T247 Sigma Gamma Epsilon Undergraduate Research (Posters)

Tuesday, 29 October 2013
9:00 AM - 6:30 PM
Hall D

TERRESTRIAL LASER SCANNING (TLS) AS A TOOL TO DIFFERENTIATE AND CORRELATE UNCONSOLIDATED GLACIALLY DERIVED SEDIMENTS, YELLOW MEDICINE COUNTY, MINNEOSTA

Paper number: T247-70
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 9:00 AM – 6:30 PM

Authors

Abstract

The goal of this project is to determine if Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) can be used to distinguish characteristics of glacially derived sediment in an outcrop setting. TLS technology is based on Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), and is a geodetic imaging tool. Up to 11 diamict units are exposed in the bluffs along the Yellow Medicine River at the Upper Sioux State Park, Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota.

Although the bluffs are steep and dangerous, individual units have been described, sampled and analyzed for previous studies. The bluffs were scanned using a RIEGAL VZ-400, and the intensity of pulse returns was used to differentiate the till units exposed. The results of this research will provide insight on the applicability of TLS to Quaternary stratigraphy of inaccessible and hazardous outcrops.

Research for this study was funded by a grant from the N.S.F.-R.E.U Program (NSF-EAR 1262945).