The Danube evolution within the Romanian sector Cotul Pisicii - Ceatal Izmail based on the archaeological discoveries and remote sensing

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to develop a working method for analysing the natural environment according to archaeological data. In order to achieve these results, the data obtained from classical archaeological and historical studies were correlated with those obtained by field studies and remote sensing techniques. In this paper, the studies focused on the evolution of the Lower Danube, in the sector Cotul Pisicii - Ceatalul Izmail. Data processing was based on free and open source applications. Through this, data from archaeological studies and satellite imagery was processed, thus obtaining a trace of the form and distribution of archaeological sites on vector strata. These were used to determine the current shape of the Danube fairway. Preliminary data available at the moment revealed an intensive alluvial process of the Danube bank in the Cotul Pisicii - Crapina Lake area, upstream of the Noviodunum fortress (Isaccea) area, and in the sector Revărsarea - Ceatalul Izmail. The intense erosion process was found in the Noviodunum fortress (Isaccea) area. The correlation of these processes with data on the spatial distribution of the archaeological sites as well as on the historical periods that belong to them can provide a valuable indicator of the evolution of the lower sector of the Danube.

Keywords

• Lower Danube
• promontories
• cluster
• sub-cluster
• historical periods