Remote Sensing in the 21st Century

26 April 2011

A new study is promoting the revolutionary impact of remote sensing on archaeological survey, from discovering Viking landscapes in Iceland, to recording the impact of the First World War in Belgium.

Compiling the results of a symposium of European experts held in Reykjavik in March 2010, the study looks at the achievements and potential of remote survey for understanding and managing archaeological landscapes.

The approaches investigated range from aerial survey in light aircraft using hand held cameras, to cutting-edge technologies such as multi- and hyper-spectral data collection, and airborne laser scanning – which allows for rapid recording of the earth’s surface in such fine detail that it can reveal archaeological remains. The study also highlights the vast and largely untapped collections of aerial images from the past 70 years, which could contain invaluable information on the historic environment – particularly in places where war or modern development may have erased any physical traces.

Titled Remote Sensing for Archaeological Heritage Management, and edited by RCAHMS Aerial Survey Manager Dave Cowley, the study presents leading expert opinions on best practice.  Examples of innovative projects are drawn from contrasting landscapes across Europe, including France, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland, Denmark and Hungary.

The volume was produced by the Europae Archaeologiae Consilium (EAC) and the Aerial Archaeology Research Group (AARG), with the support of RCAHMS, English Heritage, the Archaeological Heritage Agency of Iceland, and Swedish National Heritage.