ASCII xyz point cloud data were produced from remotely-sensed, geographically-referenced elevation measurements in cooperation with the
U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and National Air and Space Administration (NASA). Elevation measurements were collected over the area using
the NASA Experimental Advanced Airborne Research Lidar (EAARL), a pulsed laser ranging system mounted onboard an aircraft to measure ground
elevation, vegetation canopy, and coastal topography. The system uses high-frequency laser beams directed at the earth's surface through
an opening in the bottom of the aircraft's fuselage. The laser system records the time difference between emission of the laser beam and the
reception of the reflected laser signal in the aircraft. The plane travels over the target area at approximately 50 meters per second at an
elevation of approximately 300 meters. The EAARL, developed by NASA at Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, measures ground elevation with
a vertical resolution of 15 centimeters. A sampling rate of 3 kHz or higher results in an extremely dense spatial elevation data set.
Over 100 kilometers of coastline can be easily surveyed within a 3 to 4 hour mission time period. When subsequent elevation maps for an
area are analyzed, they provide a useful tool to make management decisions regarding land development.
Original contact information:
Contact Name: Amar Nayegandhi or John Brock at USGS
Contact Org: Jacobs Technology, contracted to USGS
Title: Computer Scientist
Phone: 727-803-8747
Email: anayegandhi@usgs.gov
This data set is an LAZ (compressed LAS) format file containing LIDAR point cloud data.