Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/11681/5333
Title: GIS-based OLS suitability assessment
Authors: Opportune Landing Site Program (U.S.)
Sensor Concepts and Applications, Inc
U.S. Air Force Mobility Command
U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory Air Vehicles Directorate
Ryerson, Charles C. (Charles Curtis)
Tracy, Brian T.
Scott, Forrest R.
Keywords: Aircraft operations
Landsat imagery
Opportune landing sites
Remote sensing
Publisher: Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (U.S.)
Engineer Research and Development Center (U.S.)
Series/Report no.: ERDC/CRREL ; TR-08-4.
Abstract: A goal of the Air Force Research Laboratory Opportune Landing Site (OLS) program was to locate large, smooth, flat, obstruction-free areas safe for aircraft operations. The ERDC was tasked to evaluate the quality of OLSs as located by OLS Multi-Spectral (OLS-MS) software that was developed by the Boeing Company and uses Landsat multispectral imagery. ERDC conducted extensive field work evaluating OLSs in Indiana, New Mexico, and California. However, while seeking these OLS-MS-selected field sites, many other software-selected potential OLSs were casually observed not to satisfy requirements with regard to obstructions. Our objective was to evaluate a statistically valid sample of OLSs for freedom from obstructions. We utilized OLSs located by the final version of the OLSMS software, plotted them over orthophotoquads, and assessed their intersections with obstructions within geographic information system (GIS) datasets containing natural and cultural features. A sample of OLSs was also visually evaluated to assess the accuracy of the GIS analysis process. Features in the GIS datasets often did not correspond exactly with features on the ground, a source of analysis error that may be due to digitizing uncertainty and differences in the creation dates of the images and datasets. The success of the OLS software in avoiding obstructions is presented in the results.
Description: Technical Report
Gov't Doc #: ERDC/CRREL TR-08-4
Rights: Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/11681/5333
Appears in Collections:Technical Report

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