%0 Journal Article %J Spatial Information Theory %D 2005 %T Morse-Smale decompositions for modeling terrain knowledge %A Čomić,L. %A De Floriani, Leila %A Papaleo,L. %X In this paper, we describe, analyze and compare techniques for extracting spatial knowledge from a terrain model. Specifically, we investigate techniques for extracting a morphological representation from a terrain model based on an approximation of a Morse-Smale complex. A Morse-Smale complex defines a decomposition of a topographic surface into regions with vertices at the critical points and bounded by integral lines which connect passes to pits and peaks. This provides a terrain representation which encompasses the knowledge on the salient characteristics of the terrain. We classify the various techniques for computing a Morse-Smale complexe based on the underlying terrain model, a Regular Square Grid (RSG) or a Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN), and based on the algorithmic approach they apply. Finally, we discuss hierarchical terrain representations based on a Morse-Smale decomposition. %B Spatial Information Theory %P 426 - 444 %8 2005/// %G eng %R 10.1007/11556114_27