DEM Generation from GF-7 Satellite Stereo Imagery Assisted by Space-Borne LiDAR and Its Application to Active Tectonics

China’s first optical stereo mapping satellite with a sub-meter resolution, GaoFen-7 (GF-7), launched in November 2019, shows significant potential for providing high-resolution topographic and geomorphic data quantitative research on active tectonics. However, no studies have evaluated the capability of GF-7-generated digital elevation model (DEM) quantitatively studying This study aimed to validate accuracy DEMs extracted from GF-7 imagery, or without ground control points (GCPs), applying First, images were processed obtain spatial resolution 2 m, utilizing three different methods, including block adjustment GCPs, aid Google Earth SRTM DEM, GCPs derived Ice, Cloud, land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) data. These generated called DEMMethod1, DEMMethod2, DEMMethod3, respectively, verified by airborne LiDAR Hasishan section Haiyuan fault. Second, identifying faults, fault scarps, horizontal offsets was evaluated. Finally, 8 vertical 13 measured based DEMs, used verify measurements’ accuracies. The results indicated that DEMMethod1 worst DEMMethod3 superior DEMMethod2. could effectively identify apparent scarps offsets. RMSE values 0.55 0.41 respectively. yielded 3.98 2.52 1.37 findings demonstrated be accurately using images. Meanwhile, our ICESat-2 utilized improve accuracies measurements