63-8 UAS-Based Photogrammetry and LiDAR in Post-Fire Mediterranean Landscapes: Assessing Archaeological and Geomorphological Features at Daou Penteli, Mt. Pentelikon, Attica, Greece After the 2024 Wildfire Season

Session: Geoarchaeology of Sites to Landscapes: Current Research on Long-Term Water and Soil Management and Maladaptation (Posters)

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During summer 2024, wildfires burned much of the vegetation in the Daou Penteli region on the southern slope of Mt Pentelikon, Attica, Greece, exposing slopes and drainage channels that had, until then, been obscured by dense cover. This presented a unique opportunity for an unpiloted aerial system (UAS) study to search for previously undocumented archaeological features and establish a geomorphic baseline for measuring fire-induced landscape change over time. This research focused on three adjacent drainages, employing UAS-mounted RGB photogrammetry and LiDAR to record both cultural and natural landscape features. The resulting high-resolution orthophotos, digital terrain models, and colorized 3D point clouds revealed terrace walls, field boundaries, and possible traces of past land use, while also capturing variations in slope form, erosion patterns, and vegetation recovery. By documenting these drainages in the immediate post-fire landscape, the project created a valuable dataset for tracking geomorphic change and supporting the discovery of new archaeology. This work demonstrates the dual potential of UAS-based survey for advancing archaeological interpretation and environmental monitoring in Mediterranean upland settings.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-9359

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