Digital Elevation >= 10m Resolution

DEM - A digital elevation model is a representation of the topography of the Earth or another surface in digital format, that is, by coordinates and numerical descriptions of altitude which are used often in geographic information systems (GIS).

DTM - A digital terrain model is a topographic model of the bare earth that can be manipulated programs.  Vegetation, buildings and other cultural features are removed digitally leaving just the underlying terrain.

DSM - A digital surface model is a topographic model of the reflected surface of the earth that can be manipulated by computer programs.  A DSM may include vegetation and man-made structures removed from digital terrain model (DTM).

In cooperation with other federal and state agencies, the USGS makes DEM data available through the National Elevation Dataset (NED) and the Seamless Data Distribution System (SDDS). The NED is produced by merging the highest-resolution, best quality elevation data available across the United States into a seamless raster format. The Seamless Data Distribution System (SDDS) offers seamless data for a user-defined area, in a variety of formats, for online download or media delivery.

Currently, the NED and SDDS have limited data available for Alaska. Please refer to the metadata listed on these webpages for further information.