Field Data Archive

Abstract : A goal of the Air Force Research Laboratory Opportune Landing Site (OLS) program was to locate smooth, flat, obstruction-free unimproved areas that are safe for aircraft operations. The ERDC was tasked to evaluate the quality of OLS as located by OLS Multi-Spectral (OLS-MS) software developed by the Boeing Company utilizing Landsat multispectral imagery. ERDC also was tasked with predicting soil moisture and soil strength at OLS. ERDC conducted extensive field work at four Runway Assessment Sites (RAS) in Indiana, New Mexico, and California, and a Soil Assessment Site (SAS) in Indiana. RAS are sites for analyzing OLS, and SAS are sites for analyzing properties of soils of interest that are not located on RAS. Field measurements were made seasonally and included site geometry, vegetation cover, and soil conditions, including soil strength and soil moisture. This Field Data Archive contains quality controlled and processed data resulting from field work conducted in 2005 and 2006. The report describes the organization of structured electronic files in a computer-accessible data archive to provide a common information resource.