Surface Model Download, from aerial photographs

Surface Model Download, from aerial photographs consists of height points, with or without colour, created from aerial image matching. Previously, the product was called Surface Model from aerial photos. The product name in Swedish is Ythöjdmodell Nedladdning, från flygbilder.

About this product

A Surface model is a type of elevation model that describes what can be seen from the air. The top of vegetation, buildings and other artefacts above ground are included (unlike a terrain model where such over ground features are omitted). For open spaces where there is no vegetation, buildings or other artefacts the surface model shows the ground surface. The points that make up the surface model are not a 3D swarm of points, it is a layer of elevation-based points (2.5D model).

The surface model contains elevation points created from aerial image matching. The product is available in two variants: Surface model from aerial colour photographs and Surface model from aerial photographs, which is delivered without colour scheme. Metadata for the product is included in the delivery.

Read more about image matching (pdf)

Geographical selection: Index tiles (2,5 x 2,5), polygon, cut-out with min/max-coordinates, county, municipality, Sweden.
Delivery formats: LZW-compressed GeoTIFF
Coordinate systems: SWEREF 99 TM

Examples of the use of Surface Model from aerial photographs

The surface model has several uses, for example it can be used to elevate 2D data to 3D, calculate forest growth or carry out change detection between different years of photography or simulate how gas emissions are spread.

Maintenance and update frequency

The production follows The national image provision programme. New data is added as new aerial photographs become available over approximately 1/3 of Sweden each year.

The areas that can be ordered from each year of aerial photography are reported under the tab Plans and outcomes.

Documentation

For a deeper description of the content, see the product description in Swedish and English:

Current version

Plans and outcomes

The production follows the The national image provision programme and new data is added annually as new aerial photographs become available.

Production status

Production status is updated every day and reports which areas are ready to order from each year of aerial photography and what resolution each area has.

Missing areas

When matching images over areas that are largely covered by water, i.e. some lakes and in the archipelago, some areas may be missing. This means that some islands, skerries and headlands are not included in the surface model. Where the missing surfaces are is shown in the shapefiles below and in the pdf-file on production status.

The Shape files show:

  • Missing areas - index tiles (shows tiles with missing areas).
  • Missing surfaces - polygons (shows the exact extent of missing data).

Demo data

The surface model is created by digital image matching in aerial images. The points are regularly placed with point distances according to the specified resolution.

3D demo, surface model from aerial photos (user guide in the service, new window)

Download the desired demo files directly from the product links on this page or go to bundled demo data (new window) alternatively collected demo data on the FTP site (new window).

Current version
Demodata Format Content Current aerial photo
Indexruta 650_56_2575
Coulouring from 2019, resolution (zip 525 MB) GeoTIFF (LZW-compressed) Surface model with
0.25 m resolution
4-channel color scheme
April 2019
Upcoming version
Demodata Format Content Actuality aerial photo
Index box 650_56_2575
Demodata (zip 619 MB) GeoTIFF (LZW-compressed) Surface height model with
0.25 m resolution
Color scheme 4-channel
June 2021

Order product

You can order geodata products directly from us or from one of our retailers. 

Order from Lantmäteriet

If you want to order directly from us at Lantmäteriet, you use the e-service, Geotorget.

Order from resellers

If you need help with ordering our geodata products or get a customized solution for your business, you can contact one of our resellers.

Copyright and publication

Read more about what applies when you want to publish the Land Survey's maps, aerial photographs and other geographical information.

Contents of this page may be automatically translated, we take no responsibility for the accuracy of the translation. Feel free to contact our customer support centre if you have any questions.

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