New LIDAR with 3x higher resolution

Boyd

Boyd

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While looking for something else I found that the USGS is now offering LIDAR DEM at 1 meter per pixel resolution - the LIDAR used in my maps is 3 meters per pixel so this is a big resolution increase (and files that are 9x larger!). If I understand correctly, the USGS has stopped shooting the 3 meter LIDAR and will use this new standard in the future. Coverage is still pretty limited but it looks like there's a good section of the core pines available

I downloaded just a portion to see what it looked like. It's very bumpy stuff, not quite sure what to think yet. I quickly threw this map together by rendering it with the atlas shader that uses color to signify elevation (like my LIDAR avaiable on NJPB Maps). Added some water, roads and other features so you can orient yourself. Here's the coverage area.

lidar1.jpg


And this is an example of what the full resolution imagery looks like.

lidar2.jpg



Here's the download link for a full resolution map in .kmz format that you can view in Google Earth. What do you think?

boydsmaps.com/download/lidar_HD.zip
 
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Boyd

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Theoretically it is showing "bare earth". You can see a grid pattern in some places, I think that's an artifact from how it was captured. Also realize that I have greatly exaggerated the terrain height to make it more visible. It shows Apple Pie Hill as though it was a 3,000 foot high mountain! :D
 
Boyd

Boyd

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Update: I have downloaded all the available 1 meter imagery and am finishing up a new LIDAR in the Pines HD map. Not sure when it will be available (hopefully later this summer) but here are some previews. The USGS has added more imagery, but there's still only partial coverage of the Pines. This map will be like my Map of the Pines HD, where you can zoom in one more click (to level 17) in the HD coverage area.

lphd-coverage.png


I have tweaked the rendering style to make the image more clear and less harsh than the examples I posted earlier in this thread. Have also added selective spot elevations in 5 foot intervals to give some idea of height. Click on the images below to see them at full level 17 scale.

lpHD-1.png


lpHD-2.png



Here you can see the resolution difference between my older 3 meter LIDAR (in the bottom half of the image) and the new 1 meter LIDAR (at the top).

lpHD-3.png
 
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Boyd

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Working on this again. Have tried a varety of ways to indicate elevation on the map and didn't like most of them. I tried adding contour lines and they were really a mess! Finally settled on a simple grid of spot elevations spaced 500 feet apart for the HD layer of the map (level 17). Am using a grid spacing of 1000 feet on the level 16 map, and no elevations on the lower zoom levels.

Here's an example that shows the difference between LIDAR in the Pines HD (level 17) compared to my old NJPB map (level 16) - click to see full detail.

compare-njpb.png


compare-boyd.png
 
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Boyd

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The "old" LIDAR has a resolution of 3 meters and the new LIDAR is one meter. So if you take one pixel in the old LIDAR, there are 9 pixels (3x3) to represent that same dot in the new imagery.
 
bobpbx

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Boyd said:
The "old" LIDAR has a resolution of 3 meters and the new LIDAR is one meter. So if you take one pixel in the old LIDAR, there are 9 pixels (3x3) to represent that same dot in the new imagery.
Click to expand...

The difference is striking. On Tuesday, I was on this little tributary of the Breeches Branch shown in your snip. In the older Lidar, it's barely visible. And in fact, it's not even shown on the topo.

upload_2018-8-2_10-18-51.png
 
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Boyd

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Actually, the old LIDAR is not even good enough for level 16, you are seeing an "over-zoomed" image when you zoom all the way in on the NJPB LIDAR. The usual standard for zoom levels is

Level 15 - 12 ft/pixel
Level 16 - 6 ft/pixel
Level 17 - 3 ft/pixel

So the old LIDAR resolution of ~10/ft (3 meters) falls between levels 15 and 16 and the new LIDAR is a good match for level 17 at ~3 feet (1 meter).
 
Boyd

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Boyd said:
Actually, the old LIDAR is not even good enough for level 16, you are seeing an "over-zoomed" image when you zoom all the way in on the NJPB LIDAR.
Click to expand...

Here's an example that clearly shows this. Both views are showing a level 16 map, but the new map is 6 foot/pixel resolution while the NJPB map is over-zoomed 10 feet/pixel. Of course the new map is also made from the higher quality 1m LIDAR, which helps a lot. This is one of those spots with data problems on the old map too. Click to see all the detail, but the difference is apparent even in the thumbnail.

devious16.png



Zooming in to level 17 really shows the difference!

devious17.png
 
Boyd

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Update January 2022: boydsmaps.com no longer offers downloadable maps and old links in this thread no longer work. However, you can use this map (and over 200 others) on your phone or computer here:

https://boydsmaps.com/#16.00/39.747794/-74.636326/lidarHD/0.00/0.00

The following two maps are newer and higher resolution

https://boydsmaps.com/#16.00/39.747794/-74.636326/lidar2021hd/0.00/0.00
https://boydsmaps.com/#16.00/39.747794/-74.636326/lidar2021bw/0.00/0.00
__________________________________________________________________________

LIDAR in the Pines HD is now available for download here:

boydsmaps.com/lidar-in-the-pines-hd/

It includes 60 pages of documentation, including a new section with mini-tutorials for using the map with 12 additional apps. Read all about it here:

boydsmaps.com/docs/lidar-in-the-pines-hd.pdf

If you find the NJPB LIDAR map useful then you'll want this one, it's a huge upgrade in every way. This is "the big one" - literally. It's a 15gb download, so just be patient and give it time.

Al said the beta version took him about an hour last week, and it was a bit larger. [edit] Just downloaded it again myself this morning and it took about and hour and 15 minutes, but I was doing other stuff on the internet at the same time.

Enjoy, and let me know if you have any problems.
 
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Toothy Critter

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:( took about a half hour to download and just as it got done a message said "error trying to access..." and poof, it was gone. But my PC is an old piece of junk so I assume it was me. oh well... looked awesome
 
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