Groundtruthing from the Air: Reconstructing Tribal Agricultural and Landscape Systems in the Lower Chama Valley, New Mexico Using Low Elevation UAV Technology.

Summary

Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are changing the way that archaeologists conduct fieldwork with Native American Tribes. We present an application of UAV mapping and visualization technology in a combined boots-on-the-ground and satellite reconnaissance of Classic period (A.D. 1350-1600) ancestral Pueblo sites and agricultural systems. This approach reduced field time and enhanced efficiency in the identification and recordation of regionally extensive prehistoric features at a level of resolution not available to the human eye or with currently accessible high elevation imagery. When combined with software applications that enable three-dimensional visualizations of archaeological features, new insights emerge that were previously unavailable to the most discerning or intensive survey techniques. Adoption of this non-invasive (remote) technology by Tribes allows for time efficient compilation of information for applications in land and water rights cases and culturally sensitive land-use planning.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Archaeological Applications of Unmanned Aerial Systems (Drones)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage