HISTORICAL PRESERVATION AND RESOURCE DOCUMENTATION IN THE SALINAS PUEBLO MISSIONS NATIONAL MONUMENT, NEW MEXICO WITH HIGH-DENSITY LIDAR AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL GIS

HDR | e²M was contracted by the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) to generate highly detailed three-dimensional (3D) models in the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument using stationary terrestrial LiDAR for historic preservation efforts. The scanned features included the Abo Mission Complex and the Abo Painted Rocks. The objective was to record and catalog the integrity of both sites. Ultra-high density point clouds were created using LiDAR scans recording both intensity and RGB values. The datasets were analyzed using Applied Imagery's Quick Terrain Modeler. Quality control processes included removing data anomalies, extracting inadvertent features, conducting an independent accuracy report, and qualitative assessments. The Abo Painted Rocks dataset was further processed to facilitate GIS integration by altering default coordinate system orientation to compensate for rock shelter wall overhang. Digital elevation models (DEMs) were created using the LiDAR point clouds. The DEMs provided the means to generate Triangulated Irregular Networks (TINs) that were integrated, shared, displayed, and analyzed in ESRI ArcScene. RGB values recorded from the scans were applied to the TIN to create a realistic visualization of the project sites. An aerial photograph was draped onto an USGS DEM to further enhance the existing 3D environment. Deliverables included refined point clouds, DEMs, TINs, aerial photography, and associated project files. A freeware visualization and basic analysis tool was supplied to NPS for further investigations. Most importantly, the LiDAR scans and derived geospatial products will serve as baselines for future change analysis studies.