Mapping Malaysia Research Articles

EVALUATING IMAGERY-DERIVED BATHYMETRY OF SEABED TOPOGRAPHY TO SUPPORT MARINE CADASTRE

Abstract. The Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia has introduced marine cadastre system to register the rights, other valid interests therein and ownership of spatially determined parcels in the context of the marine environment yet the implementation of the system is still at the rudimentary stage. One of the big issues here is gathering land-to-seabed data to create a seamless topographic base map to support its marine cadastre project. Seabed bathymetric mapping in coastal zone is one of the major components to support marine cadastre. In the past, accurate bathymetric measurements can be a very laborious task in hydrographic surveying. Traditional vessel-based acoustic soundings require a lot of time, operation cost and others. Today, human’s ingenuity to yield bathymetric depths from multispectral images as an alternative source to chart the seabed topography has brought in new revolution to hydrography. The paper is initiated for evaluating water depth determination by using imagery-derived bathymetry technique and check its correlation with in-situ bathymetry depths. In the course of experiment, it demonstrates a good correlation between the imagery-derived bathymetric depths and the in-situ bathymetric depths, and majority of the derived depths have passed the minimum requirement of the IHO S-44 survey standard. The result also shows that these empirical models deliver promising outcome which can be use over the turbid environment setting. Hence, imagery-derived bathymetry approach can be an efficient and repeatable way to derive the seabed topography over a huge segment of coastal region. This study also suggests that imagery-derived bathymetry approach can be recognised as an aid in seabed topographic mapping to support marine cadastre initiative.

High-Resolution Digital Elevation and Bathymetry Model for Tsunami Run-Up and Inundation Simulation in Penang

Many beaches in Penang island were severely inundated by the 26 December 2004 Indian Ocean mega tsunami with 57 deaths recorded. It is anticipated that the next big tsunami will cause even more damages to beaches in Penang. Hence, developing community resilience against the risks of the next tsunami is essential. Resilience entails many interlinked components, beginning with a good understanding of the inundation scenarios critical to community evacuation and resilience preparation. Inundation scenarios are developed from tsunami simulations involving all three phases of tsunami generation, propagation and run-up. Accurate and high-resolution bathymetric–topographic maps are essential for simulations of tsunami wave inundation along beaches. Bathymetric maps contain information on the depths of landforms below sea level while topographic maps reveal the elevation of landforms above sea level. Bathymetric and topographic datasets for Malaysia are, however, currently not integrated and are available separately and in different formats, not suitable for inundation simulations. Bathymetric data are controlled by the National Hydrographic Centre (NHC) of the Royal Malaysian Navy while topographic data are serviced by the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (JUPEM). It is highly desirable to have seamless integration of high-resolution bathymetric and topographic data for tsunami simulations and for other scientific studies. In this paper, we develop a robust method for integrating the NHC bathymetric and JUPEM topographic data into a regularly-spaced grid system essential for tsunami simulation. A primary objective of this paper is to develop the best Digital Elevation and Bathymetry Model (DEBM) for Penang based upon the most suitable and accurate interpolation method for integrating bathymetric and topographic data with minimal interpolation errors. We analyze four commonly used interpolation methods for generating gridded topographic and bathymetric surfaces, namely (i) Kriging, (ii) Multiquadric (MQ), (iii) Thin Plate Spline (TPS) and (iv) Inverse Distance to Power (IDP). The study illustrated that the Kriging interpolation method produces an integrated bathymetric and topographic surface that best approximates the admiralty nautical chart of Penang essential for tsunami run-up and inundation simulations. Tsunami inundation scenarios critical to risk analysis and mitigation could then be developed using this DEBM for various earthquake scenarios, as presented in this paper for the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

Chaotic Analysis for Malaysian West Coast Sea Level: a Case Study of Kukup, Johor

Sea level prediction is an important task for navigation, coastal engineering, geodetic application and recreational activities. Predicting the behavior of future sea level is necessary for protection of coastal as well as for monitoring and forecasting of changes in fishery and marine ecosystems. This study is focused on the analysis and prediction of hourly sea level time series data at the benchmark station located in Kukup, Johor by using chaotic approach. The aim of this study was to detect the presence of chaotic behavior by the phase space reconstruction and Cao methods, and also a local linear approximation method is employed for prediction purposes. The results revealed that the value of correlation coefficient between the observed and predicted time series is 0.879 which is near to one. This indicates that the local linear approximation method can be used to predict the sea level time series in Malaysia. Indeed, the result of this study is expected to help stakeholder such as Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (JUPEM) in having a better sea level management.

Gravimetric geoid modeling in the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia (NGM17) using KTH method

In this study, a new geoid model for the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia (NGM17) was computed using an alternative method known as the Least Squares Modification of Stokes formula (LSMS) with Additive Corrections (AC) or commonly called the KTH method. The NGM17 geoid was derived from the recent terrestrial gravity data provided by Department of Surveying and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM), the most recent global digital elevation model ALOS World 3D (AW3D-30) GDEM, global geopotential model (GGM) derived from three satellite gravity missions, marine gravity anomalies extracted from DTU 10 Global Gravity Field and WGM2012 Earth’s gravity anomalies. The gravimetric geoid model derived in this study (NGM17) as well as the geoid obtained from DSMM were then evaluated against the GNSS-levelling data. The statistical analysis obtained shows that NGM17 gives slightly better accuracy with the mean error of NGM17 and DSMM geoid model were 0.2568m and 1.1648m respectively, and the RMSE of ±0.2686m and ±1.1656m respectively.

Application of Ifsar Technology in Topographic Mapping: JUPEM’s Experience

Abstract. The application of Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (IFSAR) in topographic mapping has increased during the past decades. This is due to the advantages that IFSAR technology offers in solving data acquisition problems in tropical regions. Unlike aerial photography, radar technology offers wave penetration through cloud cover, fog and haze. As a consequence, images can be made free of any natural phenomenon defects. In Malaysia, Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (JUPEM) has been utilizing the IFSAR products since 2009 to update topographic maps at 1 : 50,000 map scales. Orthorectified radar imagery (ORI), Digital Surface Models (DSM) and Digital Terrain Models (DTM) procured under the project have been further processed before the products are ingested into a revamped mapping workflow consisting of stereo and mono digitizing processes. The paper will highlight the experience of Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM)/ JUPEM in using such technology in order to speed up mapping production.

Airborne geoid mapping of land and sea areas of East Malaysia

Abstract This paper describes the development of a new geoid-based vertical datum from airborne gravity data, by the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia, on land and in the South China Sea out of the coast of East Malaysia region, covering an area of about 610,000 square kilometres. More than 107,000 km flight line of airborne gravity data over land and marine areas of East Malaysia has been combined to provide a seamless land-to-sea gravity field coverage; with an estimated accuracy of better than 2.0 mGal. The iMAR-IMU processed gravity anomaly data has been used during a 2014-2016 airborne survey to extend a composite gravity solution across a number of minor gaps on selected lines, using a draping technique. The geoid computations were all done with the GRAVSOFT suite of programs from DTU-Space. EGM2008 augmented with GOCE spherical harmonic model has been used to spherical harmonic degree N = 720. The gravimetric geoid first was tied at one tide-gauge (in Kota Kinabalu, KK2019) to produce a fitted geoid, my_geoid2017_fit_kk. The fitted geoid was offset from the gravimetric geoid by +0.852 m, based on the comparison at the tide-gauge benchmark KK2019. Consequently, orthometric height at the six other tide gauge stations was computed from HGPS Lev = hGPS - Nmy_geoid2017_.t_kk. Comparison of the conventional (HLev) and GPS-levelling heights (HGPS Lev) at the six tide gauge locations indicate RMS height difference of 2.6 cm. The final gravimetric geoidwas fitted to the seven tide gauge stations and is known as my_geoid2017_fit_east. The accuracy of the gravimetric geoid is estimated to be better than 5 cm across most of East Malaysia land and marine areas

Development of LiDAR Database Management System using Open Source Software

This study is focused on the development of a LiDAR database management system for the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (JUPEM) to facilitate user authentication, retrieval of LiDAR datasets, storage, scheduling of LiDAR flight sessions and generation of new data products. Additionally, the design goal of the data management system is to support managers-vendors relationship, as well as new data generation out of the results. In this study, we described the structure development of LiDAR database management system and how the system collaborated with data production and data acquisition. The architecture of such application in WebGIS, providing map interactivity in displaying a simple dataset of LiDAR data by using Open Layers integration via GeoJSON format as the spatial data were used to show the implementation of such feature. We also used the Open Source Software (OSS) in the development of the LiDAR Database Management System for JUPEM. This was because many countries, especially in the public sector, were slowly transferring from using proprietary software to OSS.

CADASTRAL POSITIONING ACCURACY IMPROVEMENT: A CASE STUDY IN MALAYSIA

Abstract. Cadastral map is a parcel-based information which is specifically designed to define the limitation of boundaries. In Malaysia, the cadastral map is under authority of the Department of Surveying and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM). With the growth of spatial based technology especially Geographical Information System (GIS), DSMM decided to modernize and reform its cadastral legacy datasets by generating an accurate digital based representation of cadastral parcels. These legacy databases usually are derived from paper parcel maps known as certified plan. The cadastral modernization will result in the new cadastral database no longer being based on single and static parcel paper maps, but on a global digital map. Despite the strict process of the cadastral modernization, this reform has raised unexpected queries that remain essential to be addressed. The main focus of this study is to review the issues that have been generated by this transition. The transformed cadastral database should be additionally treated to minimize inherent errors and to fit them to the new satellite based coordinate system with high positional accuracy. This review result will be applied as a foundation for investigation to study the systematic and effectiveness method for Positional Accuracy Improvement (PAI) in cadastral database modernization.

MARINE GEOID UNDULATION ASSESSMENT OVER SOUTH CHINA SEA USING GLOBAL GEOPOTENTIAL MODELS AND AIRBORNE GRAVITY DATA

Abstract. Global geopotential models (GGMs) are vital in computing global geoid undulations heights. Based on the ellipsoidal height by Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) observations, the accurate orthometric height can be calculated by adding precise and accurate geoid undulations model information. However, GGMs also provide data from the satellite gravity missions such as GRACE, GOCE and CHAMP. Thus, this will assist to enhance the global geoid undulations data. A statistical assessment has been made between geoid undulations derived from 4 GGMs and the airborne gravity data provided by Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM). The goal of this study is the selection of the best possible GGM that best matches statistically with the geoid undulations of airborne gravity data under the Marine Geodetic Infrastructures in Malaysian Waters (MAGIC) Project over marine areas in Sabah. The correlation coefficients and the RMS value for the geoid undulations of GGM and airborne gravity data were computed. The correlation coefficients between EGM 2008 and airborne gravity data is 1 while RMS value is 0.1499.In this study, the RMS value of EGM 2008 is the lowest among the others. Regarding to the statistical analysis, it clearly represents that EGM 2008 is the best fit for marine geoid undulations throughout South China Sea.

A REVIEW ON LEGAL TRACEABILITY OF GNSS MEASUREMENTS IN THE MALAYSIAN CADASTRAL PRACTICE

Abstract. As the dependency on Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) in surveying has been growing over the years, the need for legal traceability of GNSS measurements has become a significant matter. In Malaysia, with the advent of the Malaysia Real-time Kinematic Network (MyRTKnet), GNSS surveying has revolutionised land survey and mapping. Correspondingly, the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM) amended and published standard regulations and guidelines concerning cadastral survey, i.e., Cadastral Survey Regulations 2009, to include GNSS measurements. However, these regulations and guidelines has not comprehensively incorporated legal traceability of GNSS measurements; which is a prerequisite for cadastral surveys as it requires reliable and conclusive evidence for issues such as boundary disputes. The first objective of this paper is to review and discuss the legal traceability of GNSS measurements. Secondly, it will highlight the current practice and issues, i.e., with regard to legal traceability, within the present Malaysian cadastral regulation and guidelines, in relation to the prevalently adopted Network RTK (N-RTK) technique, GNSS instrument calibrations, and reference stations’ accuracy. Lastly, a rudimentary best practice guideline for GNSS surveying in cadastral survey for Malaysia is proposed. It is expected that this paper will contribute to the implementation of a best practice guideline, which is inclusive of legal traceability of GNSS measurements, for the Malaysian cadastral practice.

Geospatial application for the identification and monitoring of rubber smallholders in the Malaysian state of Negeri Sembilan

The Malaysian rubber industry, especially in the upstream sector, is much dependent on smallholders to produce latex or cup lumps. Identification and monitoring of rubber smallholders are essential tasks when it comes to the Malaysian rubber industry's sustainability. The authorised agencies who support the rubber smallholders can do better planning, arranging, and managing. This paper introduces a method of calculating the total number of smallholders as well as identifying the location of their planted rubber area. The scope of this study only focused on land owners as rubber smallholders in the selected study area of Negeri Sembilan. The land use map provided by the Department of Agriculture Malaysia gave information on distribution of rubber area in Malaysia, while the cadastral map from the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia was specifically used for identifying land owners of each rubber parcel or rubber lot. Both data were analyzed and processed with ArcGIS software to extract the information, and the results were then compared to the Malaysian Rubber Board smallholders database.

Assessment of Gravity Field and Steady State Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) geoid model using GPS levelling over Sabah and Sarawak

The GOCE satellite mission has significantly contributed to various applications such as solid earth physics, oceanography and geodesy. Some substantial applications of geodesy are to improve the gravity field knowledge and the precise geoid modelling towards realising global height unification. This paper aims to evaluate GOCE geoid model based on the recent GOCE Global Geopotential Model (GGM), as well as EGM2008, using GPS levelling data over East Malaysia, i.e. Sabah and Sarawak. The satellite GGMs selected in this study are the GOCE GGM models which include GOCE04S, TIM_R5 and SPW_R4, and the EGM2008 model. To assess these models, the geoid heights from these GGMs are compared to the local geometric geoid height. The GGM geoid heights was derived using EGMLAB1 software and the geometric geoid height was computed by available GPS levelling information obtained from the Department Survey and Mapping Malaysia. Generally, the GOCE models performed better than EGM2008 over East Malaysia and the best fit GOCE model for this region is the TIM_R5 model. The TIM_R5 GOCE model demonstrated the lowest R.M.S. of ± 16.5 cm over Sarawak, comparatively. For further improvement, this model should be combined with the local gravity data for optimum geoid modelling over East Malaysia.

Horizontal comparator for the system calibration of digital levels – realization at the Faculty of civil engineering, CTU Prague and in the laboratory of the Department of survey and mapping Malaysia (JUPEM) in Kuala Lumpur.

<p>Metrological procedures require a leveling staff calibration for an estimation of a true staff scale. The calibration process is usually realized on laboratory comparators. Two automatic comparators for digital level calibration were built by the staff of Department of Geomatics. This article brings some information about properties of developed systems and about a control software for the comparators.</p>

The importance of Malaysian Land Administration Domain Model country profile in land policy

Every country has land policy and land planning systems to improve social, physical, spatial and economic imbalance. Land policies provide the framework, direction and continuity of decisions made for the function of land in the implementation of national development plans which involve local, state and regional plans. In Malaysia, land policies are implemented within a broader framework, which is supervised by the government. Some land policies were implemented based on the National Land Code (NLC). The National Land Code, 1965 came into force on 1st January 1966 to administer all land matters in Peninsular Malaysia and the Federal Territory of Labuan while Sabah and Sarawak continued to use the Sabah Land Ordinance 1930 and Sarawak Land Code 1958 respectively. The purpose of the NLC is to ensure the uniformity of land policy and land law with respect to land tenure, registration, transfer, charges, leases, easements and other interests and rights to land. Rapid development and various needs for securing proprietors’ interests have put a lot of demands on land administration. A new three-dimensional (3D) cadastral system was proposed to cater for above and below surface cadastral objects and to enable the registration of real properties that are not limited to the land surface. The 3D approach for cadastral and land registration systems can provide a better means to manage modern cadastral objects. There are two organisations within Peninsular Malaysia responsible for managing and maintaining the land administration system, namely, the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM) and the District Land Offices which are responsible for the cadastral survey and ownership rights respectively. Both organisations have their own information systems called eLand in District Land Offices and eCadastre in DSMM. There are three arguments to further improve the land administration system towards e-Government services – government guarantee of indefeasibility of title to private land; information integration for good governance of land administration; systematic and accurate recording for land taxation purposes as a source of important state revenue. Those arguments clearly demonstrated the need for the Land Administration Domain Model (LADM). The LADM is an international standard for land administration purposes. Malaysia does not have a standard model for land administration. Standardisation of land administration within a country should meet the international standard, this will hasten land transactions between international entities. This paper attempts to outline Malaysian land policy in relation to the framework of the National Land Policy and LADM standard as a reference model for Malaysian land administration.

Malaysian Land Administration Domain Model Country Profile

Land administration is a process of recording and disseminating information about the association between people and land. To administer land matters in Malaysia, the Department of Surveying and Mapping Malaysia uses eKadaster and Land Office has eTanah which are different in e-Systems. Currently, Malaysia does not have a standard model for land administration and standardisation is one of the important aspects in a land administration process. This paper proposed a country profile model using international standards based on Land Administration Domain Model. This paper also attempted to generate strata object model via Land Administration Domain Model which would be useful for Malaysia and countries with similar land administration systems. In this proposed model, spatial data modelling using secondary data from the aforementioned two land administration units in Malaysia and Unified Modelling Language application were used to develop the conceptual and the technical models. The developed model was evaluated and verified by the Department of Surveying and Mapping Malaysia and Land Office. These units agreed and were satisfied because the model fits their requirements by being more comprehensive as it included three-dimensional lots and two-dimensional topology. In addition, the proposed model facilitated the management of spatial and non-spatial objects such as customary areas, reserved lands, lots, strata objects, utilities and the related attributes to be better managed by the two units. The development of Malaysian Land Administration Domain Model country profile is unique because it can support a very wide range of spatial units. Furthermore, the model was developed to help establish a national Spatial Data Infrastructure. To conclude, the developed Malaysian Land Administration Domain Model is a standardised model that could be used for local and international exchange of information concerning land administration matters.

The Second Precise Levelling Network of Peninsular Malaysia

The measurement of Second Precise Levelling Network (PLN) for the Peninsular Malaysia which was completed in 2000 by Department of Surveying and Mapping Malaysia (DSMM) is set to replace the First Order Levelling Network of 1967. The new network consists of 113 levelling lines with more than 5000 bench marks and covers a total distance of over 5000 km. Precise levelling technique is used to establish the network where the allowable misclosure between fore and back levelling is less than 3 mm per root kilometre of length along a line. Its configuration is predominantly dictated by the land transportation pattern. The mean sea level (MSL) at Port Kelang, based upon a 10-year tidal observation (1984-93), was later being adopted as the new Peninsular Malaysia Geodetic Vertical Datum (PMGVD). A consistent and accurate set of adjusted heights of benchmarks has been achieved in the adjustment of the Precise Levelling Network of Peninsular Malaysia on the datum defined by MSL height at Port Klang. These adjusted heights are based on the Helmert orthometric height system. By fixing Port Kelang, the precision of the PLN can be expressed as 1.14 mm√km. This implies that for any of the 5,295 first-order levelling bench mark across the nation, a height precision of better than 3 cm can be expected.

Ionospheric Total Electron Content Response to the December 26, 2004 North Sumatra Earthquake

Problem statement: Ionospheric precursors of earthquake have been studied by scientists and seismologists. This study aims at examining the relationship between the ionosphere and earthquake precursors. The effects of the anomalous electric field that penetrates the ionosphere on the electron concentration can be measured experimentally. This study reports on the variability of the Total Electron Content (TEC) during the December 26, 2004 earthquake in North Sumatra (epicentre: 3.295°N, 95.982°E) which measured 9.3 on the Richter scale. Approach: The ionospheric TEC near North Sumatra between December 19 to 31 was calculated between 22:00 and 24:00 and between 02:00 and 06:00 local time (LT) using a dual frequency Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. It was recorded for a period of 13 days, which is seven days before and five days after the earthquake. The GPS data was taken from the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia in the north of Malaysia (4.1°N, 99.8°E), which is near North Sumatra. Four sets of data were selected from different GPS satellites that passed near the epicentre. Results: Results show good agreement with the existence of earthquake precursors. TEC variability was detected at night and in the early morning of 21 December 2004 (five days before the earthquake) and 25 December 2004 (a day before). Findings show an increase in the electron concentration level at the station closest to the epicentre and the TEC varies from 2-10 TEC unit. Conclusion/Recommendations: The findings correspond with previous research and literature in this field. Further studies on the parameters that cause the change in the ionospheric TEC due to earthquakes are needed if this is to be used as part of an earthquake early warning prediction system.

Ionospheric Total Electron Content Response to the December 26, 2004 North Sumatra Earthquake

Problem statement: Ionospheric precursors of earthquake have been studied by scientists and seismologists. This study aims at examining the relationship between the ionosphere and earthquake precursors. The effects of the anomalous electric field that penetrates the ionosphere on the electron concentration can be measured experimentally. This study reports on the variability of the Total Electron Content (TEC) during the December 26, 2004 earthquake in North Sumatra (epicentre: 3.295°N, 95.982°E) which measured 9.3 on the Richter scale. Approach: The ionospheric TEC near North Sumatra between December 19 to 31 was calculated between 22:00 and 24:00 and between 02:00 and 06:00 local time (LT) using a dual frequency Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver. It was recorded for a period of 13 days, which is seven days before and five days after the earthquake. The GPS data was taken from the Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia in the north of Malaysia (4.1°N, 99.8°E), which is near North Sumatra. Four sets of data were selected from different GPS satellites that passed near the epicentre. Results: Results show good agreement with the existence of earthquake precursors. TEC variability was detected at night and in the early morning of 21 December 2004 (five days before the earthquake) and 25 December 2004 (a day before). Findings show an increase in the electron concentration level at the station closest to the epicentre and the TEC varies from 2-10 TEC unit. Conclusion/Recommendations: The findings correspond with previous research and literature in this field. Further studies on the parameters that cause the change in the ionospheric TEC due to earthquakes are needed if this is to be used as part of an earthquake early warning prediction system.