2004 UC Proceedings Abstract
Debris Density Modeling of Space Shuttle Columbia: An Archaeological Assessment Track: Archaeology Author(s): Jeffrey Williams On 1 February 2003, the Space Shuttle Columbia was lost on reentry. Reported debris has been in all shapes, sizes, and quantities across a vast area of East Texas. With approximately 39 precent of the Shuttle being recovered, it is not hard to imagine the long-term implications of this disaster on the archaeological record. As search and recovery efforts began to take shape during the first few hours of the event, geospatial analysts at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches utilized remote sensing and GIS to map recovered debris with a horizontal accuracy of less than 1-meter using survey grade GPS units. To better understand the implications of this disaster on the East Texas archaeological record, a model illustrating high probability areas of encountering shuttle debris has been developed using ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst. Delineated with a high degree of precision, this model provides landscape-level visualization of the impacted areas. Jeffrey Williams Stephen F. Austin State University Arthur Temple College of Forestry P.O. Box 6109 Nacogdoches , TX 75962 US Phone: 936-468-1310 E-mail: jmwilliams@sfasu.edu |
|||||
