Aerial Laser Scanning in Archeology

Abstract

Technology of aerial laser scanning is often well used for a DTM generation. The DTM (digital surface model) displayed in appropriate form, e.g. shaded surface, can be used as a data source for searching for archaeological sites. Aerial laser scanning data acquisition is unfortunately too expensive for non-commercial projects. It can be solution to use the ALS data acquired primarily for another reason by public service. This data has in general lower density, than expensive custom-made data, but can be borrowed for research purpose in a limited size. We tested the data from The Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre. The aim was to find, if it is possible to use data characterized by density of about 1 point/m2 for archaeological research. We used the DTM in form of shaded surface and inspect the data around few well known archaeological sites from different periods. It is also possible to use different outputs from the original DTM to better display terrain discontinuities, which could be caused by human activity.

Keywords

• airborne laser scanning, DTM, shaded surface