2012 NOAA Lidar Survey of American Samoa Islands and Atolls

A 2012 airborne LiDAR survey covering approximately 75 square miles across the islands of Tutuila, Aunu'u, Ofu, Olosega, Ta'u, and Rose Atoll. The data was collected by GMR Aerial Surveys Inc. for the NOAA Office for Coastal Management, providing high-resolution elevation and intensity data with a nominal post spacing of 1.0 meter. The dataset includes classified points such as ground, water, and noise, and uses multiple vertical datums specific to each island.

Use Cases

• Modeling coastal erosion and flooding based on high-resolution ground elevation data.
• Creating detailed topographic maps for the islands based on classified ground points.
• Analyzing land surface and seafloor topography changes based on multi-return LiDAR data.
• Assessing terrain for infrastructure planning based on the 1.0 meter ground sample distance.

Strengths

• High-resolution data with a nominal post spacing of 1.0 meter or better.
• Covers approximately 75 square miles across six distinct islands and atolls.
• Includes multiple return and intensity data, classified into categories like ground, water, and noise.

Limitations

• Data voids exist in some mountain peak areas due to persistent cloud cover during acquisition.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The dataset uses different vertical datums for different islands, requiring careful integration.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Airborne collection using a Beechcraft King Air 90 and an Optech Gemini sensor.

Time Range

June 2012 to July 2012

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 22:18:20.991937; freshness should be verified.

Geography

American Samoa, including Tutuila, Aunu'u, Ofu, Olosega, Ta'u, and Rose Atoll in the Central Pacific Ocean.