Seeing Beyond the Visible: Using remote sensing data to understand the historic environment

Prospection for archaeological features within a landscape is of primary importance to the study and conservation of the historic environment, yet traditional methods such as aerial photography often result in knowledge clusters and gaps, belying the palimpsest of human activity across the centuries. This lecture will discuss the novel application of remote sensing techniques that have become standard tools for the environmental sciences over the past 30 years such as airborne laser scanning and hyperspectral imaging, to archaeological landscape research. What benefits do these data bring for our understanding and what are the pitfalls as we apply sensors and data designed for environmental survey to entirely new challenges?