The data explosion: tackling the taboo of automatic feature recognition in airborne survey data

Abstract

The increasing availability of multi-dimensional remote-sensing data covering large geographical areas is generating a new wave of landscape-scale research that promises to be as revolutionary as the application of aerial photographic survey during the twentieth century. Data are becoming available to historic environment professionals at higher resolution, greater frequency of acquisition and lower cost than ever before. To take advantage of this explosion of data, however, a paradigm change is needed in the methods used routinely to evaluate aerial imagery and interpret archaeological evidence. Central to this is a fuller engagement with computer-aided methods of feature detection as a viable way to analyse airborne and satellite data. Embracing the new generation of vast datasets requires reassessment of established workflows and greater understanding of the different types of information that may be generated using computer-aided methods.