Abstract
The variability of currently available remote sensing datasets raises the question of which specific processing methods should be used for feature detection and feature extraction in both large and small-scale overhead images. In some cases, particular analyses allow us to carry out feature detection much more easily and effectively. The high-definition approach enables enhanced analysis of remote sensing data using all the spectral and graphical potential of multi-temporal ordered components. The deserted urban site of Kona Makhmūr, Iraqi Kurdistan, is taken as a case study to demonstrate this fine-grained approach. The analysis described in this paper is based on the complementary use of a variety of overlayed imagery, augmented by data from terrestrial surveys. The resulting map substantially enhances our knowledge of the built environment and the economic and environmental conditions of this early Islamic-period site. Spectral analysis of raster images allowed us to detect the real shapes of features, and with the addition of digital elevation model (DEM) (created via unmanned aerial system (UAV)) we were also able to interpret the state of preservation of the overground relics and the diachronic dynamics of their degradation.
Highlights
During recent decades, there has been an explosion in the variety of remote sensing datasets available for the Middle East area
This paper offers an extended approach to the processing of remote sensing datasets, based on the development of graphic parameters and the application of various visualization algorithms on a multi-temporal remote sensing dataset in an intra-site context
Historical aerial photographs, together with satellite imagery, create a basic database of input source data for more detailed analyses of morphological aspects of archaeological sites, and their most significant application is in the area of research on deserted or still-occupied urban units (Figure 1)
Summary
There has been an explosion in the variety of remote sensing datasets available for the Middle East area. The predominant dry steppes and extensive open plains, undisturbed by agricultural activity in some areas, can preserve a wide range of archaeological sites These are often visible as very discovered relics in the field. Such features are detectable via direct or indirect feature indicators revealing the remains of objects hidden under the earth’s surface and via direct detection of still-preserved parts above the surface. In the latter case, it is possible to work with the elevation topography of the site and document above-ground relics in three-dimensional space.
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