Speed Mapping: Using drones to construct imagery and elevation models of cultural intertidal landscapes

Summary

Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have been used extensively in remote sensing in recent years because of their low cost and ease of implementation. Mapping cultural sites in intertidal areas is challenging because of the short time window in which features are exposed. UAS provide an efficient and high spatial resolution method of capturing imagery and elevation data for a variety of cultural landscapes. We have used UAS at sites along the coastal margin of British Columbia to map clam gardens, fish traps, tidal pools, and exposed archaeological sites. Our study areas are in coastal British Columbia, including the West Coast of Vancouver Island intertidal cultural sites, the Discovery Islands clam gardens, and Central Coast village site and fish traps. The data collected can be processed in the field to provide near-real-time imagery and elevation data that researchers can use to better locate and understand complex cultural sites. The data can also be integrated into geographic information systems for further spatial analysis both during and after archaeological field campaigns.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)   •
• Archaeology of Stranded, Intertidal, and Submerged Shorelines on the Northwest Coast of North America

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 17213