Remote Sensing and Integration with Other Geomatic Techniques in Archaeology

Archaeologists can today interact ever more closely with the modern sciences of surveying, which as a whole may fall under the name of Geomatics. A scientific approach to Archaeology may be in fact reflected in the first place in the adoption of methods, both objective and based on rigorous criteria and tools, for knowing and describing the goods. Remote Sensing, as a technique for surveying a site from a distance by means of special detectors and using management methods based on mathematical and physical models, is by nature a practical expression of this phenomenon, whether it is meant in the most common meaning of use of satellite data or extending its acceptation to aerial photogrammetry. The paper will review some of the issues related to the use of Remote Sensing in the archaeological context, but particularly in relation to other disciplines of Geomatics; Remote Sensing is not, as noted, a technique that is “self contained” and restricted in its scientific and technical areas independently, but it relies on the wealth of other techniques and scientific fields, and they must fit perfectly, especially for archaeology applications which have by nature a highly multidisciplinary vocation.