What is Lidar Point Cloud Data?
Learn LiDAR Point Cloud Data, its applications and Sources.
LiDAR Point Cloud data is widely used in Geospatial and Earth observation applications. This blog post will look into what Lidar data is, where and how to access it freely, and the open-source tools you can use to work with point cloud data.
In the next blog post, I will post a Python tutorial on Lidar Point ingestion, manipulation and visualisation.
What is LiDAR?
Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is a remote sensing technique that light from a laser to measure out the Elevation like buildings, ground and forest. LiDAR uses ultraviolet, visible or near-infrared sources to sense objects.
LiDAR calculates how long it takes a pulse — Light Energy emitted by Lidar — to return to the sensor to measure the distance. The result is a variable distance of objects on the ground, giving us an accurate 3D representation of Earth's surface. It allows us to examine natural and artificial features with accuracy and precision.
Lidar is widely used in different applications, including agriculture and forest management, architecture, transport and urban planning, surveying, geology, mining and heritage mapping.
