GAF Elevation Suite

GAF Elevation Suite is GAF Geospatial GmbH's line of satellite-derived elevation products: digital surface models (DSMs), digital terrain models (DTMs) and textured 3D models with resolutions from 30 cm to 5 m. It serves authorities, defence and intelligence organisations and planners who need up-to-date 3D information on cities, infrastructure, regions or whole countries.

The models are generated from very-high- and high-resolution optical stereo and multi-stereo satellite imagery on a highly automated multi-source production line that GAF developed with the Remote Sensing Technology Institute (IMF) of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), using semi-global matching. The provider's examples credit Pléiades imagery (CNES, distributed by Airbus DS), Maxar imagery supplied by European Space Imaging, and Cartosat-1 stereo data (Antrix). The range includes Multi-Stereo VHR DSM 0.3 and 0.5 for cities and critical infrastructure, Multi-Stereo HR DSM 2.0 for cost-efficient regional coverage, Euro-Maps 3D (a 5 m DSM from Cartosat-1, processed for most EEA member and associated countries) with Euro-Maps 3D for Ortho, and 3D models with facade texture delivered as glTF, Cesium b3dm or PLY. All products are quality controlled and delivered with quality and traceability layers; DSMs at other resolutions and DTMs are available on request.

GAF states that since 2008 it has produced almost 13 million km² of 5 m coverage and over 100,000 km² at 50 cm or better. It also states that more than 200 cities worldwide are available as 30 cm or 50 cm DSMs. ESA added Euro-Maps 3D DSM to the Copernicus Data Access Portfolio, and the European Union Satellite Centre (SatCen) awarded GAF and e-GEOS a framework contract for satellite-based elevation models.