A 5-meter resolution LiDAR intensity mosaic covering 265 square nautical miles of the southwestern Puerto Rico shoreline to approximately 50 meters depth. The Tenix LADS Corporation acquired the data for NOAA from April 7 to May 15, 2006, using a LADS Mk II airborne system. Reflectivity values are scaled logarithmically to an 8-bit integer range.
Use Cases
- Classifying seabed substrate types by analyzing the 8-bit scaled reflectivity values in the mosaic.
- Mapping coastal erosion and sediment transport by comparing reflectivity patterns along the shoreline.
- Calibrating water clarity models using the documented influence of environmental factors on data acquisition.
- Assessing bathymetric survey accuracy against IHO Order 1 standards for the project area and depth.
- Integrating the 5-meter gridded reflectivity data with other geospatial layers for habitat mapping.
Strengths
- 265 square nautical miles of coverage from the shoreline to depths up to 70 meters.
- Data collection meets IHO Order 1 accuracy standards for hydrographic surveys.
- 102 flight hours of acquisition provide dense 4x4 meter spot spacing with 200% seabed coverage.
Limitations
- Data is from a single acquisition period in 2006 and may not reflect current coastal conditions.
- The 8-bit integer scaling of reflectivity values may compress the dynamic range of the original measurements.
- Daily data acquisition was influenced by variable environmental factors like wind, clouds, and water clarity.
Provenance
- Source
- NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), collected by Tenix LADS Corporation.
- Collection Method
- Airborne bathymetric LiDAR acquired with a LADS Mk II system, processed using CARIS HIPS and SIPS software.
- Time Range
- 2006-04-07 to 2006-05-15
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Southwestern Puerto Rico coastline, from shore to approximately 50 meters depth, UTM zone 19N.