This one is packed with new analytical and visualization tools. Dive in for a tour of what's new in Marigold.
What's new?
- Hillshade - create shaded relief maps from any of your raster products and blend the results with your data products. Tweak your final appearance with new variable alpha setting controls.
- A new splash page to help you jump back into your more recent projects.
- Quick hyperspectral visualizations - create multispectral analog mineral indices and ternary visualizations using approximate bands from hyperspectral datasets.
- Vector points and polylines - Marigold now supports drawing point and polyline features in addition to polygons.
As always, the release also includes a handful of minor improvements and fixes to once again make this the best version of Marigold yet.
Hillshade and Variable Alpha
Visualize your data in Marigold like never before, with powerful hillshade capabilities to highlight topography, emphasize geophysics, and build beautiful maps. For a complete tutorial on using the new hillshade and variable alpha tools, follow the link below to a dedicated article on its uses.
Hillshade and Variable Alpha Tool
The new tool works in two steps. First you can generate a hillshade layer based on an input dataset like a digital elevation model (DEM). There are settings that allow you to modify the sun position and vertical exaggeration of your hillshade layer. This will produce a greyscale shaded relief like the one visible in the upper right below. Next, that hillshade layer can be applied and blended with any other raster layer to produce a striking visual result within the new Advanced settings dialog accessible through every layer's settings menu.
To take it a step further, the alpha (transparency) of layers can now be controlled even more precisely by using the new spatially variable alpha tool, also within the Advanced settings window. Users can modify the transparency of a layer based on elevation data, magnetics, or anything else they desire. The possibilities are endless.
The sequence above shows the generation of a hillshade layer using the globally available Copernicus 30m digital elevation model product. The hillshade is then applied to the DEM to produce a complex picture of the topography surrounding Mt. Rainier, Washington, USA.
The image above shows a result of the "Alteration" mineral index produced from the Fused Bare Earth Composite. A hillshade layer produced from Copernicus topography has been applied, providing additional context to the spectral mapping data.
Splash Page
When you first open Marigold, you will immediately notice something different. We've added a new splash page that helps you dive into Marigold faster than ever before. There's even a mini-map to help you get your bearings.
The new splash page you will see in Marigold helps you pick up where you left off by presenting your recent projects and a handful of other options to get your session started.
In the new dialogue you will see a few option:
1. Start a new project. If you are ready to start from scratch, select this option to jump right in. You can optionally select from any of your previously saved Bookmark locations or just open the default location and navigate from there. The Sentinel-2 Bare Earth Composite will be added to your layers as a starting point.
2. Open a recent project. Many users want to pick up where they left off and we want to make that easier for them. You will now see a dropdown menu where you can select from your five most recent projects. Selecting a project will show the central coordinate of the save file on the map for a handy reference.
3. Open the Load dialog. There is an option to open original loading dialogue to view all of your save files and select the project you are working on. In this menu you will also find the new ability to sort your save files by either name or last-saved date.
4. Upload a .sav. Did a colleague send you a .sav file that you can't wait to explore? Quickly upload a .sav file through the splash page interface to immediately load the project.
5. Load the latest autosave. Marigold automatically saves your work every five minutes to a project named autosave.sav. This is to help prevent lost time and work in the event of internet connectivity issues or an unexpected crash. To expedite that recovery, a button is available to immediately reopen the latest autosave file and continue your work.
Mineral Index Analogs for Hyperspectral Imagery
The more bands the better, right? We think so, and Marigold gives you the power to process hyperspectral imagery with hundreds of bands faster than any other platform. However, sometimes too many bands can feel overwhelming and it's useful to build familiar mineral indices and RGB visualizations that are an approximation of those available in the multispectral toolbox using the central hyperspectral band position corresponding to each multispectral band.
This release introduces a new tool in the Hyperspectral Toolbox that allows users to create mineral index outputs from hyperspectral data that are analogous to those available in the multispectral toolbox. The tool works by selecting the bands from the hyperspectral input product that are closest in wavelength to the selected mineral index or RGB to quickly produce an analogous output.
Remember: Output products will not be equivalent to multispectral products because the bands have not been resampled over the broader multispectral wavelengths. This tool should be used only as a proxy to help understand your area.
The compilation above shows the results of using the mineral index analogs with AVIRIS-NG (224 bands) hyperspectral airborne data over Cuprite, Nevada compared to results from the Fused Bare Earth Composite.
Vector Points and Polylines
Marigold has long supported the ability of users to draw their own polygons to help outline areas of interest, intriguing features, and help with masking. Now, users can also create their own point and polyline features directly within Marigold to help annotate their exploration workflows.
To draw points, polylines, or polygons, navigate to the + icon next to Vector layers and select Draw layer. You will now see an option to select the type of vector product you would like to create. Once you have selected the vector type of choice, the tool works just as before. Click the pencil icon next to the layer to make it editable, and click the draw vector tool on the left side of the map window to begin your shape.
