Articles | Volume 3, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-3-587-2015
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-3-587-2015
Review article
 | 
16 Dec 2015
Review article |  | 16 Dec 2015

Perspective – synthetic DEMs: A vital underpinning for the quantitative future of landform analysis?

J. K. Hillier, G. Sofia, and S. J. Conway

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AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision
AR by John K. Hillier on behalf of the Authors (23 Nov 2015)  Author's response   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (03 Dec 2015) by Daniel Parsons
ED: Publish as is (03 Dec 2015) by Tom Coulthard (Editor)
AR by John K. Hillier on behalf of the Authors (04 Dec 2015)
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Short summary
How good are measurements of shapes in the landscape? This is not well constrained. We suggest that "synthetic tests" using constructed digital landscapes called synthetic DEMs are a powerful and necessary tool to establish the reliability of these data (e.g. mapped sizes). Thus, the tests have a key, complementary role in determining if conceptual and physics-driven models of processes can be reconciled with morphological observations of reality. A typology of synthetic DEMs is proposed.