Using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) to study Westport’s historic landscape

Using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) to study Westport’s historic landscape

Presented by Katherine Johnson

1 PM Saturday October 3

Westport Public Library, 408 Old County Road, Westport

Little Compton resident and PhD candidate Katharine Johnson will present her research that uses a remote sensing technology called Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) to understand the history of Westport’s landscape. This laser scanning device is attached to an aircraft, and has the ability to map the ground surface that is usually obscured in aerial photographs by New England’s dense forest canopy. This has led to discoveries of landscape features such as stone walls, building foundations, roads, and other features now in areas that are completely forested, but that were not in the past. The technology makes it possible to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the development and history of the landscape that might not otherwise have been possible. Three different LiDAR datasets have been collected for Westport in the years 2006, 2011, and following Hurricane Sandy in 2013 and 2014. This talk will examine the history of the landscape in this area, and provide insight into local areas of interest using LiDAR data. Suggested donation $5

Co-sponsored by the Westport Land Conservation Trust.