2.3 Beyond the Basemap: Multiscalar Survey through Aerial Photogrammetry in the Andes

Authors

Steven A. Wernke, Vanderbilt UniversityFollow
Gabriela Oré, Vanderbilt University
Carla Hernández, Vanderbilt University
Aurelio Rodríguez
Abel Traslaviña, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos (Peru)
Giancarlo Marcone, Ministry of Culture, Peru

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Description

The revolutionary capabilities of digital aerial photogrammetry open new avenues for archaeological research design, cultural heritage management, and spatial visualization and analysis. The low cost and high speed of aerial photogrammetry democratize and accelerate both the production and distribution of high-resolution digital 2D and 3D spatial representations of archaeological features, sites, and landscapes. With cultural patrimony disappearing at alarming rates around the world, the adoption of these techniques is an urgent priority. We review our methods and experiences using 3D photogrammetric registry at several scales in the diverse environmental conditions of the Andean region, using an array of inexpensive aerial imagery capture platforms, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones), meteorological balloons, and poles. The accuracy and resolution of the resulting products enable photogrammetric representations (e.g., orthomosaics, 3D solids, digital elevation models) to serve as the primary spatial references for survey and excavations. The methodological implications of these rapid advances have yet to be fully integrated into most archaeological research designs. Rather than using photogrammetry as a “value-added” technique appended to traditional survey or excavation, we outline workflows for rapid 3D photogrammetric documentation combined with mobile GIS. In sum, these transformative technologies and techniques enable the curation and broad dissemination of digital repositories of endangered cultural heritage, as well as dramatically richer spatial representations for an array of analytical ends in archaeological research.

Publication Date

10-12-2016

Publisher

The Digital Press @ University of North Dakota

City

Grand Forks, North Dakota

Keywords

Andes, drones, Inka[JS1], mobile GIS, photogrammetry

Disciplines

Classical Archaeology and Art History

Comments

For Supplemental Material see: https://mobilizingthepast.mukurtu.net/collection/23-beyond-basemap-multiscalar-survey-through-aerial-photogrammetry-andes

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Wernke Steven A., Carla Hernández, Giancarlo Marcone,Gabriela Oré, Aurelio Rodriguez, and Abel Traslaviña. “Beyond the Basemap: Multiscalar Survey throughAerial Photogrammetry in the Andes.” In Mobilizing the Past for a Digital Future: The Potential of Digital Archaeology, edited by Erin Walcek Averett, Jody Michael Gordon, and Derek B. Counts, 251-278. Grand Forks, ND: The Digital Press at the University of North Dakota, 2016.