cartographic & Geospatial Technology Program. This dataset 

was used in building the combined coastline as it provides the most complete coverage within the Virginia 

Beach region.

3) NGS vector shoreline

The NGS high-resolution vector shoreline covers most of the territory of the United States, and was 

compiled by the NGS Remote Sensing Division. Five NGS datasets for the Virginia Beach were used: West 

Shore of Chesapeake Bay; Cape Henry to the Upper Part of Currituck Sound; Piankatank River to Cape Henry, 

North Landing, Northwest and North Rivers, North Carolina and Virginia; and Newport News–Norfolk.

These vector data represent shoreline and associated data originating from current remote sensing production. 

The vector data files are seamless within the surveyed project area. These shoreline data represent a vector

conversion of a set of NOS raster shoreline manuscript identified by t-sheet or tp-sheet numbers. These vector

data were created by NOS contractors, who vectorized georeferenced raster shoreline manuscripts using 

ESRI ArcScan software to create individual ArcInfo coverages. The individual coverages were ultimately 

edge matched within a surveyed project area and appended together.

4) Northampton County hydro-line

This digital hydroline is a 1:100,000 scale digital map of hydrologic features for Northampton County, 

VA. It was created by the Virginia Coast Reserve – Long Term Ecological Research (VCR/LTER), University 

of Virginina in cooperation with Northampton County, Virginia. VCR/LTER built the map by linking 7 

USGS 1:100,000 scale DLG files and eliminating all boundary lines. Minimal edge matching was done when

necessary to correct for inconsistencies visible after the DLG sections were joined. Some attribute values 

were added and some were shifted to different attribute columns, to enable better use in ArcView without 

loss of original USGS data values.

5) NGDC digitized coastline segments

Several sections of coastline (Fig. 5) were not adequately represented in any digital coastline dataset, 

thus NGDC chose to digitize these segments, using ESRI ArcMap, based upon raster images and digital maps 

from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (wetlands maps) and NOAA RNCs.

To obtain the best digital MHW coastline, NGDC combined the ENC, CSDL, NGS, and Northampton 

coastlines. This ‘combined coastline’ (Fig. 5) was manually adjusted in many places, using ArcGIS, to match the 

high-resolution coastal LiDAR data and RNC data. The combined coastline was sub sampled to 10-meter spacing and 

converted to point data for use in the gridding process. It was also used as a coastal buffer for the NOS pre-surfacing 

algorithm (see Section 3.3.3) to ensure that interpolated bathymetric values reached “zero” at the coast. The combined 

coastline was also used to clip the USGS NED topographic DEMs, which contain elevation values, typically zero, 

over the open ocean (Section 3.1.3).
DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 5. Digital coastline segments used to create a ‘combined coastline’ for the Virginia Beach region.
Taylor et al., 2008

3.1.2 Bathymetry

Bathymetric datasets used in the compilation of the Virginia Beach DEM include: NOS hydrographic surveys, 

recent NOS shallow-water multibeam surveys, USACE surveys of dredged shipping channels, features digitized by 

NGDC, and soundings extracted from ENCs (Table 4). 

Table 4. Bathymetric datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

Source Year Data Type Spatial Resolution

Original 

Horizontal 

Datum/

Coordinate 

System

Original 

Vertical 

Datum

URL

NOS 1868 to 

1997

Hydrographic 

survey 

soundings

Ranges from 10 m to 4 km 

(varies with scale of survey, 

depth, traffic and probability of

obstructions)

NAD27, NAD83

MLW or 

MLLW

(meters)

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

mgg/bathymetry/hydro.

html

NOS 2001 to 

2005

Shallow-water 

multibeam 1 to 10 meters NAD 83 UTM Zone 18

MLLW

(meters)

USACE 2004 to 

2006

Bathymetric 

surveys

Profiles 60 to 1100 m long, 30

to 130 m apart, with <1 m point 

spacing 

NAD83 State 

Plane Virginia 

South

MLLW

(meters)

NGDC 2006

Digitized 

Intracoastal 

Waterway 

soundings

2 parallel track 10 to 20 m apart, 

with <10 m point spacing

WGS84 MLLW

(feet)

OCS 

ENCs 2006 Extracted ENC 

sounding data 1:20,000 WGS84 MLLW(meters)

http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.

gov/

1) NOS hydrographic survey data

A total of 107 NOS hydrographic surveys conducted between 1868 and 1997 were utilized in building 

the Virginia Beach DEM (Table 5; Fig. 6). The hydrographic survey data were originally vertically referenced 

to Mean Lower Low Water (MLLW) or Mean Low Water (MLW), and horizontally referenced to either 

NAD27 or NAD83 datums. Numerous other NOS surveys that were older (i.e., superceded by subsequent 

surveys) or of low-resolution were not included in the DEM.

Data point spacing for the NOS surveys varied by collection date. In general, earlier surveys had greater 

point spacing than more recent surveys. All surveys were extracted from NGDC’s online NOS hydrographic 

database (http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/bathymetry/hydro.html) in their original, digitized datums (Table 

5). The data were then converted to WGS84 using FME software, an integrated collection of spatial extract, 

transform, and load tools for data transformation (http://www.safe.com). The surveys were subsequently 

clipped to a polygon 0.05 degree (~5%) larger than the Virginia Beach DEM area to support data interpolation 

along grid edges. Conversion to MHW was accomplished using VDatum, which has conversion grids for 

Chesapeake Bay and northern North Carolina (see Fig. 19), or by FME for areas outside VDatum coverage.

After converting all NOS survey data to MHW (see Section 3.2.1), the data were displayed in ESRI 

ArcMap and reviewed for digitizing errors against scanned original survey smooth sheets and compared to 

the recent NOS and USACE bathymetric surveys, coastal LiDAR data, topographic data sets, the combined 

coastline, RNCs, and Google Earth satellite imagery.

Table 5. Digital NOS hydrographic surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

NOS Survey ID Year of Survey Survey 

Scale

Original Vertical 

Datum

Original Horizontal 

Datum

Vertical translation 

tool

F00294 1987 5,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

F00336 1989 5,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

F00369 1991/92 5,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

F00408 1995 10,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

H00965 1868 40,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/FME

H01583 1884 20,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H03311 1911 20,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H03532 1913 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum
DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

H03533 1933 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H04084 1919 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H04286 1922 40,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H04962 1930 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H05000 1929 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H05201 1932 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H05704 1934 20,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H05895 1935 10,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H05896 1935 10,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H05897 1935 10,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H05898 1935 10,000 local low water NAD27 FME

H05899 1935 10,000 local low water NAD27 FME

H05968 1934 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H05969 1934 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum/FME

H05990 1935 40,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H05991 1935 40,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H05992 1935 40,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H05993 1935 40,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H06595 1940 40,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06729 1942 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06812 1943 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06815 1943 2,500 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06832 1943 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06833 1943 2,500 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06928 1944 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H06930 1944 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07022 1945 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07025 1945 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07087 1946 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07160 1947 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07162 1944/47 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07171 1947 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07174 1948 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07175 1947 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07181 1947 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07184 1947 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum/FME

H07185 1947 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07703 1948 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07750 1949/50 40,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07783 1949 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07791 1949 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07823 1950 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07824 1948/50 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07894 1951 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07910 1950 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07911 1950/54 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07952 1952/53 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07953 1952/53 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07954 1952/53 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07955 1952 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07956 1952 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07957 1952 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum
10

Taylor et al., 2008

H07958 1952 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H07959 1952 10,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H07960 1952 20,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08012 1952 40,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08078 1953 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08079 1953 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08080 1953 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08081 1953 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08083 1953 20,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08217 1954 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08447 1958 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08448 1958 20,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08505 1959 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08506 1959 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08507 1959 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08724 1962/63 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08725 1963 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H08878 1966 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09693 1977 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09701 1977 5,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09814 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09880 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09901 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09904 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09905 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09910 1980 10,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09919 1980/81 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09922 1980 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09923 1980 5,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09948 1981 20,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H09955 1981 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09959 1981 20,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09961 1981 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09962 1981 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09969 1981 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum/FME

H09970 1981 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum/FME

H09972 1981 20,000 mean low water NAD27 NC VDatum/CB 

VDatum

H09978 1981 20,000 mean low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H09980 1981 20,000 mean low water NAD27 FME

H09981 1981/82 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 FME

H10034 1982 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 FME

H10066 1982 20,000 mean lower low water NAD27 FME

H10116 1983 10,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H10127 1984 10,000 mean lower low water NAD27 CB VDatum

H10275 1988 5,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

H10529 1994 5,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

H10745 1997 10,000 mean lower low water NAD83 CB VDatum

* NC–North Carolina; CB–Chesapeake Bay; FME–translated using FME and constant offset from neighboring tide station.
11

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 6. Digital NOS hydrographic survey coverage in the Virginia Beach region. Not all surveys were used as some fall 

outside the DEM region, while others have been fully superceded by subsequent surveys. Red denotes boundary of Virginia 

Beach DEM; combined coastline in light blue.
12

Taylor et al., 2008

2) Recent NOS shallow-water multibeam surveys

The NOS Atlantic Hydrographic Branch (AHB) provided 6 shallow-water, “not fully reviewed” NOS 

multibeam surveys for inclusion in the Virginia Beach DEM (Table 6); these surveys have not yet been 

submitted to NGDC’s NOS hydrographic database. The surveys cover the southern portion of the entrance 

to Chesapeake Bay, near Cape Henry (Fig. 7). All of the surveys were conducted recently and are of high 

resolution. Survey H11303 was found to contain north–south lineations (e.g., Fig. 8) over its whole coverage 

area. NGDC was unable to correct the errors and therefore deleted the soundings along the lineations. AHB 

is re-processing this survey to correct for the lineations.

Table 6. Recent NOS shallow-water multibeam surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

Survey Date Resolution Scale Original Horizontal Datum Original Vertical Datum

H11028 2001 to 2002 1 meter 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

H11301 2005 10 meters 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

H11302 2003 5 meters 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

H11303 2004 5 meters 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

H11401 2005 5 meters 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

H11402 2005 10 meters 1:10,000 NAD83 UTM Zone 18 MLLW

Figure 7. Spatial coverage of NOS shallow-water multibeam swath sonar surveys in the vicinity of Virginia Beach that 

were utilized in DEM development.
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 8. Detail of NOS multibeam survey H11303. Prominent lineations were excised by deleting corresponding data 

values from the survey.
14

Taylor et al., 2008

3) USACE surveys of dredged shipping channels and the Intracoastal Waterway

The USACE Hydrographic Surveys Division, Virginia Beach District provided NGDC with recent 

survey data in dredged shipping channels and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. All data were originally in 

NAD83 State Plane Virginia South horizontal datum and MLLW vertical datum (Table 7). Surveys consist of 

numerous, parallel, across-channel profiles, spaced 30 to 130 meters apart, with point soundings <1m apart.

Figure 9. Spatial coverage of USACE surveys of dredged shipping channels and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway in the 

vicinity of Virginia Beach.

Table 7. Recent USACE surveys used in compiling the Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Region Original horizontal datum Original vertical datum Spatial resolution Year

Atlantic Ocean Channel NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles ~600 to 700m long, spaced 30m

apart, with point spacing <1m. 2006

Cape Henry Channel NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 500 to 600m long, spaced 60m

apart, with point spacing <1m. 2006

Channel to Newport News NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 500m long, spaced 30 to 60m

apart, with <1m point spacing.

2006

Newport News Anchorage NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 900m long, spaced 60m apart,

with <1m point spacing.

2006

Norfolk Harbor 

Anchorage

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 60 to 1100m long, spaced 60m

apart, with <1m point spacing.

2005

Norfolk Harbor 40’ 

Channel

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 300 to 400m long, spaced 30m

apart, with <1m point spacing

2006

Norfolk Harbor 50’ 

Channel

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 350 to 700m long, spaced 30m

apart, with <1m point spacing.

2006

Norfolk Harbor Entrance 

Channel

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 600 to 700m long, spaced 30 to

60m apart, with <1m point spacing

2004

Rappahannock Shoal 

Channel

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 500m long, spaced 100m apart,

with <1m point spacing.

2005

Thimble Shoal Channel NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 500 to 750m long, spaced 60m

apart, with <1m point spacing

2006

York River Entrance 

Channel

NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 500m long, spaced 60m apart,

with <1m point spacing.

2005

York Spit Channel NAD83 State Plane 

Virginia South MLLW Profiles 800m long, spaced 60 to 130m

apart, with point spacing of <1m. 2005
15

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

4) NGDC-digitized Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway

The continuation of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway southward from the Elizabeth River to Currituck 

Sound (Figs. 9 and 10) was digitized by NGDC in ESRI ArcMap, referencing NOAA nautical chart #12206 

and Coast Pilot 4. NGDC defined the soundings at 12 feet below MLLW (the minimum dredged depth in

the waterway) for Route 1, Albemarle and Chesapeake Canal to North River, and 9 feet for Route 2, Great 

Dismal Swamp Canal to Albemarle Sound (Fig. 10). Additional information on project depths and locations 

can be found in Coast Pilot 4, chapter 12 (http://nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/nsd/Cp4/CP4-38ed-Ch12_4.pdf).

Figure 10. Spatial coverage of NGDC-digitized sections of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. 

Depths were defined based upon minimum dredge depths reported in Coast Pilot 4.
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Taylor et al., 2008

5) ENC-extracted sounding data

Sounding data from four ENCs (Table 8) were extracted to fill in gaps in NOS bathymetric coverage:

#12253 in the southern branch of the Elizabeth River (Fig. 11), #12224 and #12221 in the Delmarva Peninsula 

region (Fig. 12), and #12248 in the James River from Newport News to Tribell Shoal. The sounding files were

extracted from the ENCs in S-57 geodatabase format using CSC’s ENC data handler extension for ArcGIS 

9.x (http://www.csc.noaa.gov/products/enc/arcgis9x.html) and then exported to ESRI shapefiles. Charts

#12221 and #12224 were then edited to include only those which lie inside the peninsula and eliminate those 

on the eastern shoreline and in Chesapeake Bay where NOS bathymetric coverage was available. Soundings 

were shifted from MLLW to MHW using FME and applying a conversion constant derived from the local 

tide station (see Table 11).

Table 8. Constants applied to ENC-extracted soundings.

Chart # MLLW to MHW constant applied Tide Station #

12221 -.827 meters 8632200

12224 -.827 meters 8632200

12253 -.778 meters 8638610

12248 -.778 meters 8638610

Figure 11. Spatial coverage of soundings extracted from ENC #12253. ENC data shown with 

USACE and NOS surveys and NGDC-digitized Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 12. Spatial coverage of soundings extracted from ENCs in the Delmarva Peninsula region. 

Extensive gaps (white areas) between the ENC soundings and NOS hydrographic soundings were 

filled by interpolation (see Section 3.3.3)
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Taylor et al., 2008

3.1.3 Topography

Topographic datasets in the Virginia Beach region were obtained from the U.S. Geological Survey and the 

cities of Virginia Beach, Norfolk, and Hampton, Virginia (Table 9).

Table 9. Topographic datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

Source Data Date Resolution Original horizontal datum Original vertical 

datum

USGS NED 1999 1/3 to 1 arc-second (~ 10 to 

30 m) NAD83 geographic NAVD88

City of 

Virginia 

Beach

LiDAR 2004 ~2 m point spacing 

NAD83 HARN State Plane Virginia 

South NAVD88

1) USGS NED topography

The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) National Elevation Dataset (NED; http://ned.usgs.gov/) provides 

complete 1 arc-second coverage of the contiguous lower 48 states, as well as some areas at 1/3 arc-second. 

Data are in NAD83 geographic coordinates and NAVD88 vertical datum (meters), and are available for 

download as raster DEMs. The extracted bare-earth elevations have a vertical accuracy of +/- 7 to 15 meters 

depending on source data resolution. See the USGS Seamless web site for specific source information (http://

seamless.usgs.gov/). The dataset was derived from contours on USGS topographic quadrangle maps and 

aerial photos, based on surveys conducted in the 1970s and 1980s.

NED 1/3 arc-second topographic data is available for most of the Virginia Beach region, with the 

exception of the Delmarva Peninsula, for which 1 arc-second data was downloaded (see Fig. 3). One problem 

identified with the NED 1/3 arc-second data, near Hampton, is artifacts representing an approximate one

half meter elevation change, which are present at 7.5 minute intervals (Fig. 13). NGDC was unable to make 

corrections and the artifacts are present in the DEM. Also recognizable are “steps” in the topographic, 

presumably derived from the digitization of contours. These features are also present in the Virginia Beach 

DEM (see Fig. 21). NED 1 arc-second data the in Delmarva Peninsula also exhibited some problems (e.g., 

Fig. 14), which could not be rectified.

The NED data also included “zero” elevation values over the open ocean, which were removed from the 

dataset before gridding by clipping to the combined coastline, with ArcCatalog, and deleting of all values 

equal or less than zero, with FME. 

. The USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED) has been developed by merging the highest-resolution, best quality elevation data available across 

the United States into a seamless raster format. NED is the result of the maturation of the USGS effort to provide 1:24,000-scale Digital Elevation 

Model (DEM) data for the conterminous U.S. and 1:63,360-scale DEM data for Georgia. The dataset provides seamless coverage of the United 

States, HI, AK, and the island territories. NED has a consistent projection (Geographic), resolution (1 arc second), and elevation units (meters). The 

horizontal datum is NAD83, except for AK, which is NAD27. The vertical datum is NAVD88, except for AK, which is NGVD29. NED is a living 

dataset that is updated bimonthly to incorporate the “best available” DEM data. As more 1/3 arc second (10 m) data covers the U.S., then this will 

also be a seamless dataset. [Extracted from USGS NED website]
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 13. Color image of the NED 1/3 arc-second DEM in the Hampton, Virginia area. Tick marks show artificial 

elevation changes within the DEM that roughly correspond to 7.5 minute quadrangle boundaries. 

Figure 14. Color image of striations within the NED 1 arc-second data in the Delmarva Peninsula. Striation elevations are 

within a 1 meter of surrounding topography. Combined coastline in red. 
20

Taylor et al., 2008

2) NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission

The NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) obtained elevation data on a near-global scale to 

generate the most complete high-resolution digital topographic database of Earth3. The SRTM consisted of a 

specially modified radar system that flew onboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour during an 11-day mission in

February of 2000. Data from this mission have been processed into 1 degree × 1 degree tiles that have been 

edited to define the coastline, and are available from the USGS Seamless web site (http://seamless.usgs.gov/) 

as raster DEMs. The data have not been processed to bare earth, but meet absolute horizontal and vertical 

accuracies of 20 and 16 meters, respectively.

The SRTM dataset was downloaded for use in the Delmarva Peninsula region, for areas not covered by 

the 1/3 arc-second NED data. This area consists of western lowlands and eastern marshlands. The SRTM data 

reflects little topography variation on the eastern side of the peninsula but has a range of elevation values—

from -47 meters to 78 meters, MHW—on the western and southernmost tip, at Fishermans Island (Fig. 15); 

USGS quadrangles Cheriton, Fishermans Island, and Franktown have maximum elevation values of ~30 

m. The SRTM DEM also contains positive elevation values over the open ocean. Analysis of this dataset, 

compared to overlapping NED 1 arc-second data and USGS quadrangles, showed the SRTM data to have less 

accurate elevation values in general, thus, this dataset was not used in building the Virginia Beach DEM.

Figure 15. SRTM data in the vicinity of Fishermans Island. Some SRTM elevation values are greater than 50 meters: high 

data points are located on land “exposed at low tide” (from underlying USGS quadrangle ‘Fishermans Island’).

3. The SRTM data sets result from a collaborative effort by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA – previously known as the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, or NIMA), as well as the participation of the 

German and Italian space agencies, to generate a near-global digital elevation model (DEM) of the Earth using radar interferometry. The SRTM 

instrument consisted of the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C (SIR-C) hardware set modified with a Space Station-derived mast and additional antennae

to form an interferometer with a 60 meter long baseline. A description of the SRTM mission can be found in Farr and Kobrick (2000). Synthetic 

aperture radars are side-looking instruments and acquire data along continuous swaths. The SRTM swaths extended from about 30 degrees off-nadir 

to about 58 degrees off-nadir from an altitude of 233 km, and thus were about 225 km wide. During the data flight the instrument was operated at

all times the orbiter was over land and about 1000 individual swaths were acquired over the ten days of mapping operations. Length of the acquired 

swaths range from a few hundred to several thousand km. Each individual data acquisition is referred to as a “data take.” SRTM was the primary 

(and pretty much only) payload on the STS-99 mission of the Space Shuttle Endeavour, which launched February 11, 2000 and flew for 11 days.

Following several hours for instrument deployment, activation and checkout, systematic interferometric data were collected for 222.4 consecutive 

hours. The instrument operated almost flawlessly and imaged 99.96% of the targeted landmass at least one time, 94.59% at least twice and about

50% at least three or more times. The goal was to image each terrain segment at least twice from different angles (on ascending, or north-going, 

and descending orbit passes) to fill in areas shadowed from the radar beam by terrain. This ‘targeted landmass’ consisted of all land between 56

degrees south and 60 degrees north latitude, which comprises almost exactly 80% of Earth’s total landmass. [Extracted from SRTM online documentation]
21

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

3) City of Virginia Beach LiDAR

The City of Virginia Beach provided NGDC with a topographic LiDAR dataset consisting of 1517 tiles 

covering the region around Virginia Beach and Cape Henry4. The tiles are approximately 775 meters square 

and have average point spacing of two meters—significantly higher-resolution than overlapping NED 1/3

arc-second topography. The dataset was originally in NAD83 HARN State Plane Virginia South horizontal 

datum, and NAVD88 vertical datum. This dataset had been processed to bare earth, but also contained 

elevation values over water, which were removed using FME software by deleting all values less than 0.2

meters below MHW. The massive quantity of elevation points (170 million) required surfacing of the entire 

dataset (see Section 3.3.2) for proper evaluation. The bare-earth processing done by Sanborn, contractor 

for the City of Virginia Beach, removed most elevated structures, however, some features, such as freeway 

overpasses, bridges and piers, remained in the dataset, requiring editing by NGDC (e.g., Figs. 16 and 17). The 

bare-earth processing also left “shadows” in the data: low-relief (<1 m) features reminiscent of the original 

man-made structures, such as roads and airport runways.

Figure 16. Color image of City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data in the vicinity of Little Creek Channel. Image shows freeway routes, 

piers, docks, and portion of jetty at entrance to channel. Also at entrance is low retaining wall surrounding amphibious vehicle 

parking area. Building at the site was removed during processing to bare earth by contractor.

4. Utilizing Sanborn’s Optech ALTM 2050 system, the Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) data was for use in the development of a very dense 

and highly accurate digital elevation model that will be used in the generation of digital orthophoto imagery and subsequent development of 2’ 

contours. The system consisted of geodetic GPS positioning, orientation derived from high-end inertial sensors and a powerful laser. The sensor 

was attached to an airplane’s underside and emits rapid pulses of light that are used to determine distances between the plane and terrain below. 

The 50kHz Optech 2050 provide up to 50,000 light impulses per second. The 2050 allows for faster flight speeds, higher altitude of data collection,

larger swath width of the sensor, and most importantly a denser point spacing of 1 meter which results in improved surface definition and better

penetration of vegetation. After the acquisition, the data were “filtered” using automatic routines, which recognize trees, buildings, cars, etc. and are

able to delete these items from the DTM. [Extracted from metadata.]
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Taylor et al., 2008

Figure 17. Google Earth image of Little Creek Channel. Numerous man-made structures—piers and docks—had to be 

removed from the City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data. Note jetty at channel entrance that was retained.

4) City of Norfolk SPOT data

SPOT data (topographic elevations derived from imagery taken by the Spot 1 satellite) for Norfolk was 

provided to NGDC by the GIS Team, eAccess Bureau, Department of Information Technology for the City 

of Norfolk without associated metadata confirming vertical datum. NGDC assumed that it is referenced to

NAVD88, which is typical of U.S. topographic datasets. The dataset covers the metropolitan area of Norfolk 

and is not processed to bare earth; elevation values were compared to USGS topographic quadrangles, and 

points corresponding to features such as bridges and freeway overpasses exist within the data. As bare-earth 

1/3 arc-second NED topography exists for this area, this dataset was not used in the development of the 

Virginia Beach DEM.

5) City of Hampton SPOT data

This data set consists of SPOT elevation data acquired in 1999 from Air Survey Corp. original aerial 

photos at 1:400. The dataset covers the metropolitan region of Hampton and the surrounding coastal areas 

and is not processed to bare earth. NED 1/3 arc-second topography exists for this region, so this dataset was 

also not used in the development of the Virginia Beach DEM.
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

3.1.4 Topography–Bathymetry

Combined topographic–bathymetric surveys of the Atlantic coast of Virginia and North Carolina (Fig. 18) 

were performed in 2005 by the Joint Airborne LiDAR Bathymetry Technical Center of Expertise (JALBTCX; Table 

10). The data were collected using the CHARTS (Compact Hydrographic Airborne Rapid Total Survey) system to 

depict elevations above and below water along the immediate coastal zone. The surveys generally have a swath width 

approaching 1 km, most of which, in the Virginia Beach region, covers onshore areas: 700–800 m inland, and 100–150 

m offshore. Data points are spaced approximately every 1 to 5 meters, and have an accuracy better than 3.0 meters 

horizontally and 0.3 meters vertically.

Table 10. Combined topographic–bathymetric datasets used in compiling the Virginia Beach DEM.

Source Year Data Type Spatial Resolution

Original Horizontal 

Datum/Coordinate 

System

Original Vertical 

Datum

JALBTCX 

(USACE) 2005 Bare-earth coastal topographic 

and bathymetric LiDAR 1-meter DEM NAD83 UTM Zone 18 (meters)

NAVD88

(meters)

JALBTCX 

(CSC) 2005 Raw coastal topographic and 

bathymetric LiDAR 5-meter point data NAD83 geographic NAVD88(meters)

1) JALBTCX bare-earth DEM for NC

USACE provided to NGDC JALBTCX bathymetric–topographic LiDAR data along the Atlantic coast 

of North Carolina that had been processed to bare earth5. Data were provided as DEMs, with 1-meter grid 

spacing. 

2) JALBTCX data available through CSC 

Unprocessed JALBTCX bathymetric–topographic LiDAR data6 for the Atlantic coast of Virginia are 

available for download from the NOAA CSC website (http://maps.csc.noaa.gov/TCM/). Data along the 

southern coast of Virginia, south of Cape Henry, were overlapped by topographic LiDAR data from the 

City of Virginia Beach, which had been processed to bare earth. JALBTCX LiDAR data in this region 

were therefore clipped to exclude values greater than 1 meter above MHW. Data along the northern coast 

(Delmarva Peninsula) were not overlapped by any other high-resolution dataset, though few man-made 

structures exist in that largely undeveloped area.

5. Acquisition Data were acquired using a SHOALS-1000T. Sensor orientation was measured using a POS AV 410, while images were acquired 

at 1Hz using a Duncantech DT4000 digital camera. Prior to survey PDOP was checked and missions planned to avoid PDOP greater than 3.5. 

During survey the plane was always within 30km of a GPS ground control point, to provide a good quality position solution. Final positions were 

determined using a post-processed inertially aided Kinematic GPS (KGPS) solution. GPS ground control data were acquired at 1Hz. Data received 

by the airborne system were continually monitored for data quality during acquisition operations. Display windows showed coverage and information about the system status. In addition, center waveforms at 5Hz were shown. All of this information allowed the airborne operator to assess 

the quality of data being collected. Data were processed in the field to very coverage and data quality. Processing Data were processed using the

SHOALS Ground Control System (GCS). The GCS includes links to Applanix POSPac software for GPS and inertial processing, and IVS Fledermaus software for data visualization, 3D editing and tie-line analysis. Data were processed in NAD83 horizontal and vertical datum. Data were later 

converted to the NAVD88 vertical datum using the GEOID03 model. Fugro in-house utilities were used to extract XYZ data from the native LIDAR 

files and split the data in to pre-defined boxes, each covering approximately 5km of shoreline. ASCII files include Longitude Latitude Elevation

Date Time Intensity (Topo) or Depth Confidence (Hydro). The bare earth model was created using Terrascan to define ground points. The ground

points were then gridded using QT Modeler, to create a seamless model. The final Bare Earth Model is a 1m resolution GeoTIFF file. [Extracted

from metadata.]

6. These data were collected using a SHOALS-1000T system. It is owned and operated by Fugro Pelagos performing contract survey services for 

the US Army Corps of Engineers. The system collects topographic lidar data at 10kHz and hydrographic data at 1kHz. The system also collects 

RGB imagery at 1Hz. Aircraft position, velocity and acceleration information are collected through a combination of Novatel and POS A/V equipment. Raw data are collected and transferred to the office for downloading and processing in SHOALS GCS software. GPS data are processed

using POSPac software and the results are combined with the lidar data to produce 3-D positions for each lidar shot. These data are edited using 

Fledermaus software where anomalous data are removed from the dataset. The edited data are unloaded from SHOALS GCS, converted from ellipsoid to orthometric heights, based on the GEOID03 model, and split into geographic tiles covering approximately 5km each. [Extracted from 

metadata.]
24

Taylor et al., 2008

Figure 18. Spatial coverage of JALBTCX high-resolution, combined bathymetric–topographic, coastal LiDAR surveys in 

the vicinity of Virginia Beach that were utilized in DEM development.
25

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

3.2 Establishing Common Datums

3.2.1 Vertical datum transformations

Datasets used in the compilation and evaluation of the Virginia Beach DEM were originally referenced 

to a number of vertical datums including: Mean Lower Low Water (MLLW), Mean Low Water (MLW), and North 

American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD88). All datasets were transformed to MHW to provide the worst-case 

scenario for inundation modeling. 

1) Bathymetric data

The NOS hydrographic and multibeam survey data were transformed from original vertical datum to 

MHW using the VDatum Transformation Tool developed by OCS and NGS. VDatum was only available 

for a portion of the DEM (Fig. 19), so where unavailable, FME software was used to apply a constant value 

based on both tidal benchmark values (Table 11) and the difference in value before and after VDatum was 

used on nearby data. The ENC sounding data used in Delmarva Peninsula and in the Elizabeth River were 

transformed to MHW from MLLW by applying a constant value based on the nearest tide station. For the 

Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway digitized by NGDC, Coast Pilot 4 provided project depths at MLLW and a 

constant was applied to the value to transform to MHW. 

Figure 19. Spatial coverage of VDatum transformation tools within Virginia Beach DEM boundary.

2) Topographic data

The NED DEM and City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data were originally in NAVD88 and converted to 

MHW using FME software by adding a constant value based on closest tidal benchmark (Table 11). 
26

Taylor et al., 2008

3) Topographic–bathymetric data

The JALBTCX coastal LiDAR survey data and the NC DEM were transformed from NAVD88 to MHW 

using FME and closest tide station values. 

Table 11. Relationships between Mean High Water and other vertical datums in the Virginia Beach region.*

Tide Station # Station Name MLLW to MHW MLW to MHW NAVD88 to MHW

8632200 Kiptopeke, Chesapeake Bay -0.827 -0.793 -0.247

8638610 Sewells Point -0.778 -0.740 -0.277

8638863 Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel -0.814 -0.777 N/A

8639208 Virginia Beach -1.038 -1.001 -0.281

8639348 Money Point -0.914 -0.872 -0.357

* Tide station locations shown in Figure 24.

3.2.2 Horizontal datum transformations

Datasets used to compile the Virginia Beach DEM were originally referenced to State Plane Virginia South, 

UTM Zone 18, NAD83, and WGS84 horizontal datums. The relationships and transformational equations between 

these horizontal datums are well established. All data were converted to a horizontal datum of WGS84 using FME 

software.

3.3 Digital Elevation Model Development

3.3.1 Verifying consistency between datasets

After horizontal and vertical transformations were applied, the resulting ESRI shape files were checked in

ESRI ArcMap for inter-dataset consistency. 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:

•	 Presence of man-made structures and river banks in most coastline datasets, which had to be removed.

•	 Data values over the open ocean in the NED 1 arc-second and 1/3 arc-second topographic DEMs, and in the 

City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data. Each dataset required automated clipping to the combined coastline and 

removal of “zero” values.

•	 Artifacts present in the NED DEMs, such as elevation changes at the apparent boundaries of USGS topographic 

quadrangles, and lineations in the Delmarva Peninsula. Other discrepancies included artificial “steps” in the

NED DEMs, which presumably result from the digitization of USGS topographic contours (see Fig. 21).

•	 Presence of man-made structures (e.g., Fig 16) in the City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data, which had been 

processed to bare earth by the city’s contractor. Such features, where they could be confidently identified,

were removed from coastal areas.

•	 Presence of some buildings and other man-made structures, as well as trees, in the JALBTCX coastal LiDAR 

topographic–bathymetric datasets along the southern Virginia coastline. As these datasets were principally 

along the immediate coastline, were not processed to bare earth, and were overlapped by the City of Virginia 

Beach topographic LiDAR data, NGDC eliminated elevations greater than 1 meter above MHW to crudely 

remove such features while retaining the beach morphology.

•	 Bare-earth processing of the City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data left “shadows” in the data: low-relief (<1 m) 

features reminiscent of the original man-made structures, such as roads and airport runways. These features 

are retained in the DEM.

•	 Digital, measured bathymetric values from NOS surveys date back over 140 years. More recent data, such 

as USACE surveys in dredged shipping channels and the multibeam sonar surveys, differed from older, predredging NOS data by as much as 10 meters. The older NOS survey data were excised where more recent 

bathymetric data exists. 
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

3.3.2 Averaging of City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data

The massive number of points (170 million) in the City of Virginia Beach LiDAR data, as well as their small 

point-spacing (~2 meters), and the fact that the dataset contained returns from the surface of water bodies, necessitated 

averaging the data to a more manageable 1/3 arc-second spacing (~10 m). This was accomplished by generating 

a ‘pre-surface’ or grid using MB-System, an NSF-funded share-ware software application designed to manipulate 

multibeam sonar data for mapping purposes (http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/MB-System/). Data were gridded 

using ‘mbgrid’, which applied a tight spline algorithm to generate a “weighted-mean” grid without interpolation into 

empty cells. Output grid was in ESRI Arc ASCII format, which was evaluated in ArcMap. The resulting surface was 

compared with the original soundings to ensure grid accuracy, converted to a shape file, and then exported as an xyz

file for use in the final gridding process (see Table 12).

3.3.3 Smoothing of bathymetric data

The NOS hydrographic surveys are generally sparse at the resolution of the 1/3 arc-second Virginia Beach 

DEM: in deep water, the NOS survey data have point spacing up to 4 kilometers apart. In order to reduce the effect 

of artifacts in the form of lines of “pimples” in the DEM due to this low resolution dataset, and to provide effective 

interpolation into the coastal zone, a 1 arc-second-spacing ‘pre-surface’ or grid was generated using GMT, an NSFfunded share-ware software application designed to manipulate data for mapping purposes (http://gmt.soest.hawaii.

edu/). 

The NOS hydrographic point data, in xyz format, were combined with the recent high-resolution NOS 

multibeam, NGDC and USACE channel data, and ENC soundings into a single file, along with points extracted every

10 meters from the combined coastline—to provide a “zero” buffer along the entire coastline. These point data were 

then smoothed using the GMT tool ‘blockmedian’ onto a 1 arc-second grid 0.05 degrees (~5%) larger than the Virginia 

Beach DEM gridding region. The GMT tool ‘surface’ then applied a tight spline tension to interpolate cells without 

data values. The GMT grid created by ‘surface’ was converted into an ESRI Arc ASCII grid file using the MB-System

tool ‘mbm_grd2arc’. Conversion of this Arc ASCII grid file into an Arc raster permitted clipping of the grid by the

combined coastline (to eliminate data interpolation into land areas). The resulting surface was compared with the 

original soundings to ensure grid accuracy (e.g., Fig. 20), converted to a shape file, and then exported as an xyz file for

use in the final gridding process (see Table 12).

Figure 20. Histogram of the difference between NOS hydrographic survey H10745 (relatively dense survey at mouth 

of Chesapeake Bay) and the 1 arc-second NOS pre-surfaced bathymetric grid. The greatest differences derive from the 

averaging of several closely spaced soundings from overlapping surveys, including recent NOS multibeam surveys.

3.3.4 Gridding the data with MB-System

MB-System (http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/res/pi/MB-System/) was used to create the 1/3 arc-second 

Virginia Beach DEM. MB-System is an NSF-funded share-ware software application specifically designed to

manipulate submarine multibeam sonar data, though it can utilize a wide variety of data types, including generic xyz 

data. The MB-System tool ‘mbgrid’ applied a tight spline tension to the xyz data, and interpolated values for cells 

without data. The data hierarchy used in the ‘mbgrid’ gridding algorithm, as relative gridding weights, is listed in Table 

12. Greatest weight was given to the high-resolution NOS multibeam and coastal LiDAR survey data. Least weight 

was given to the pre-surfaced 1 arc-second NOS bathymetric grid. Gridding was performed in quadrants, each with a 
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Taylor et al., 2008

5% data overlap buffer. The resulting Arc ASCII grids were seamlessly merged in ArcCatalog to create the final 1/3

arc-second Virginia Beach DEM.

Table 12. Data hierarchy used to assign gridding weight in MB-System.

Dataset Relative Gridding Weight

USACE bathymetry 100

JALBTCX coastal LiDAR bathymetry–topography 100

NGDC-digitized intracoastal waterway 100

NOS multibeam surveys 100

City of VB pre-surfaced LiDAR grid 10

USGS NED topographic DEM 1

NOS hydrographic surveys 1

NOAA nautical chart soundings 1

Pre-surfaced bathymetric grid 0.1

3.4 Quality Assessment of the DEMs

3.4.1. Horizontal accuracy

The horizontal accuracy of topographic and bathymetric features in the Virginia Beach DEM is dependent 

upon the datasets used to determine corresponding DEM cell values. Topographic features have an estimated accuracy 

of 10 to 15 meters: City of Virginia Beach and coastal LiDAR have an accuracy of between 1 and 3 meters, NED 

topography is accurate to within about 15 meters. Bathymetric features are resolved only to within a few tens of meters 

in deep-water areas, larger in the southeast corner of the DEM. Shallow, near-coastal regions, rivers, and dredged 

shipping channels have an accuracy approaching that of subaerial topographic features. Positional accuracy is limited 

by: the sparseness of deep-water soundings, and potentially large positional uncertainty of pre-satellite navigated (e.g., 

GPS) NOS hydrographic surveys.

3.4.2 Vertical accuracy

Vertical accuracy of elevation values for the Virginia Beach DEM is also highly dependent upon the source 

datasets contributing to DEM cell values. Topographic areas have an estimated vertical accuracy between 0.15 (for 

City of Virginia Beach and coastal LiDAR data) and up to 7 meters (for NED topography). Bathymetric areas have an 

estimated accuracy of between 0.1 meters and 5% of water depth (~2.5 meters in the southeast corner of the DEM). 

Those values were derived from the wide range of input data sounding measurements from the late 19th century to 

recent, GPS-navigated sonar surveys. Gridding interpolation to determine values between sparse, poorly located NOS 

soundings degrades the vertical accuracy of elevations in deep water.

3.4.3 Slope maps and 3-D perspectives

ESRI ArcCatalog was used to generate a slope grid from the Virginia Beach DEM to allow for visual 

inspection and identification of artificial slopes along boundaries between datasets (e.g., Fig. 21). The DEM was

transformed to NAD83 UTM Zone 18 coordinates (horizontal units in meters) in ArcCatalog for derivation of the slope 

grid; equivalent horizontal and vertical units are required for effective slope analysis. Three-dimensional viewing of 

the UTM-transformed DEM (e.g., Fig. 22) was accomplished using ESRI ArcScene. Analysis of preliminary grids 

revealed suspect data points, which were corrected before recompiling the DEM. Figure 1 shows a color image of the 

Virginia Beach DEM in its final version.
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Figure 21. Slope map of the Virginia Beach DEM in the vicinity of Newport News. Flat-lying slopes are white; dark 

shading denotes steep slopes; combined coastline in red. Note the “steps” in the DEM, resulting from the NED 1/3 arcsecond DEM in this region. The steps are presumably the result of digitization of USGS topographic contours.

Figure 22. Perspective view from the east of the Virginia Beach DEM. Combined coastline in red; vertical 

exaggeration–times 50.
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Taylor et al., 2008

3.4.4	 Comparison with source data files

To ensure grid accuracy, the Virginia Beach DEM was compared to select source data files. Files were chosen

on the basis of their contribution to the grid-cell values in their coverage areas (i.e., had the greatest weight and did 

not significantly overlap other data files with comparable weight). A histogram of the difference between a JALBTCX

coastal bathymetric–topographic LiDAR survey file and the Virginia Beach DEM is shown in Figure 23. The largest

differences occur in areas of highly variable relief, where the 5-meter point spacing of the LiDAR survey results in 

multiple elevation values contributing to one cell value in the DEM.

Figure 23. Histogram of the difference between one JALBTCX coastal bathymetric–topographic LiDAR survey file 

(239,442 points) and the Virginia Beach DEM.

3.4.5 Comparison with NOAA tidal stations

The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) data sheets for U.S. tidal stations (http://tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov/) 

document benchmark elevations, in meters above MHW, allowing for direct comparison with DEM values at those 

locations. Tidal station within the Virginia Beach study area were compared with the value taken at the same locale 

from the 1/3 arc-second Virginia Beach DEM (see Fig. 24 and Table 13 for station location). Each station has multiple 

benchmark stampings, all of which have the same geographic position, recorded to within 6 arc-seconds (~180 meters). 

This results in significant error in station position, which can cause significant difference with the DEM. Of particular

note is the Sewells Point station, whose benchmark is located on a pier that is not represented in the DEM. 

Table 13. Comparison of NOAA tidal benchmark elevation, in meters above MHW, with the Virginia Beach DEM.

Station 

number Station name Year Longitude Latitude Bench mark DEM Difference

8639208 Virginia Beach 2006 -75.971389 36.835833 2.991 3.22 0.23

8639219 South End Lake 

Rudee 2006 -75.981389 36.819722 6.919 3.76 -3.14

8638863 Chesapeake Bay 

Bridge Tunnel 1975 -76.112956 36.966303 7.396 0.94 -6.44

8638610 Sewells Point 1985 -76.331111 36.957500 2.012 -11.14 -13.15

8632200 Kiptopeke 1958 -75.985278 37.168333 2.476 1.54 -0.92

8639214 Rudee Heights 1967 -75.975000 36.819722 10.385 1.94 -8.43

8639348 Money Point 1959 -76.293611 36.775833 4.154 0.91 -3.23

8638660 Portsmouth 1971 -76.295000 36.819722 2.167 0.21 -1.94

8638999 Cape Henry 1982 -76.006667 36.930000 3.869 -2.96 -6.82

8637624 Gloucester Point 1971 -76.501111 37.248611 7.972 6.50 -1.46

8631591 Oyster Harbor 1980 -75.925000 37.288333 2.347 0.55 -1.78

8631542 Sand Shoal Inlet, 

Cobb Island 1979 -75.778333 37.301667 -0.107 -0.34 -0.24

3.4.6 Comparison with NGS geodetic monuments

The elevations of NOAA NGS geodetic monuments were extracted from online monument datasheets 

(http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/datasheet.prl), which give position in NAD83 (sub-mm accuracy) and elevation 

in NAVD88 (in meters). Elevations were shifted to MHW vertical datum (see Table 11) for comparison with the 

Virginia Beach DEM (see Fig. 24 for monument locations). Differences between the Virginia Beach DEM and the 
31

DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

NGS geodetic monument elevations range from -9.6 to 6.7 meters, with a negative value indicating that the DEM is 

less than the monument elevation (e.g., Fig. 25). Examination of the monuments with the largest differences from the 

DEM revealed that most are located along steep topographic features whose relief cannot be adequately captured at 

the 1/3 arc-second resolution of the Virginia Beach DEM. 

Figure 24. Location of NGS monuments and NOAA tide stations in the vicinity of Virginia Beach. NOAA tide stations 

identified in red were used for shifting datasets to MHW. NGS monuments and tide stations with benchmarks (yellow and 

red) were used for evaluating the Virginia Beach DEM.

Figure 25. Histogram of the differences between NGS geodetic monument elevations and the Virginia Beach DEM.
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Taylor et al., 2008

4. Summary and Conclusions

A topographic–bathymetric digital elevation model of the Virginia Beach, Virginia area, with cell spacing of 

1/3 arc-seconds, was developed for the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) NOAA Center for Tsunami

Research. The best available digital data from U.S. federal, state and local agencies, as well as academic institutions, 

were obtained by NGDC, shifted to common horizontal and vertical datums, and evaluated and edited before DEM 

generation. The data were quality checked, processed and gridded using ESRI ArcGIS, FME, GMT, and MB-System 

software. 

Recommendations to improve the DEM, based on NGDC’s research and analysis, are listed below:

•	 Process coastal JALBTCX LiDAR data to bare earth.

•	 Obtain digital versions of several NOAA nautical charts (#12206, 12207, 12210, 12225) that have not yet 

been digitized.

•	 Improve topography in the regions currently covered by NED 1/3 and 1 arc-second data (especially in the 

Delmarva Peninsula).

•	 NGDC digitized the southern routes of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, based upon minimum depths 

reported in Coast Pilot 4, as no digital data existed for these channels. The channels are frequently deeper 

along much of their lengths than their representation in the DEM, which could be remedied with further 

survey work.

5. Acknowledgments

The creation of these DEMs was funded by the NOAA, Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL).

The authors thank Chris Chamberlin and Vasily Titov (PMEL), Allan Lambert (City of Hampton, Virginia GIS Dept), 

Fraser Pichard (City of Norfolk, Virginia GIS Dept), Susan O’Neill and Jules Robichaud (City of Virginia Beach, 

Virginia GIS Dept), Michael Kay (City of Virginia Beach, Virginia Coastal Engineering), Eric Legaspi (U.S. Army 

Corp of Engineers, Norfolk District Office), Jeff Lillycrop, (JALBTCX), and Donna Milligan (Virginia Institute of

Marine Science).

6. References

Coast Pilot 4, 38th Edition, 2006. Atlantic Coast: Cape Henry to Key West, FL. U.S. Department of Commerce, 

NOAA, National Ocean Service.

Nautical Chart #12205, 30th Edition, 2005. FOLIO SMALL-CRAFT CHART Cape Henry to Pamlico Sound, 

Including Albemarle Sound; Rudee Heights. Scale various. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National 

Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12206, 31st Edition, 2005. Intracoastal Waterway Norfolk to Albemarle Sound via North Landing 

River or Great Dismal Swamp Canal. Scale 1:40,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean 

Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12207, 21st Edition, 2004. Cape Henry to Currituck Beach Light. Scale 1:50,000. U.S. Department of 

Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12208, 11th Edition, 2005. Approaches to Chesapeake Bay. Scale 1:50,000. U.S. Department of 

Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12210, 37th Edition, 2006. Chincoteague Inlet to Great Machipongo Inlet; Chincoteague Inlet. Scale 

1:80,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12221, 78th Edition, 2006. Chesapeake Bay Entrance. Scale 1:80,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, 

NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.
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DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL OF VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA

Nautical Chart #12222, 47th Edition, 2005. Chesapeake Bay Cape Charles to Norfolk Harbor. Scale 1:40,000. U.S. 

Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12224, 5th Edition, 2006. Chesapeake Bay Cape Charles to Wolf Trap. Scale 1:40,000. U.S. Department 

of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12225, 55th Edition, 2004. Chesapeake Bay Wolf Trap to Smith Point. Scale 1:80,000. U.S. Department 

of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12226, 16th Edition, 2001. Chesapeake Bay Wolf Trap to Pungoteague Creek. Scale 1:40,000. U.S. 

Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12235, 4th Edition, 2006. Rappahannock River Entrance Piankatank and Great Wicomico Rivers. 

Scale 1:40,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12238, 39th Edition, 2006. Chesapeake Bay Mobjack Bay and York River Entrance. Scale 1:40,000. 

U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12241, 21st Edition, 2002. York River Yorktown and Vicinity. Scale 1:20,000. U.S. Department of 

Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12245, 65th Edition, 2005. Hampton Roads. Scale 1:20,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, 

National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12248, 41st Edition, 2005. James River Newport News to Jamestown Island; Back River and College 

Creek. Scale 1:40,000. U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12253, 44th Edition, 2004. Norfolk Harbor and Elizabeth River. Scale 1:20,000. U.S. Department of 

Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12254, 46th Edition, 2006. Chesapeake Bay Cape Henry to Thimble Shoal Light. Scale 1:20,000. U.S. 

Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

Nautical Chart #12255, 16th Edition, 2005. Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base. Scale 1:5,000. U.S. Department of 

Commerce, NOAA, National Ocean Service, Coast Survey.

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O37075A8, 1996, Fishermans Island, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, 

U.S. Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O36076G2, 1996, Kempsville, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. 

Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O36076G3, 1996, Norfolk South, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. 

Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O36076H3, 1996, Norfolk North, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. 

Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)
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Taylor et al., 2008

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O37075C8, 1996, Cheriton, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. 

Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)

U.S. Geological Survey Quad #O37075D8, 1996, Franktown, Scale 1:24,000. U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. 

Geological Survey, Earth Sciences Information Center. Data downloaded from University of Virginia Library 

Geospatial and Statistical Center. (http://fisher.lib.virginia.edu/collections/gis/data/va_drg/)

7. Data Processing Software

ArcGIS v. 9.1, developed and licensed by ESRI, Redlands, California, http://www.esri.com/

Electronic Navigational Chart Data Handler for ArcView, developed by NOAA Coastal Services Center, http://www.

csc.noaa.gov/products/enc/

FME 2006 GB – Feature Manipulation Engine, developed and licensed by Safe Software, Vancouver, BC, Canada, 

http://www.safe.com/

GEODAS v. 5 – Geophysical Data System, shareware developed and maintained by Dan Metzger, NOAA National 

Geophysical Data Center, http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/mgg/geodas/

GMT v. 4.1.1 – Generic Mapping Tools, shareware developed and maintained by Paul Wessel and Walter Smith, 

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

MB-System v. 5.0.9, shareware 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/