THE USE OF UNMANNED AERIAL SYSTEMS FOR DIGITAL TOPOGRAPHIC AND THERMAL MODELING OF MOUNTAIN LAKE VIRGINIA

The primary objective of this study was to generate topographic maps using high-resolution video and still imagery collected by Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). The secondary objective was to create a thermal map layer for the topographic map using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) outfitted with an infrared camera (IR). The area in question is the exposed dry bed of the southern portion of Mountain Lake in Giles County, Virginia, where there is evidence of natural springs that may impact the lake’s delicate water balance. There is also evidence of a northwest-southeast trending fault that is being investigated as it might also relate to water budget issues.

To gather the necessary topographic and thermal data, a UAV will fly pre-programmed missions covering the areas of interest. The UAV will carry a high resolution camera and/or an IR camera on its underbelly with the camera set to take either a predetermined number of still frames per second or uninterrupted video. Within the area of interest, ground control points were established using bright markers, boulders, and/or other landmarks, and precise GPS coordinates were recorded of their locations. This resulted in properly scaled and positioned topographic and thermal maps and three dimensional computer models.

This presentation is a progress report. The resulting computer model of Mountain Lake will be printed in 3D and is expected to contribute to the scientific understanding of the lake’s underlying geologic structure as related to the landforms present. Scaled correctly, the computer model will be used to determine such helpful information as the volume of water needed to fill the lake, the surface area of the dry lake bed, and the locations and nature of drainage patterns developing across the former lake bed. The thermal map will be used to locate springs across the dry lake bed, where, in the summer, emerging cooler water is expected to be seen in contrast against the warmer ground surface.