In this section we’ll take a look at how lidar survey works, how the data are collected and processed and why this matters when we are trying to use lidar data to understand the landscape.
Don’t worry though, the aim is not to become an expert in laser technology but to give you a grounding in the principles and issues. This will allow you to make sound judgements as you assess the data in the portal.
Lidar is a portmanteau of Light Detection and Ranging, describing a light-based measurement technique. People debate whether to capitalise the letters or not, so you’ll sometimes see it written as LiDAR. As we don’t typically capitalise radar (a comparable portmanteau for a measurement technique) it is acceptable to do either!
Click on the “lidar technology how does it work?” module below to get started.
Once you have completed all the steps in this lesson, remember to scroll to the bottom of this page to click the ‘Mark Complete’ button and continue to the next lesson.