Authors: C. Earls and D. Jonas
Australian Remote Sensing and Photogrammetric Conference, Australia, October 2004
Abstract
Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) has proven to be a cost-effective means of capturing highly accurate spatial data over large areas; the paper opens with a general description of this technology. ALS has been found to complement, rather than replace, photogrammetry so a comparison of the two broad-acre mapping techniques is offered. The fact that ALS has matured to an efficient production level has allowed practitioners to add ancillary sensors to the ALS aircraft. While the ALS is defining the shape of the ground and everything on it, other sensors offer a qualitative aspect to the survey. This paper presents Australasian examples of how the following imagery has been utilised with ALS data: laser return intensity, large-format photography, satellite imagery, small-format digital photography, colour infrared imagery, videography and thermography. Each one of these sensors provides useful data, but when they are combined with the spatial accuracy of the ALS, the resultant information is extremely powerful.
