Much as radiocarbon
dating that half a century ago moved archaeology forward
by grounding archaeological remains in time, LiDAR is proving to
be a catalyst for an improved spatial understanding of the past.
With LiDAR, ancient societies can be contextualized within a fully
defined landscape. Interpretations about the scale and organization
of densely forested sites no longer are constrained by sample
size, as they were when mapping required laborious on-ground
survey.