Maps and archives
LiDAR helps custodians record rock shelters hidden in rugged terrain
A community partnership in Australia's Blue Mountains has recorded three previously unregistered rock shelters using airborne mapping and field visits.
- Published on DetectMap
- Field survey (date not stated by source)
- Not specified by the source
What the source confirms
The University of Sydney and Australian Museum reported the work on 14 October. Researchers collaborated with the Dharug Custodian Aboriginal Corporation through the Gulamada Project.
Drone-based LiDAR uses laser pulses to map landscape shapes in three dimensions. Teams checked potential shelters on the ground, confirming six registered sites and three unregistered ones containing rock art and stone artefacts.
How to understand it
The significance lies in combining mapping with cultural knowledge and field verification. A promising shape in a digital model is a lead to investigate, rather than a complete account of a site's history.
Open questions
The team plans to test the approach in other Australian environments. The announcement does not give the dates of the field discoveries.
Original sources
- University of Sydney: LiDAR-assisted recording of Aboriginal rock shelters
- Source published
- Source checked