WHAT IS LIDAR AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

Nowadays archaeologists are using LiDAR data for their research. With this data, they use laser light to produce high-resolution maps. Let’s know what this is and how it works?

WHAT IS LIDAR?

The full name of LiDAR is – Light Detection and Ranging.
LiDAR is a system of measuring the distance of different objects on Earth from a distance in which light is used as a laser with a pulse.
These pulses of light, working with data obtained from systems installed in air, give rise to precise three-dimensional information about the shape of the Earth and its surface characteristics.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The LiDAR device consists of a laser, a scanner, and a special GPS receiver.
Most airplanes and helicopters are used to obtain LIDAR data over long, wide areas.
The principle of LIDAR is simple. It throws a laser light at an object on the surface of the Earth and assesses the time the light returns and thus detects the distance of the object as the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second. Therefore, the precise distance of an object is detected incredibly fast.

PROBLEMS WITH LIDAR

LIDAR cannot function properly in foggy, rainy, snowy and dusty weather.
It is a bit difficult to locate a glass wall or door. That is why manufacturers of smart phones and self-driving cars do use LiDAR, but they also use some cameras and sensors.