UAV Mapping Campaign for the Candidate Locations Hosting the CyCLOPS Permanent Segment (PS)

Following the requests to the Competent Authorities for obtaining permits for the installation of permanent GPS/GNSS station and Corner Reflectors in seven (7) parcels of interest, the CyCLOPS team proceeded with the mapping of the areas in order to create georeferenced 3D models (Digital Terrain Models, Digital Surface Models, and Orthomosaics) of high resolution. The models mentioned above and their generated data (e.g., Slope, Aspect, Viewshed, etc.) are necessary for the areas’ multi-criteria analysis, thus, combined with other data (e.g., satellite data), aim to select the installation points’ optimal location. The mapping process started on the 5^th of June and ended on the 29^th of July. The areas of interest were surveyed using a specialized UAV (eBee X) equipped with a GNSS receiver capable of measuring with the RTK method, thus achieving a maximum accuracy of 3cm without using ground control points, and covering areas up to 500 hectares (5Km²) in 90 minutes of flight. The UAV is equipped with senseFly S.O.D.A. 3D mapping camera (sensor 1”, RGB resolution 5,472 x 3,648 px (3:2)), which has the ability to change orientation during flight to capture three images (2 oblique, 1 nadir) every time, instead of just one, for a much wider field of view. The digital elevation models were created in Pix4Dmapper and analyzed in ArcGIS Pro.