Terrestrial Scanning / Topography & Monitoring

Hurricane Katrina – New Orleans, USA 02.11.2005

Preservation of information regarding the magnitude and geometry of structural and geotechnical deformations is paramount for the analysis of levee failure modes. This chapter describes the areas of focus and methodology used in laser mapping of surface evidence of levee deformation and distress at ten areas within the greater New Orleans area. The NSF-investigation team included two researchers from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) who brought to the field area a terrestrial laser mapping tool to perform laser scanning or LIDAR (LIght Detection And Ranging) data collection.