Initial Publication Date: October 28, 2020

Prepared Data Sets, Remote Field Teaching, and Software Manuals

At times it is not possible to take students into the field to collect their own data and learn field methods directly. There are still a variety of ways that you can help students gain many of the same skills. This page combines geodesy-related remote field teaching resources AND prepared data sets.

It also includes a few field sites that could be revisited for change detection (pre-existing survey sites) and links to the software tutorials and manuals.

Prepared Data Sets from Field Geodesy

The data sets below can be used to teach elements of the two field methods modules.

Reasons why you might use these prepared resources:

  • You cannot go out in the field or cannot get access to the needed field equipment
  • You have a hardware failure in the field but still want to do a related exercise
  • You want examples from other locations or ideas for how similar exercises have been done elsewhere
  • You want students to have experience with other field applications that are not readily available in your area

Organized by location

 

Block Mountain, MT

Cache la Poudre River, Greeley, CO

Dixon Canyon, Fort Collins, CO

Eldorado Canyon, CO

El-Mayor Cucapah Earthquake Fault Scarp, Baja, CA

Landers, CA

Milligan Canyon, Three Forks, MT

Mt. Borah, Lost River Fault, Chilly, ID

Muskegon Beach, MI

Salmon Falls Creek, Buhl, ID

White Sands National Monument, NM

 

 

 

 


Compatible with Module: Analyzing High Resolution Topography with TLS and SfM

Unit 1-TLS: Introduction to TLS  & Unit 1-SfM: Introduction to Structure from Motion

Unit 2-Geodetic Survey of an Outcrop for Stratigraphic Analysis

Unit 2.1-Geodetic Survey of an Outcrop for Road Cut Design

Unit 3-Geodetic Survey of a Fault Scarp

  • Landers Fault Scarp, Landers, California
  • Hebgen Lake Fault Scarp

Unit 4-Geomorphic Change Detection

Unit 5-Summative Assessment


Compatible with Module: High Precision Positioning with Static and Kinematic GPS

Unit 1-GPS/GNSS Fundamentals

Unit 2- Kinematic GPS/GNSS

  • Salmon Falls Creek, Buhl, Idaho - Actively creeping landslide

Unit 3- Static GPS/GNSS Methods

  • Mt. Borah, Lost River Fault, Chilly, Idaho - Active fault

Salmon Falls Creek, Buhl, Idaho & Mt. Borah, Lost River Fault, Chilly, Idaho are Pre-existing GPS/GNSS Survey Sites

  • Resurvey existing benchmarks to see if change has occurred - National Geodetic Survey Data Explorer is a map interface for finding existing benchmarks known to NGS. For example, the Lost River Fault leveling line listed above was found using this interface.

Software Tutorials for Processing Field Geodesy Data

Structure from Motion (SfM)

Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS)

Point Cloud Processing

 

Remote Field Geodesy Teaching

When the COVID19 pandemic forced field courses to turn to remote teaching, GETSI collaborated with Sharon Bywater-Reyes (University of Northern Colorado) to support her development of a geodesy-oriented remote field course and collection of the necessary field data. Her course provides an example of how elements from the two GETSI Field modules can be combined into a comprehensive remote field course. The course and activities as taught at University of Northern Colorado have been submitted to the NAGT Teaching with Online Field Experiences collection and are linked below.

Course: Geoscience Field Issues Using High-Resolution Topography to Understand Earth Surface Processes