Remote sensing in archaeology
Landscape features such as soil, vegetation, geology, and man-made structures of possible cultural interest have specific signatures that the multi-spectral satellites can help to identify.It is a hope of archaeologists that in the next few decades resolutions will improve to the point where they are capable of zooming in on a single pottery shard buried beneath the earth's surface.It is questions regarding subsistence patterns and related problems that have driven remote sensing methodology in the hopes of understanding the complex adaptations that the Maya developed.[4] It is also important to include a method called ground truthing, or the process of physically visiting (on foot) the localities surveyed to verify the data and help inform the interpretation.Sever's research on communication and transportation systems points to an extensive societal infrastructure capable of supporting the building and maintenance of the causeways and roadways.[9][10] In Peru, an Italian scientific mission of CNR, directed by Nicola Masini, provided important results by using satellite imagery for both site discovery and the protection of archaeological heritage.In particular, by processing QuickBird images a large buried settlement, including a pyramid, in the Nasca riverbed (Southern Peru), near the Ceremonial Center of Cahuachi, has been detected.[11] In the region of Lambayeque (Northern Peru), which is strongly affected by clandestine excavations, satellite imagery have been also employed for mapping and monitoring archaeological looting.A team including adventurer Ranulph Fiennes, archaeologist Juris Zarins, filmmaker Nicholas Clapp, and lawyer George Hedges, scouted the area on several trips, and stopped at a water well called Ash Shisar.Archaeologist Dr Sarah Parcak uses satellites to search for sub-surface remains, as described in her TED Talk on the subject of space archaeology and uses of citizen science.