Thermographic Quantification for Archaeological Prospection at Picuris Pueblo, New Mexico

Abstract

This paper contributes to advancing thermal remote sensing for archaeological research. It proposes a new quantitative analysis of thermal imagery for subsurface feature prospection. Modern research trends and existing thermal remote sensing methods in archaeology are examined. Expanding on these methods, this study explores a new thermal imagery processing workflow with spatiotemporal variables extracted from a time series of thermal orthophotos. This proposed thermographic quantification enhances the thermal signature of subtle subsurface features on site, allowing undocumented structural features to be identified. This workflow is applied in a case study at Picuris Pueblo, New Mexico. Multi-temporal thermal signatures are processed using an original image differencing method. Using known subsurface features as training data, the thermal signatures of uninvestigated areas are classified to identify probable subsurface architectural features. The case study demonstrates the efficacy of the proposed thermal imagery processing method for subsurface feature detection and archaeological prospection. This method provides a nondestructive approach to studying Picuris Pueblo and similar occupation sites across archaeological landscapes, allowing contemporary research questions to be addressed.