GIS & Remote Sensing

Alongside the spatial revolution in the social sciences, archaeologists have increasingly powerful tools to manage and analyze spatial data, remotely detect archaeological features, and map landscape-scale infrastructure networks. I utilize several related methods that include the modeling of human mobility in GIS to predict likely travel corridors and the remote sensing of predicted routes using multi-band satellite imagery and UAV (drone) technology. Associated sites are mapped and groundtruthed in the field.
  • GIS modeling of human mobility between archaeological sites or resources can then be groundtruthed in the field.
  • Geoglyphs that mark desert routes depict a variety of figurative and geometric forms, including camelids, birds, cats, foxes, dogs, snakes, etc. These are mapped in high resolution using UAV drone technology.
  • GIS spatial analyses can be used to show density plots or hot-spot activity areas, such as the above figure showing sites with known portable rock art, or painted tablets.
  • Multi-band satellite imagery is used to construct a soil-adjusted vegetation index (SAVI) showing dense vegetation coverage (red). The analysis illustrates how road infrastructure sites (blue) are found within arid intermediate regions between major agricultural and population centers.
Empires in Motion utilizes various spatial analyses including: • GIS Spatial Analysis• Multi-band satellite imagery• UAV Drone Technology• Cost-raster Modeling (e.g. LCP)• 3D Photogrammetry
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