Synonyms
Airborne laser scanning; Airborne laser swath mapping; Airborne light detection and ranging; Laser altimetry; Laser radar
Definition
Airborne laser terrain mapping (ALTM) is an active remote sensing technology that employs light detection and ranging (see Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR)) to measure topography at high spatial resolution over large areas. ALTM pulses a laser to measure the range between an airborne platform and the Earth’s surface at many thousands of times per second. Using a rotating mirror or other scanning mechanism inside the laser transmitter, the laser pulses can be made to sweep through an angle, tracing out a line or other patterns on the reflecting surface. With the scan line oriented perpendicular to the direction of flight, it produces a sawtooth pattern of ranges within a strip centered directly along the flight path (Figure 1). An integrated global positioning system (GPS) and inertial navigation unit are used to accurately determine the...
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Bibliography
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Starek, M.J. (2016). Airborne Laser Terrain Mapping (ALTM). In: Kennish, M.J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Estuaries. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_245
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8801-4_245
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