Using Google Earth to map and understand gully development

High-resolution images available on Google Earth are increasingly being consulted in geographic studies. However, most studies limit themselves to visualizations or on-screen measurements. Google Earth allows users to create points, lines and polygons on-screen, which can be saved as KML files. Here, the use of R statistics freeware is proposed to easily convert these files to the shapefile format [or ‘.shp file format’], which can be loaded into GIS-software (ESRI ArcGIS 9 in our example). The geospatial data integration in GIS strongly increases the analysis possibilities. We highlight our methodology and its accuracy by an applied study on gully network and volume development in the second half of the 20th century in the Northern Ethiopian Highlands.