Automatische Gerölldarstellung für topographische Karten

Scree fields are a characteristic landscape element in many high-mountain areas, and are represented on topographical maps for that reason. On maps, the size and the density of the minuscule scree dots vary with the directness of their exposure to a virtual light source. The size of the dots also changes according to their relative position on slopes. Dots are sometimes arranged in linear structures to indicate the direction of flow of scree fields. The symbolization of large scree fields on maps is very labour-intensive without specialized digital tools. This article introduces an automatic method for the symbolization of scree. First, design principles as applied by the Swiss Federal Office of Topography swisstopo are identified; then the digital method is described; and finally Scree Painter, a specialized free and open-source software application is introduced. Scree, relief representation, topographic mapping. Federal Office of Topography swisstopo (Switzerland).